Insurance Companies!!

[Dodger]

How can they be so dodgy?

Buildings Insurance quote for the house we will own as from Friday.......ask the company that we have contents with and they quote me £300 and I tell them they must be taking the pish as a company have offered me better cover at a better price.They come back and ask me what price and what cover,I tell them the cover but it's up to them to give me their best price and that best price turns out to be a "superb £203".

Superb eh??!!

Aye no superb enough pal,try £92 you joker.

How can there be such a difference for the same cover?

 

[Farneyman]

Its the mugs that dont challenge them.

 

[CMAC]

They are all shonky.

Renewed my car insurance this week, current company (that I've been loyal to and paid for years with no claims) £527!
about 20+ companies through comparison sites are all under £400
cheapest with superb all round cover was M&S Bank at £330, took a few hours to make the switch with paperwork and comparing etc etc but that's nearly a £200 saving:thup:

I believe they rely on people not taking the time to shop around

 

[Fader]

They are all shonky.

Renewed my car insurance this week, current company (that I've been loyal to and paid for years with no claims) £527!
about 20+ companies through comparison sites are all under £400
cheapest with superb all round cover was M&S Bank at £330, took a few hours to make the switch with paperwork and comparing etc etc but that's nearly a £200 saving:thup:

I believe they rely on people not taking the time to shop around

Snap.. Did my car insruance renewal recently on a much smaller car this year to than compared to last year and my insurance company wanted £742 thats over £200 more than I paid last year! and when I enquired about adding HID onto it, it went up to £1029 because she is only 23!

Bit of shopping about and M&S came in at £550 on the nose and that includes covering HID on my car as well, so a saving on what my own company wanted for me of £192 and just under £500 on what they wanted for HID to be on it to...

All insurance companies are dodgy though and will continue to get away with it becuase not enough people these days challenge their prices just merely accept them. I remember changing home insurance last year after my previous insurer put my policy up to £31 a month and said thats the most competitive prce in the current market, quick call to a few different companies and now I pay £11 a month through the same insurer but via a broker!

 

[MegaSteve]

Its not the cost I worry about its how they deal with any claims thats more important... The cheap 'n cheerful are often that for a reason... And, yes I have experienced 'difficulties' when making a claim using on-line insurers which is why I no longer bother with them... Prefer to use a trusted local broker...

 

[Big_Rick78]

My girlfriend got her renewal through for her car insurance, and it seemed a bit much, so we looked around, got the same cover for £100 less, but and heres the thing, it was with the same company!!
I think they definitely think people are too lazy to look around.

 

[Fader]

Its not the cost I worry about its how they deal with any claims thats more important... The cheap 'n cheerful are often that for a reason... And, yes I have experienced 'difficulties' when making a claim using on-line insurers which is why I no longer bother with them... Prefer to use a trusted local broker...

Only problem is you never know how good any companies claims system is until you have to use them! But thats why having some local brokers in this online age is still a good thing so you still get that face to face interaction. Sadly i'm governed by my bank balance and his has to be cheapest option that offers the most for my money and cross my fingers their clains dept are good.

 

[MegaSteve]

Only problem is you never know how good any companies claims system is until you have to use them!

Any company vying to be the cheapest in all cases should ring alarm bells... As should any companies with connections with RBS!

 

[GreiginFife]

Any company vying to be the cheapest in all cases should ring alarm bells... As should any companies with connections with RBS!

Not necessarily. Good processes don't cost the earth and paying a higher premium does not always correlate to effective processes.
In fact, there are a good number of situations where companies have leaned their processes and passed savings on to the customer.
MoreThan offer a great range of house and car cover for less than many of the smaller, less known companies.

On the point of brokers, what does the broker actually do? My understanding of a broker was to find you the best deal from a range of companies (not them directly as they are not providers) so if you need to claim do you contact the broker to act as a third party or contact the insuring company directly? If it's the former then you are including an un-necessary process step and probably being charged for the privilege.

 

[MegaSteve]

MoreThan offer a great range of house and car cover for less than many of the smaller, less known companies.

Hmmmm... It just so 'appens that it was 'rubbish service' from MoreThan that ensured I went back to using local brokers for my insurance needs...

And when it all goes wrong it's a lot more pleasant dealing with somebody face to face rather than somebody in a far off place who doesn't understand my dialect... Which is perfectly understandable as I ruddy well don't understand theirs... Doesn't do the old blood pressure any good whatsoever!

I can be a bit more relaxed if it was just about getting my old banger sorted... But when it comes to your home you wanted sorted right and yesterday to boot ...

 

[GreiginFife]

Hmmmm... It just so 'appens that it was 'rubbish service' from MoreThan that ensured I went back to using local brokers for my insurance needs...

And when it all goes wrong it's a lot more pleasant dealing with somebody face to face rather than somebody in a far off place who doesn't understand my dialect... Which is perfectly understandable as I ruddy well don't understand theirs... Doesn't do the old blood pressure any good whatsoever!

I can be a bit more relaxed if it was just about getting my old banger sorted... But when it comes to your home you wanted sorted right and yesterday to boot ...

I guess that's the bit I don't understand is the "dealing face to face" bit. Surely the broker isn't the provider and would need to act as a 3rd party to the claim? Or does it work differently? (Only broker I ever dealt with was Endsleigh for insurance on my wee XR2i back in the day and it was a nightmare when some daft burd totaled it.

 

[vkurup]

Switched from current car insurance to Direct Line.. saved £200.. Came handy when HID brushed the car and had to queue up at the local chip shop for a lick of colour..

 

[MegaSteve]

I guess that's the bit I don't understand is the "dealing face to face" bit. Surely the broker isn't the provider and would need to act as a 3rd party to the claim? Or does it work differently? (Only broker I ever dealt with was Endsleigh for insurance on my wee XR2i back in the day and it was a nightmare when some daft burd totaled it.

Last two motor claims I have made I have done through a third party losses claim recovery provider... Not my fault so why should I have to drive around in a Ford KA with no wheel trims and Joe Bloggs Repairs emblazoned accross it...

Aside from our on-line 'experience' with MoreThan the last claim I made regarding my home was dealt with by my then local broker... You walked in told them what happened they filled out the necessary forms and expedited the claim... Couldn't be easier and relatively stress free...

 

[Sweep]

Sold my beloved sports car for a 4x4 (with room to get my golf clubs in). Contacted my insurance company who said the cost for insuring the 4x4 was working out the same (how convenient) at £1700!! I asked if they understood the difference between the cars, that one went 0-60 in 4 secs and the other, well didn't. Amazingly, the price dropped to £1200. While they were messing around doing the calculation, I went on Go Compare (in spite of the really annoying advert) and was quoted £500. A saving of £1200!!!