car insurance

[Bill-K]

Re: car insurance

I dunno. I recently stopped insurance on a car 'mid-term,' and did so by cancelling the Direct Debit and informing the insurer that the 'risk' had ceased. I was not forced to continue paying my monthly instalments for the rest of the year. It may well have become 'accepted' that we pay our car insurance in one-year 'chunks,' but I don't think that is now any more 'acceptable' than the old 'accepted' charge of £25 to £39 for bouncing a cheque. Once a car is written-off, then the insurance 'risk' ceases to exist. So the underwriters get a full year's premium for just 6 months cover ?

I don't think so. We have been programmed over the years to accept such things as 'grace and favour' privileges, when in fact we are being ripped off all along. It may well be 'custom and practice,' - but I really don't think we should be accepting that without a challenge. NOT here - of all places !!!

Being 'allowed' to spread the cost of an upfront yearly premium over 12 months in NOT a favour, IMO. It is a loan - just like front-loaded PPI is - and it is subject to loan interest. Writing off the car effectively returns the remaining 'goods or service' back to the supplier, in that the risk ceases to exist - and the 'loan' is paid off early.

[IanM]

Re: car insurance

I would have thought that if you took out a years insurance and you paid by installments and then after 3 months you wrote off the car then the insurance would be cancelled the same as if you sold your car and cancelled the insurance. They must not be able to charge you a full years insurance for a 3 month period just because you just happened to have an accident.

I would keep pushing them to give you your £675 back.

[TUTTSI]

Re: car insurance

Ian you are so very wrong on this occasion. Let the poster check the terms and conditions as I have asked them to do and also answer my questions and then we can see what more can be done.

I would have thought that if you took out a years insurance and you paid by installments and then after 3 months you wrote off the car then the insurance would be cancelled the same as if you sold your car and cancelled the insurance. They must not be able to charge you a full years insurance for a 3 month period just because you just happened to have an accident.

I would keep pushing them to give you your £675 back.

[Bill-K]

Re: car insurance

I expect the T&C's will probably support your assertion, Tuttsi. What I think Ian and I are saying is that these are UNFAIR T&C's - and, as such, they should be challenged by the likes of us guys, and NOT just accepted as 'custom and practice.' We did it with penalty charges, didn't we ? The banks had to re-draw their agreements. We're doing it with PPI, now. Who's next ?

Car insurers ?

Why not ?

[enaid]

Re: car insurance

Car Insurance when bought, is unless stated a YEARLY POLICY and you pay it in monthly instalments if you so wish and the company allows you to do so.
You are not purchasing a policy until I have an accident and the car is written off.
If you are paying monthly it does not mean that your car has been insured for that month and if you have an accident in that month all your policy is paid up.
If you want car insurance month by month then I am sure some insurance company would oblige but I should imagine you will have to pay over and above what a normal yearly insurance costs.
That's my view, after all if you bought something from a catalogue and you lost it the week after you got it do you think you would not have to pay what you still owed for the goods?

[TUTTSI]

Re: car insurance

Bill it is NOT an unfair T&C's as much as a lot of you here all believe it is.

You if you purchase an annual policy say cost is £1000 but they agree to let you pay this over say 12 months. You have only paid 3 months when you have a crash and a total write off so only say £250 has been paid. Now your insurance cost £1000 for this risk why should they pay out on only receiving £250 for this risk when they are 75% down on that risk.

Maybe a fair way would be if this was the scenario that the insurers only paid pro-rata to what has been received. So on this basis say the claim is £2000 and they have only paid £250 which is a quarter so then they could pay £500 less any excess that was agreed on the T&C's. I personally do not think this way would work which I have just described as a lot of people will be worse off if their car was worth far more.

I agree with Enaid you can I suspect buy monthly insurance and not an annual policy which the risk would be that much greater so the monthly premiums would be very expensive and most people wont take on a comitment like that unless they are not keeping the car on the road for the whole year an it suits them to pay over the odds.

Unfortunately, it is an expensive passtime and one that we have to have if we want to be on the road with our cars so that we are legal.

]I expect the T&C's will probably support your assertion, Tuttsi. What I think Ian and I are saying is that these are UNFAIR T&C's - and, as such, they should be challenged by the likes of us guys, and NOT just accepted as 'custom and practice.' We did it with penalty charges, didn't we ? The banks had to re-draw their agreements. We're doing it with PPI, now. Who's next ?

Car insurers ?

Why not ?

