HELP please Budget Car Insurance

[theGobbyOne]

Hi Guys
long story short..................
I bought a car of Ebay in October 2007 a citroen saxo on a 52 plate knew it had been an insurance write off got a VIN check and it was fine. Insured it with Budget as fully comp.....I had an accident in December car a total write off!!!!!!

Heres the deal...............My insurance is underwritten by MMA and they originally offered me £1400 I told them to get lost...........They upped it to £2050 which I said I wasnt happy with but if that was the limit then so be it...........Sent all relevent docs back and got a call yesterday informing me that because on the log book it has a previous total loss that they would reduce my payout by 20% I argued the point with the lady in question and told her this was NOT in my terms and conditions and I would relook at my policy and contact them today. Had another look and it is definately NOT in my terms and conditions anywhere. So I rang back and played a bit dumb(not hard for me) and asked what was the approved amount on the system less my excess(£250) and the 20% she said a payment for £1890 had been approved and was pending( which means final valuation was nearer the £2700 mark) which didnt make sense as its higher than the £2050 minus the excess and 20% of final payment so it should have been £1400 but I didnt want to tell her that so asked her to clarify that was the amount AFTER excess deducted and 20% because my car had previously been a total loss for the previous owner. She confirmed this for me so I again raised the issue that this 20% reduction was no where in my terms etc etc. She said I would have to take this up with the broker (Budget) and query it with them. Any ideas??????????
Surely they CANNOT change terms when I have a claim???
And who do I argue with??? MMA or Budget............like I said I took the policy with Budget but the underwriters are MMA.
Obviously I am not going to do anything until I get my cheque and its banked as I could shoot myself in the foot but it doesnt seem to make sense to me.
Thanks

[BBB]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

Budget are the broker and they have not insured you, it is MMA who insure you so you would need to dispute this with them.

Secondly, there is nothing on your V5 registration document/log book that would indicate that the vehicle has been a previous total loss.

With regards to the value of the car, what was its condition? Had it been properly repaired? You are entitled to the market value of the car, so it would be worthwhile checking on some of the sites such as Parkers to get a value. I would also check the likes of Autotrader and Exchange & Mart and see what Saxos of a similar age and condition are going for on there. These ads can be used as a bargaining tool if required to demonstrate what it would cost for you to replace the car.

[theGobbyOne]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

Budget are the broker and they have not insured you, it is MMA who insure you so you would need to dispute this with them.

Secondly, there is nothing on your V5 registration document/log book that would indicate that the vehicle has been a previous total loss.

With regards to the value of the car, what was its condition? Had it been properly repaired? You are entitled to the market value of the car, so it would be worthwhile checking on some of the sites such as Parkers to get a value. I would also check the likes of Autotrader and Exchange & Mart and see what Saxos of a similar age and condition are going for on there. These ads can be used as a bargaining tool if required to demonstrate what it would cost for you to replace the car.

Actually BBB it does state on V5/log book previous total loss I read it myself when I got the log book after the VIN check. My car had done 50,000 and was in excellent condition and had been repaired before I bought it and since I bought it I replaced ALL tyres, brakes, new exhaust and clutch!!!!!!
Its the 20% I want to dispute as it is nowhere in my terms and conditions which were provided by Budget that if you insure a previous total loss car that they reduced any subsequent claim by 20%.

[BBB]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

Bear in mind that some cars are classed as a total loss because it is not economic for the insurance company to repair and it is cheaper for them to pay out the market value. If it has been properly repaired then that should have no bearing on it's value as far as the insurance company are concerned.

If they are sticking by this 20% reduction then you will need to invoke the insurance companies complaints procedure and fully exhaust this before going on to the financial ombudsman service (FOS).

[theGobbyOne]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

I should maybe be a bit clearer about my gripe with MMA...............While I am happy with sum offered I am hacked off that they have reduced it by 20% because its company policy to do so if they find out that the car had previously been an insurance total loss BUT they do NOT have this in any of the terms and conditions so I think they have broken the terms of my contract with them as it is my clear understanding that once a contract is accepted by both parties i.e. myself and the insurer they cant just the decide to place a penalty clause in it if I have a claim........I only paid a £1000 for the car but I do not want to be ripped of 20% (approx £560) by the company.

[WendyB]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

I can see where you're coming from on this one Gobby. BUT I would wait and see what amount the cheque is for when it gets to you. Because if they pay you 1890 instead of 1400, then you are only being "ripped off" for 70 quid, as thats the diffrence between the 560 and the 490 they might accidentally be paying you. And although it may not specifically say in their terms "if a car has previously been classed as a total loss we will reduce the amount of your claim by 20%", you can bet your bottom dollar there's something in there, somewhere, some catch-all term which mutters about "failure to disclose salient/relevant facts blah blah blah" which they'd get you on anyway.

[theGobbyOne]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

I can see where you're coming from on this one Gobby. BUT I would wait and see what amount the cheque is for when it gets to you. Because if they pay you 1890 instead of 1400, then you are only being "ripped off" for 70 quid, as thats the diffrence between the 560 and the 490 they might accidentally be paying you. And although it may not specifically say in their terms "if a car has previously been classed as a total loss we will reduce the amount of your claim by 20%", you can bet your bottom dollar there's something in there, somewhere, some catch-all term which mutters about "failure to disclose salient/relevant facts blah blah blah" which they'd get you on anyway.

My understanding is that because I told them I wasnt happy with the offer of £2050 originally made that they then increased the payment to just over £2600 and from this they took the excess and then the 20% so if it was only £70 I would leave it but it isnt its more like £500-£600. Thats why am so blooming narkd at them for it.

[WendyB]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

Oh, I get you now. Just look on the bright side, if they are gonna take 20%, then at least they've taken it off the higher amount rather than off the 1400 they originally offered you......if you'd have agreed the 1400 you'd only have £870.00. I don't know enough about insurance and terms and cons to comment, really, though. I don know that if there's the tiniest loophole, they will drag you through it, kicking and screaming, though.

[theGobbyOne]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

Hi
Got cheque in post today for £1890....get it banked then am going to kick off about my 20% reduction

[Amethyst]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

Excellent.

Yes i think you should - if it isnt in the terms of the contact/insurance then they cant just decide to spuriously charge it.

[Amethyst]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

"We are supplied with true and complete information about the car and the insured drivers" It is an underlying principle of insurance that the customer must disclose true and complete information so that the risk can be determined accurately.




So be careful they don't pull the cheque for non disclosure.




Apparently it is standard procedure for them to take a % off a future payout for a previous total loss but should be in your docs somewhere.

[Paule]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

Check the accompaning letter, as it will usually say that that on the basis of you cashing the cheque that it is in full settlement of the claim

[theGobbyOne]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

Check the accompaning letter, as it will usually say that that on the basis of you cashing the cheque that it is in full settlement of the claim

NO letter with cheque just a with compliments thingy no explanation etc no breakdown nada zilch nothing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And definately nothing about taking 20% for previous loss damage etc etc......It wasnt a question I was asked and there was nowhere that asked for any info about the car at all.........Do you thin I shouldl eave it???? MMA told me I had to take it up with my broker and not with them as my contract is with budget they just underwrite for budget if that makes sense
And thanks for all your help guys.

[BBB]

Re: HELP please Budget Car Insurance

If it's not in the policy then challenge it. You have nothing to lose and 20% to gain