Cancelling insurance

[Slimjim]

Hi, Can anyone give me advice? I have cancelled my husbands van insurance as the van is now off road. I have paid all instalments to date by direct debit. However the company now says we still owe £75. (£40 owed + £35 to cancel). They say that we contracted for 1 years insurance, so therefore if we cancel the policy, they send a refund to the agents for the time outstanding. I understand that bit, but if I have paid all instalments to date, how come do I still owe anything? I feel I'm getting screwed somewhere along the line. I put it to them that if I took goods back to a shop, I would expect a full refund but they said insurance doesnt work like that.

[anewman]

Read all the fine print of the policy you were given that you agreed to on purchasing the policy. It's in there somewhere.

[Conor]

You owe because you've not paid off the full amount of the original policy. Just because you cancel doesn't mean that the insurer still isn't exposed to risk as claimants have up to 3 years to claim after an accident and that's the main difference between insurance and taking something back to a shop.

Also, it's pretty stupid to cancel a policy if you've still got the vehicle just because it's off road because it can still be stolen or broken into and then you've lost the lot and have nothing to claim on. What you should do is amend the policy to take count of the fact it's not being driven and is "laid up".

[daveyjp]

You aren't buying monthly insurance, you are buying an annual policy and the insurance company is lending you the money to pay for it over 12 months - you have actually taken out a 12 month loan with them and on termination the loan needs paying off.

[livinginhope]

Just to point out that even if you had paid the full year up front,the insurance company would probably still charge you a cancellation fee and not give any refund on any unspent insurance,as I found out to our cost,seems like normal practice now :mad:
LIH

[anewman]

Just to point out that even if you had paid the full year up front,the insurance company would probably still charge you a cancellation fee and not give any refund on any unspent insurance,as I found out to our cost,seems like normal practice now :mad:
LIH

My insurer refunds the amount minus an admin fee of £40 I think (ecarinsurance). I wonder what insurers do not pay refunds?!

[Wig]

Always ask what the cancellation refund policy is before buying insurance. It varies widely. The best you could get was a full pro rata refund from company like Direct line. But now that DL has become big (like Tesco) they move the goal posts, so nowadays DL and Nationwide building society, and similar companies, will generally charge 1 months premium as a cancellation fee. And then refund any remaining premium.