Dorset_Mike
It's about time mine changed
Reged: 11/05/2006
Posts: 1690
Loc: Poole, Dorset.
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I was trying to sort the car insurance yesterday, changing myself from named driver on Joyce's policy to only driver, they wanted £40+ to cover from now to mid October. What f***ing difference could it make who is first and who is second driver?
Hence Policy cancelled immediately, went on line for a quote and got Saga for about £120 less than NU Direct. Not worth the hassle to cancel the other car policy only got about 4 weeks to run, plus I'm flogging it, can't drive 2 at once!!
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Cheers, MIKE
Save oil, bring back steam.
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karriman
enthusiast
Reged: 31/05/2006
Posts: 349
Loc: Fog on the Tyne is all mine
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Yours is a very touching story Mike, and it involves members of the Financial Circle who are only interested in profits.Good on you for standing up on principle, at this, what must be a very traumatic time to inform us of the actions of this insurance company.
Bless you and yours.
My thoughts are with you all
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Beware P**ing into the wind is hazardous to youre trousers.!!!
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MickLL
Two Grand Man
Reged: 01/08/2004
Posts: 2508
Loc: SE England
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Quote:
What f***ing difference could it make who is first and who is second driver?
The insurance company assumes that the first driver will drive more miles than the second driver and so assumes that their main 'risk' is the first driver. They also base their no claims discount on the record of the first driver. Until recently a second driver, however long they had gone without a claim, would have a zero NCD if they then became the policy holder. That's why some parents (improperly) take out a policy in the parent's name but actually the driver is their newly qualified child. That's a good example of the difference that first/second driver makes.
If the policy holder changes then the risk changes and the premium changes.
On top of that they may well have wanted to hit you with an admin charge for making the change. It's one of the hidden costs that have crept in since all the motor insurers started to shave their premiums in order to compete.
They also suck you in with a low first year premium and then hit you with a big rise in the second year. That's why some companies confidently say that they will beat your renewal premium. It's also why I change insurers more or less every year.
I'm not condoning any of the above, just reporting the way it is!.
MickLL
Edited by MickLL (20/07/2008 08:32)
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AGW
Reged: 03/10/2003
Posts: 7645
Loc: Ayrshire
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I was talking to my dad yesterday and he had been hit by a huge increase in his home insurance...
So he phoned them and asked for an explanation....he was passed about until he got to some bright spark who could "do a deal". He was assured that he was a loyal customer and that they didnt want to loose him so they offered him a huge discount. Pleased at having achieved this my dad then pointed out that they were offering a price well below the price they had charged for the previous three years! Oh...well...er...um...
Needless to say my dad felt slightly less valued and a tad ripped off...so he is now phonning around.
Graeme
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AGW (BSRIPN)
Blessed are they who see beautiful things in humble places where others see nothing. (Camille Pissarro)
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Photocracy
The Great Pretender
Reged: 18/11/2006
Posts: 491
Loc: Sunny South Coast
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In my experience, most insurance companies are beneath the level of pond life and it is a liberation to free yourself from all but the most essential insurance. It's certainly the best policy I ever had! 
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Rob
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MickLL
Two Grand Man
Reged: 01/08/2004
Posts: 2508
Loc: SE England
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Quote:
In my experience, most insurance companies are beneath the level of pond life and it is a liberation to free yourself from all but the most essential insurance. It's certainly the best policy I ever had!
You won't believe this story but I promise it's true and I'm going to tell it anyway.
My son had exactly the same attitude and was determined not to renew his household insurance. He spent the weekend with me and when he got home at about 11pm, one hour before the expiry of his insurance, he found that a fault in the central heating system had caused the whole of the oil fuel tank to be emptied over his kitchen floor.
The insurers (by coincidence Norwich Union) were superb. It cost them more than £15,000 by the time the claim was settled.
My son now thinks that insurance is wonderful
MickLL
PS I've realised that the tone of my posts here might need a disclaimer. I do not have, nor have I ever had, any connection with any part of the insurance industry other than as an ordinary customer.
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longhum
I had a dangly thing
Reged: 16/05/2006
Posts: 836
Loc: Herts
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I wanted a month's insurance on my new car to run concurrently with the old one while I sold it and the company fleeced me for £90 with reason that my full NCB and other discounts were applied to the old car and would transfer to the new one when that was gone, but in the meantime I had to pay full price for a month's insurance.
I pointed out that I could only drive one of the cars at a time and asked if they really wanted me as a customer, but they said it was policy. So I cancelled both insurances and went to Saga.
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Mike
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NorthernNikon
Bulls Hitter
Reged: 16/12/2005
Posts: 5614
Loc: Harrogate, North Yorks
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Quote:
In my experience, most insurance companies are beneath the level of pond life and it is a liberation to free yourself from all but the most essential insurance. It's certainly the best policy I ever had!
Having worked in the insurance industry in the past, my opinion is that the vast majority of people have unrealistic expectations of insurance. Few people check or read their policies, few people work out how much their sums insured should be and few people sit down and work out whether the risk in not having insurance is worth the savings.
Some insurance policies are simply not worth. One type which immediately springs to mind is legal cover on household policies. Often the very service they're trying to sell you is provided free by either a creidt card provider or other member services e.g. Saga, The AA, RAC etc.
Insurance companies have a reputation for for cost cutting, and while the benefit of that is cheaper premiums the downside is the fact that other charges such as admin fees are charged to cover costs. The key is that even if you're happy with your insurer, shop around in plenty time before renewel just to keep them honest. Many of them won't have the ability to reduce premiums as they're calculated on computer based systems, but sometimes they can. Also, often even slight errors in your details can affect premiums so it's best to double check your schedule when it comes through.
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www.BarneyAllen.com the new home of ComicShots.
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Ian_A
Avocadopearaphobe
Reged: 02/09/2002
Posts: 7574
Loc: Horwich UK
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I made two claims on Norwich Union Direct in the last 12 months, one for a D200 that got a bit bent when a tripod fell over, the other for computer equipment destroyed by lightning.
The renewal quote last week was double what I'm currently paying, so I looked elsewhere and was offered insurance £2 a month less than the old premium - and that includes allowing for the two claims. I phoned NU back and told them about the rival quote, but they wouldn't entertain reconsidering, so they're history now as far as I'm concerned.
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Ian A
Inspire Digital Solutions who maintain this site (allegedly) - why is the performance of this forum so slooooow?
Our site
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