Archive for the ‘Insurance’ Category

Direct Line admit their mistake – a year after the accident and only with help of Daily Mail

Posted on: July 18th, 2012 by Richard Raw No Comments

D. B. of Woodford Green, Essex writes:

More than a year ago, a stolen vehicle crashed into my car while I was driving — I ended up in hospital.
The car hit two other vehicles before the thieves abandoned it and ran off.
The police report states I am not at fault.

Despite this, insurer Direct Line says I am.
It has increased the cost of my insurance and I have lost my no-claims bonus and been forced to pay a £250 excess.

The Traffic Criminal Justice Unit has a two-book report on the incident available to Direct Line.

Direct Line has chosen not to look at this, and has made its own conclusions.
It has even said the police are only giving their opinion and that it knows better, even though there are eyewitnesses.

At 76 years of age, being accused and threatened by my insurer has left me at my wits’ end.
It has even said that the thieves could make a claim against me for up to six years.

The Daily Mail’s This is Money column responds:

I’ve seen plenty of cases where insurers have tried to dodge a claim by relying on small print.
But this is one of the few I’ve ever come across where they have refused to accept solid facts and the word of the police.

To doubt the word of one of their customers is one thing.
But to ignore eyewitnesses and a Criminal Justice Unit report beggars belief.

Direct Line should be thoroughly ashamed of its behaviour. And it is.

It seems that rather than accepting the police version of events, it chose, instead, to rely on the report of a garage engineer, who was not even there!

An embarrassed Direct Line spokesman told me:

“Our investigation has concluded that the service provided to Mr B. was not up to the usual standard our customers have come to expect from us.

“Due to the unique circumstances of this claim, more should have been done for Mr B. to support him after such an incident.”

Direct Line has quite rightly apologised.
It is refunding your excess and amending your policy to show this was a no-fault claim.
It is reinstating your no-claims discount to the same level it was before the incident.
And it is sending you a cheque for £300 as a gesture of goodwill.

63% of drivers in UK staying with existing insurer

Posted on: July 18th, 2012 by Richard Raw No Comments

Almost two thirds of British drivers (63 per cent) haven’t switched insurer in the last 12 months despite record high car insurance premiums, according to research from leading comparison site Gocompare.com.

Worryingly, 31 per cent of drivers haven’t switched for more than three years.

In that time, the average fully comprehensive car insurance premium has more than doubled.

The figures show that it isn’t just car insurance where households are potentially missing out on savings.
The switching figures for home insurance and energy are even worse with 80 per cent of households sticking with their gas or electricity supplier and 72 per cent saying they haven’t switched home insurer in the last 12 months.

Over a quarter (26 per cent) of Brits admit they have never switched any of the top 20 personal finance products, with bank accounts topping the least-switched list:

Bank accounts (41 per cent of people have never switched)
Broadband provider (29 per cent)
Savings accounts (23 per cent)
Credit cards (20 per cent)
Energy provider (16 per cent)
Home insurance (12 per cent)

John Miles, business development director at Gocompare.com, commented,
“There has been a cooling off in terms of car insurance premium increases in recent months but they remain at record high levels.

BMW Boot

BMW Boot

If drivers haven’t switched for a couple of years they could well be paying too much and may be able to find the same cover at a much cheaper price by shopping around.

“Making comparisons for everyday financial products can save you a packet. Using Gocompare.com customers could save up to £395.19 by simply changing their motor insurance policy.

“There are still opportunities for real savings to be made – but, as our survey demonstrates, a large number of people haven’t switched despite the obvious benefits.
In particular, for many drivers, car insurance premiums remain close to record high levels. Average premiums have more than doubled in the last three years, so motorists can make some significant savings by checking deals on comparison sites.

“Our advice is simple – never just accept your insurance renewal quote without checking that the new premium is competitive, and take time at least once a year to check that you are not paying over the odds for your other household bills.

“Comparison sites like Gocompare.com provide fast and up-to-date information on what’s available, helping people access not just a cheaper deal, but enabling them to more easily compare products to find the best value for money.”

South Yorkshire Police to shame uninsured drivers

Posted on: June 21st, 2012 by Richard Raw No Comments

Uninsured vehicles in South Yorkshire are being put on display in Sheffield to shame the drivers who’ve failed to get cover.

Uninsured drivers kill 160 people and injure 23,000 every year according to the Motor Insurers’ Bureau. They also add around £30 a year to every honest motorist’s insurance premium, amounting to more than £500m a year in costs to the UK.

MIB research suggests that 1 in 10 young drivers don’t know they need insurance, despite the fact that it is a legal requirement.

Once an uninsured vehicle has been seized by South Yorkshire Police the owner has to produce a valid insurance certificate within seven days. They then have a maximum of 14 working days to claim their vehicle before it is crushed.

Drivers without insurance face prosecution, which will result at the very least in fines and points on their licence making it more difficult to obtain insurance in the future.

“Uninsured vehicles are a real danger on our roads, as a force we are seizing uninsured vehicles every day in order to make our roads safer for everyone. Since January this year we have recovered 780 uninsured vehicles, 200 of these have subsequently been crushed because the owner could not provide valid insurance documentation”, said PC Bruce Yacomeni, South Yorkshire Police.

Source: ITV News