Got my insurance renewal through on Friday. It runs out on the 28th. Last year's was £700 fully comp, this year is £1350! Upon questioning it, it appears that both collisions are still "open" on my insurance company's files and these have bumped my premium right up.
The one in March I didn't even use my insurance for as it was a straight "he drove in the back of me" thing, and I claimed off his insurance using one of those companies that help you do that (not sure if I can name them).
The accident in August, the other driver admitted full liability for, but it is still being sorted as the repair was well below standard.
I spoke to the Brokers today and they suggested I talk to the insurer and try and get them to close the files, but after keeping me on hold for 15 minutes I got a recorded message saying the office was now closed. So I've written them a stiff letter which should get there tomorrow.
The Brokers said my only option really is to pay the £1300 and get a refund when the insurer eventually do settle the claims, but there's no telling when that could be and I just can't afford that.
So...
Can I go to another insurer and just say I've had 2 non-fault accidents, or will they check with Link and see that the files are still open?
Can I force Link to give me back my 2 years no claims? What can I do?
Sorry to keep going on about this, but at the moment I feel like giving Polo away to a good cause and getting a bike!
Thanks
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I was talking to a guy who reckoned he was in the know, when you have an accident the insurers put this on a database that is accessable to all the other insurance companies, so the days of one insurance company taking on a risk the others won't touch is gone.
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Hi
I was in the same boat a couple of years back. A guy drove into the back of me at a roundabout. The guy admitted liability and another person stopped and gave me his details and said he would act as my witness if I needed him too.
Anyway, came to insurance renewal and the claim was still open. After argiung the case back and forth I eventually had to settle on them saying that they would refund me the difference when the claim was settled.
Of course, the claim was settled and I was offered a tiny refund (can't remember the specifics). It worked out that after the refund there was still about £250 difference between what the insurance would have been with my circumstances and the amount of no claims I had to what they were offering me now.
Again, argued back and forth and eventually got another refund but I was still about £150 out of pocket all for some prat driving into the back of me at a roundabout.
Don't think you can go to to another company. You still have an 'outstanding' claim and failure to declare this would surely make your new policy void in the event of an accident.
It's just the insurance industryand there isn't anything you can do about it.
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>It's just the insurance industryand there isn't anything you >can do about it.
ok so can I just park the car outside my house uninsured while I wait to sell it? There's no way I can afford this stupid quote.
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Try www.elephant.co.uk I got my insurance through them. No no claims with the accident specified in you last thread at £711.9.
Give them details of the accident etc and see what they come up with.
Cheers
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Just had a look on the old insurance ombudsman's website. I found this relating to unsatisfactory repairs:
www.theiob.org.uk/bulletins/bulletin22/section8.ht...l
There might be something on the website as to whether it is considered fair for an insurance company to withold no claims when the other party has already admitted full liability. There might be something on the new financial ombudsman site which takes over from the old insurance ombudsman.
teabelly
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This is rough treatment simple as that.
I was involved in a serious car accident only two weeks before my renewal. An eight car pile up, three of them written off (including my car) and easily a five figure sum to repair the other five including one Lexus GS with a stoved in front.
As I was at the front of the accident, the police report was outstanding and also any call on liability, my renewal was not weighted as no blame had yet been apportioned.
I would consider contacting the Ombudsman after you spoken to someone senior from your insurance company.
Also, if it is not your fault, will they be refunding the excess premium?
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Does your insurance company not offer the possibility of monthly payments? I think most do, and if that's the case then maybe you could pay the (admittedly inflated) monthly payments and get the figures adjusted when the insurance business is all sorted out? Might be much more affordable that way.
Good luck
HF
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I'd agree that Elephant is worth a look. You can (or at least you used to be able to) cancel mid-term and get a proportionate refund if you sell the car. (You can't do this with the parent Admiral.)
I was in a similar situation with my renewal last week. Three years dropped down to zero until the claim gets sorted after a court case. The Admiral group companies don't have a massive difference between the years NCD. My premiums would have been about £720 with NCD vs the £860 I paid.
Two tips for the Admiral group are:
1. Add your mum to the policy, whether she ever drives the car or not (or any other suitable older female).
2. Make sure the later claim is down as fault (i.e. 'Yes' for the lost NCD question).
These both saved me money. The latter one is truthful for both me and you (until the no-claims is recovered). I'm not sure why a fault claim reduces the premium but it does for me.
James
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Sorry about your predicament.
Anybody have anything to say about the thought which was given to me once: It is a NO CLAIMS bonus, not a NO BLAME bonus
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HF's monthly payment idea is good if the company offers it. If you go for anything like that, try and get written confirmation of how much you will be refunded when the claims are closed and you NCB restored.
GJD
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>>The one in March I didn't even use my insurance for as it was a straight "he drove in the back of me" thing, and I claimed off his insurance using one of those companies that help you do that (not sure if I can name them).
Ring your insurance company, or the claims department, and ask for the status of the claim. Ask if they have actually paid anything out at all. If you have any receipt or letter from the other guy, his insurers or your loss recovery company confirming that you managed to claim your money/repairs, then get this off to them. It should be sufficient to have the claim closed.
If they refuse to accept that, then if you are confident that the claim has gone away, write to them and formally withdraw the claim stating that they will have no future liablility in connection with it.
>>The accident in August, the other driver admitted full liability for, but it is still being sorted as the repair was well below standard.
Almost certainyl a red herring. Do you have a policy excess ? I seem to recall reading that you did. Get the other guy, or his insurer to pay it. Send a photocopy of the cheque and any accompanying letter to your insurer. Anything else outstanding including the repairs to your own vehicle is their issue. On receipt of proof that you have recovered your uninsured losses this claim should also go away.
