Annual (actually twice annually) nightmare - car insurance

[Dave2002]

For historical reasons (due to inheriting a car around ten years ago) I drive a car as a main driver which is insured by my wife. She drives a car as a main driver which I insure.

Every year this is a nightmare, as we try to get sensible quotes from insurance companies. The complications are trying to explain that we each have X years (more than 9) but on each other's policies.

Since we stopped using a broker as uncompetitive a few years ago trying to sort this out each year is really painful. I think last year I didn't bother, and we just remained with the same company, and it probably only cost us about £10 more, but this year the savings for switching even just one car to a different insurer are clearly well over £100.

This is an area where the words "customer" and "service" seem impossible to reconcile in the same sentence.

[ardcarp]

Obviously there are some complications there. Couldn't you just swap 'ownership' of cars? Anyway, whatever the hassle (pressing buttons and being kept on hold to the strains of Vivaldi...if you're lucky) you can ALWAYS get a huge chunk knocked off your renewal premium by telling them you've had a much cheaper quote elsewhere. One of our vehicles (we've only got two!) had the premium reduced from £290 to £195 with the same company just by haggling. The companies just rely on the fact that many of their customers can't be bothered and just renew automatically.

I also had my SIM-only phone contract reduced from £19.99 per month to £11.99 by telling them I'd had a better offer (which I really had) from another provider. I also got more data and unlimited calls thrown in.

[Dave2002]

Obviously there are some complications there. Couldn't you just swap 'ownership' of cars?

I don't want to drive the other car if I can avoid it! It's OK on occasions.

The situation arises because of bonkers rules, and is probably made worse by allowing insurance companies to somehow keep electronic records which some of them apparently share - though it's not consistent, and the interaction with computer systems.

In the end we did manage to change insurance companies, my wife reinsured my car yet again with a new insurer, and seemingly the data they managed to access about us meant that we didn't have to go through tedious attempts to get the "necessary" documents regarding NDC status etc. from the current - shortly to be previous - insurer.

It all seems odd that in the UK companies are allowed to maintain and keep information for lengthy periods (at least 9 years), while elsewhere .... http://www.nevadacarry.org/blue-cards.html

[gradus]

My experience is that car insurance is run as a gambling operation with prices fluctuating constantly. It bears little resemblance to the insurance methods of yesteryear, just as banking has changed out of all recognition.

[Dave2002]

My experience is that car insurance is run as a gambling operation with prices fluctuating constantly. It bears little resemblance to the insurance methods of yesteryear, just as banking has changed out of all recognition.

Quite.

Fairly obviously there is "real" risk, and the possiblity of sensible underwriting, but I think that most insurers are driven by marketing etc., and trying to figure out ways of "screwing" as much money as possible out of (sometimes) gullible punters. As for loyalty ... we usually have a conversation every year or two about the "disloyalty bonus" - which affects people who don't either change insurers, or renegotiate with their original insurer.

[Dave2002]

Unfortunately things have got worse. I think I'm going to have to write to my MP and trade ministers etc.

I am getting really fed up with UK companies providing very poor service. Nobody seems to care any more. Perhaps they never did!

[antongould]

Unfortunately things have got worse. I think I'm going to have to write to my MP and trade ministers etc.

I am getting really fed up with UK companies providing very poor service. Nobody seems to care any more. Perhaps they never did!

No a lot of companies used to care a great deal .......

[MrGongGong]

Insurance companies sponsor motor racing and the like
I wonder where they get all their money from ?

[Dave2002]

We have had two claims in the last fifteen years that were for parked empty cars, so no drivers involved on our part. The insurance companies don't care, don't keep good records, and they post them as "fault" claims even though that's blatantly impossible. Then they can't cope with which driver to assign the "blame" to, even if there were protected NCDs involved. Now they seem to use a system called CUE. Overall they are dire, but may try to come back and claim that customers were trying to pass off false information, and bump up their income further.