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.