[the hawk]

Re: car insurance

Woah sounds like ive stirred up a hornets nest !I will say a few more things and then i will shut up lol1. I agree with Great Dane these are unfair terms and conditions, and yes IT SHOULD BE CHALLENGED! and thanks for recognising that fact2. Just because its the NORMALLY ACCEPTED PRACTICE does not make it right3.Are you really saying DONT HAVE AN ACCIDENT UNTIL youve completed the payments? is that the reson one insurer gives you insurance for 12 months but you only pay for 10 SO YOU CAN HAVE A WRITE OFF IN THE LAST 2?? yes I am angry I cant believe that this has hid under the radar for so longThats my rant over I have posted a story in my Local paper maybe i can get this some noteriety, my local MP and ive hit the nationals even if i get no where at least motorists at large will get to here about this "Pasty Tax"any one? lol

[messimoo]

Re: car insurance

it is getting more and more expencive to drive Mr M's 2 ltr deisel mondy is only 8 years old has over 10 years driving with no claims at all (only windscreen which we went to repair a crack and autoglass broke it LOL) has no convictions over 30 yet when we moved from a town to a more rural location and baught the mondy our premium went up from 600 to over 1400 paying montly that is bad . When we questioned this was told it was the younguns who refuse to insure the cars and false claims that bump up the premiums , A bitter pill to swallow but little we can do now as we have to wait until August for renewal and look elsewhere . We are literally being priced off the roads,

[alham]

Re: car insurance

Insurance, like a few other things (public transport, air travel) have their own laws and rules that may have been acceptable when created originally, but in the 21st century are way out of kilter with our understanding of what is fair and acceptable. Unfortunately, however much we runt and rave the car insurance risks, UNLESS stated otherwise, are covered on a yearly basis, same as the road tax and MOT. Once insurable risk occurs the policy will still carry on until its expiry date!

With regards to fairness we must start a process to change things like Warsaw Convention covering air flights or by-laws covering public transport, etc...

[enaid]

Re: car insurance

Well if you have an accident and you are paying monthly the policy is not finished as the car is still insured and either parties insurance company pays out, penalties are taken out then via no claims bonuses etc.
This is about when a car is a write off and the car is no longer insurable as it no longer exists.

[Sapphire]

Re: car insurance

Blimey Messi that is sure some insurance premium, I agree come August I think its well wise for you to shop around. Here's mine see what you think

56 year old woman, no convictions, maxiumum no claims bonus, I drive a brand new Ford Focus 1.6 powershift auto 61 plate, I got it from the dealers 18th November 2011 with 10 miles on the clock.

Insurance - fully comprehensive is now £20.70 monthly (my insurance runs out in August so that the difference from my old car insurance, which was over £35.00 month).

But I also realise that if I were to be in an accident that the premiums would have to carry on until the end of the insurance year, as Enaid says there are probably insurers out there that will let you insure your car for a month at a time, but you will pay through the nose for it. Also Tuttsi is perfectly right in what she is saying, you really do need to check your T & C's and as she says, if you doubt her then why not give someone such as Direct Line a ring and check it out.

When you've done that then please come back and report your findings and perhaps give Tuttsi and anyone else who has helped an apology for doubting their advice.

[alham]

Re: car insurance

Not correct my friend. Even when the car is written off the policy carries on. Say, the car is written off because not worth repairing, you buy it back from insurer, repair it - the policy will carry on covering it until expiry (I did this twice, once in early 90s, the second time a few months ago). Whether or not you buy the vehicle back the policy carries on - say you replace the written off vehicle, the replacement, especially if like for like, will be insured on the original policy until its natural expiry. That's the reason why I asked about the replacement offer in thread 11 - they need to be pressed hard to get the better deal.

[messimoo]

Re: car insurance

1400 is a bit much don't seem quite right (kwik fit) but if we cancel we get penalised for it so stick it out is all we can do yet funnily enough the house insurance is great only 105 with swift (paid that upfront) but looking at the car insurance that is expencive with them its a case of damned if you do damned if you dont , Many years ago when I was underwriting (in the 80's) we looked at the cases by risk factor (claims etc) type of car mileage doneper year, age of driver, additional drivers, where the car was parked overnight and area. Nowadays it seems that although the basis is the same they love to add on the extras (a massive amount for paying by dd) sneakily adding on legal expences breakdown cover etc, we checked ours and have none of the extras to me it seems that we are being told if you are not rich you shouldnt be driving, use public transport instead which is just as expencive.

[alham]

Re: car insurance

Keep going at them and they will improve their offer. Good luck

[Sapphire]

Re: car insurance

I think Alham that yes the insurer does need to be pressed harder, besides its always worth querying any offers like that, sometimes you do get a result and get a better offer.