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Legal, pensions and money

Car insurance renewal -raging!

(47 Posts)
Jane10 Tue 29-Oct-19 10:46:06

I recently had my car renewal info sent by Direct Line. It seemed a big increase. However, DH was speaking to a broker re his car (he has complicated stuff related to his vintage car and business) and they easily came up with a quote that was more than £100 cheaper, with better cover.
I was so cross that Direct Line, who I'd been with for years, was quite cynically overcharging me. Well they've lost our business and DH's (which is a big loss to them as he has a car company)
I know that its common knowledge that people should shop around for insurance, electricity, telecoms etc but surely businesses could work out that its worth appearing to give at least an impression of integrity or even, gasp, valuing existing customers.

Happygirl79 Sun 16-Feb-20 11:16:33

Ive often asked my insurer for a "loyalty discount".... and explain that its being offered the same deal as a new customer would be given. Amazing how quiet they go after that.

Esspee Sun 16-Feb-20 10:51:57

If when I shop around I am given a better quote I always get back to my original insurer to let them know why I am leaving them.
If they then are prepared to reduce my premium I make it quite clear that if they had charged me that initially I would be happy to stay with them. That they can now do it shows they were trying to take advantage of me initially and I refuse to ever do business with them again.
Please, please gransnetters do not give these grasping people your money. Go with the company which first gives you the better quote.

FlexibleFriend Sun 16-Feb-20 10:41:01

I've just had my renewal from axa and the price has remained the same as last year, which in itself is odd because last year I got a discount because my son was with them and he no longer is.

Happygirl79 Sat 15-Feb-20 21:26:06

Also always renew car insurance 21 days before your renewal is due for the most competitive price

Happygirl79 Sat 15-Feb-20 21:24:32

Always untick the box which says in small print Autorenew.. I rarely stay with my car or home insurer at the end of the term because to be loyal is to be ripped off

Xxjanexx Mon 13-Jan-20 17:14:09

My insurance renewal come through last week and was only £12 more expensive then last year!
I still went on the compare sites but couldn’t find anything cheaper.

I must admit I’m a real haggler when it comes to utility’s it’s saved me a fortune over the years.

tinaf1 Mon 13-Jan-20 17:06:57

Sorry should have been change my address

tinaf1 Mon 13-Jan-20 17:06:00

Car insurance is the pitts they make it up as they go along.
We recently moved house, when I contacted my insurance which is AA to change my insurance I knew there would be an admin charge , I was charges £32.00 !
£12.00 admin and £20.00 because new post code was deemed higher risk than my previous one.(We moved 15 minutes from our previous address)
My husband is with Morethan was charged £12.00 admin fee no mention of post code.

SalsaQueen Mon 13-Jan-20 17:03:54

I shop around every year for my car and home insurance. I don't believe any company deserves loyalty these days. I also shop around for a good broadband price, from time to time.

GrannyLaine Mon 13-Jan-20 16:41:53

Loyalty is a non-concept in the insurance world as others have pointed out. The best time to get quotes is 3 to 4 weeks before your renewal date, prices will go up the nearer to the deadline you get. I find the MoneySavingExpert website has good links and advice for keeping premiums low

Davidhs Mon 13-Jan-20 16:03:58

Loyalty costs a great deal wether it is insurance, banks, energy or anything else, it’s a lot of extra work. Best option is to google a comparison site and choose the deal that suits best (not just the cheapest)
My car insurance was up for renewal this week the existing insurer wanted £300 more than the best deal.