A couple of other points though...
Your broker is probably correct that you will need to pay the full amount until this is sorted out. In which case, speak with the broker since they be prepared to accept a partial payment. Remember that they do not actually pass the money on to the insurance company for around 60 days and in the meantime it sits in their client account earning interest.
No, you cannot describe this as non-fault accidents without explaining why your current insurer is withholding your bonus.
You will need to ring them back, even if they keep you waiting for hours.
You cannot park your car on the road uninsured, whether or not you are actually driving it.
If your broker was any $%%^& good then they would speak to the insurance company and get these claims sorted. A point worth mentioning to your broker in the same moment as you point out you're going to take the business away from him if he doesn't get off his bum and earn his 20%.
Link is a Lloyds syndicate and therefore a little more difficult to push than a composite, but typically the individuals have a little more leeway. You need your broker to speak to the underwriters at Link, since they have the freedom to charge you a partial payment pending resolution of the claims if they choose to do so. Howevwer, you cannot force them.
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Thanks everyone!
An update, and some good-ish news.
Phoned the claims dept when I got in from work yesterday. The accident from March has been immediately changed to 'bonus allowed' so I now have, in their eyes, only one fault claim against me. However, coincidentally yesterday they also advised me that liability was not in dispute for the August accident, ie the other guy has admitted he needs his eyes tested and isn't fit to be behind the wheel of one of those plastic cars you get in the Early Learning Centre, let alone a big yellow lorry.
Anyway... I've finished work now ready to go back to uni on Monday so I have all day tomorrow and Friday to hassle the underwriters at Link to sort this out. The woman I spoke to tonight was possibly one of the most helpful I've ever spoken to, and seems to think I might have my 2 years NCD discount back by the weekend. Miracles do happen!
Oh and the other bit of news is that I have the Micra back for a couple of days while they sort Polo out. Got the receipt today for my excess so that will be going in the post to the brokers tomorrow.
Thanks again. I will, as ever, keep you updated :-)
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PG: you may probably already know these key tactics when dealing with "customer service staff", but here goes anyway as it may help others -
1. Always make a note of the date, time, and name/status of person you speak to.
2. Be polite yet firm, assertive yet never agressive.
3. When dealing with an "out of the ordinary or unusual or abnormal" situation, always ask to speak to a senior supervisor or senior manager. The clerk at the end of the phone usually is only trained/qualified/authorised to deal with everyday normal average situations.
4. In cases like 3 above, follow up with a letter stating what you believe was said and agreed.
One query: you say >>" ..Got the receipt today for my excess so that will be going in the post to the brokers tomorrow ..">>. I thought (maybe wrongly?) you had said in a previous thread that the other party were dealing direct with your claim and not via your Insurer. If so, how come you had to pay any excess?
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>One query: you say >>" ..Got the receipt today for my excess so >that will be going in the post to the brokers tomorrow ..">>. I >thought (maybe wrongly?) you had said in a previous thread that >the other party were dealing direct with your claim and not via >your Insurer. If so, how come you had to pay any excess?
Yet another piece in the saga I'm afraid. The company fixing the car wouldn't let me have their courtesy car until I paid my excess. With the most recent claim, I have used my insurance because I was lead to believe it would be quicker. I now know that whenever an accident isn't your fault, you should claim straight from the other person.
You live and learn I suppose! :)
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PoloGirl,
"Never give in;never give in,never,never,never - In nothing,great or small,large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense".
Winston Spencer Churchill 1874/1965.
Matt35.
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Morning!
I now have the first accident recorded as bonus allowed, and the second as non fault but can't have my 2 years NCD back until they've recovered their losses. Still don't think it's fair but insurance company weren't budging and GISC said they weren't doing anything technically wrong. Had to smile when someone actually used the phrase "it's a no claims bonus, no no blame" as someone predicted further up this thread.
As soon as those two changes were made, the renewal with 0 NCD went down to £1023 which is £300 less than before and £1000 less than the nearest other quote so that's something! I'm going to pay monthly and hope they get it sorted asap. Don't really want to stay with Link but I think it's best for now. I don't think they will have too much trouble recovering their losses as I spoke to the other bloke's insurance co yesterday and they are refunding my excess as soon as they get the receipt in the post.
I'm a firm beleiver in never giving up, but in some cases you have to know when it's more beneficial to you to stop stamping your feet! I have more important things to worry about this weekend - like turning 23! Not long til I hit 25 and never have to stress over insurance again! :)
Thank you all for your words of wisdom!
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>Not long til I hit 25 and never have to stress over insurance again! :)
Hate to spoil your day PG, but that's a bit of urban myth in my experience - my insurance was not significantly cheaper at 25 :( I am just waiting to see if 30 makes any difference :) Doubt it! Maybe, though, it's just because I drive a 'high risk' car (Xantia TD, eh??) Still costs £400 to insure even though I have 8 years NCD now.... Only solution to cheap insurance is a) be a woman and b) don't bend your car so you get the NCD! Well, you've got one out of two already, and the other is on the way. Sadly I shall never* achieve a).
* Although I understand it's medically possible these days, I don't think I'll be going down that route just to save 10% on my insurance!
RichardW
Is it illogical? It must be Citroen....
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Sadly I shall never* achieve a). * Although I understand it's medically possible these days, I don't think I'll be going down that route just to save 10% on my insurance!
But if you were to take this rather drastic step, would it be recognised by the insurance industry?
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Given the cost of achieving a, lets say 10grand in surgeons fees, it would take you a very long time to recoup the savings.......
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