Esspee Mon 13-Jan-20 15:19:07

When told by any company that they will match another’s I refuse to accept and go with the company which offered the best price first.
Why remain loyal to a business which was prepared to rip you off if you hadn’t challenged them?

craftyone Mon 13-Jan-20 15:05:27

I am pleased with my saga car renewal, only up by £16 this year to £281, I was convinced it would be up more. So glad I haven`t got to do another form

Jane43 Wed 08-Jan-20 09:51:12

We were with Direct Line for years then after we retired and had more time to look into our finances we noticed how much the premium was going up each year. So we changed to M & S for three years and had the same problem with the premium going up about 25% each year so when we queried it they offered us a small discount went with Hastings Direct who we have found to be very good and when we changed our car last June they waived the fee they could have charged us for changing the details on the policy. We got a cash back of £80 through Top Cash Back the first time we went with Hastings Direct and if you go to the cinema regularly it is worth going through Compare The Market. There are deals to be done and it’s worth haggling but the majority of people accept the rise or don’t notice it until the policy has been renewed automatically.

ayse Sun 10-Nov-19 19:30:56

Much to my surprise, this year the current insurer reduced my premium. I still checked if there were cheaper deals but couldn’t find any significant differences, so stayed with them.

I loathe having to go through this rigmarole every year for every utility etc. It wastes so much time. ?

jacq10 Sun 10-Nov-19 17:41:56

I'm on my own now and no-one to discuss a lot of things with. I don't mind doing a bit of research but phoning up and threatening to leave to get a better price is not my style. Last year my car insurance went up about £50 so consulted Swinton who still have a local branch here and they said they couldn't find a cheaper policy so I just renewed. However, this year not only did the price stay the same, they notified my that my policy now included roadside asssistance. This enabled me to discontinue my cover with AA which has been annoying me for a while as it keeps going up despite adverts everywhere for similar cover for half the price (but of course only to new members!) Two months into my new insurance policy my battery died on me one very wet and cold night and the assistance provided by new company was excellent so happy days all round - just hope it continues.

sunnydayindorset Sun 10-Nov-19 17:06:59

I found when shopping around that when I added things on like protected bonuses and looked at the size of the excess, a lot of the cheap quotes weren't . ( Especially as Mr Sunnyday managed to get 3 points last year) I went through my policy with NFU and we realised that I was paying for more milage than I needed. Got £80 reduction .

Jane10 Sun 10-Nov-19 16:55:18

When I got back to Direct Line to say I'd accepted a much better quote from another company they more or less said, 'Oh dear well cheerio'. Maybe they thought I was 'at it' trying to get them to reduce their quote but I wouldn't do business again with them. I'm happy with my new one which is more than £100 less and with all sorts of extras included in the price.

Opal Sun 10-Nov-19 16:43:10

I think the moral of the story is, whatever renewal quote you get, compare it and then query it with the quoting insurance company - chances are you'll get a reduced quote. I always challenge every quote, and they always reduce - and I use different insurance companies for different insurances.

Canalboatgranma Sun 10-Nov-19 16:08:32

I forgot to renew my AA cover so I phoned for a new quote and it was about £100 more than my old renewal quote. I asked if they could do any better and in the end my new quote was cheaper than the old renewal quote.

travelsafar Fri 01-Nov-19 07:50:54

I agree it is such a weird way of doing business!!

We use AA insurance and every year they raise the cost and every year i phone them and they reduce it, whats that all about?????

Its the same with broadband suppliers too.

Jane10 Fri 01-Nov-19 06:52:22

I don't want to stay with a provider who cynically tries to rip me off to such an extent. They're bandits!

Grannmarie Thu 31-Oct-19 22:40:41

I believe that nobody knows how good their insurance company is until they have to make a claim.
I was so impressed with the way A.A. handled my claim that I decided I wanted to stay with them.

However, renewal quotes were too high so I did Compare the Market online, got good quotes from reliable providers like R.A.C., then made one phone call to A.A. to say that I was delighted with their service and wanted to stay with them, but, as a retired person could not afford the renewal quote. I told them what I could see online, and they did their best to match it. If they could not match it exactly price wise, they offered me an M and S voucher to make up the difference.

So, one search, one phone call, you can stay with your chosen provider.

Jane10 Thu 31-Oct-19 21:37:57

This paying extra for'no claims bonus protection' is like an insurance on insurance! What a racket it all seems.

arosebyanyothername Thu 31-Oct-19 10:35:00

We have this every year! Renewal letter - phone call - lower offer.
DH likes the sport I just get angry.
Years ago I remember insurance going down if you hadn’t made a claim..