Ant in trouble?

Temrael

Hi there,

I have a policy with Ant Insurance and was looking to make some ammendments to it. I currently have 6 months of ASU cover with them but I am looking at losing the Accident and Sickness bit from Ant and moving that part of my cover to a seperate, more comprehensive Income Protection policy which would give me much better cover for Accident and Sickness, payable till I retire if necessary.

I was just a bit concerned when I went to...

http://www.antinsurance.co.uk/

...and saw the message about them being "offline". Does anyone know if they are struggling or anything, or is it just, as they say, that they are reviewing their policies (due presumably to the high number of claims they must be exposed to at the moment)?

Wutang_2

Temrael wrote: »

http://www.antinsurance.co.uk/

...and saw the message about them being "offline". Does anyone know if they are struggling or anything, or is it just, as they say, that they are reviewing their policies (due presumably to the high number of claims they must be exposed to at the moment)?

The latter I think

Sterlingtimes

I wondered the same about Ant.

Is the problem with ANT or AssurANT?

Have the underwriters pulled out in view of economic circumstances?

The policy does not allow Assurant to terminate a customer, however, they could engineer a premium increase.

Their approach of pulling the website, even temporarily, undermines confidence.

dunstonh

I dont know but my guess is that they can no longer offer their previous products at the same price or their underwriter isnt willing to and they are busy trying to find a new one.

They were stupidly cheap for an economy heading for recession although most PPI/MPPI were priced for steady growth and increases were always likely. In the last recession, a rate of £6.50 per one hundred pounds of cover was much closer to the mark. Those offering £1.50-£2.00 per hundred are going to find it unsustainable and either need to withdraw or reprice.

Sterlingtimes

Interestingly, the image on the Ant page was slow to load today exposing the words: "Moving underwriters".

That rather gives the game away,. ANT and AssurANT appear to be getting a divorce.

Temrael

Hmm and I could of sworn their site said back Monday and now it says Wednesday?

Sterlingtimes

Temrael wrote: »

Hmm and I could of sworn their site said back Monday and now it says Wednesday?

I think you and I were under an illusion that it was ever Monday or Wednesday (-:

It is actually at some indeterminate time in the future.

Presumably, policyholders now deal directly with Assurant.

Have insurers lost their appetite for payment protection?

Temrael

Sterlingtimes wrote: »

I think you and I were under an illusion that it was ever Monday or Wednesday (-:

Ahh yes, I see my error now. It only said "soon".... or at least it does now. :rotfl:

dunstonh

Have insurers lost their appetite for payment protection?

Yes and no.

Prices seem to be moving back to closer where they were during the last recession. They had come down a lot during the good years.

It looks like some are either pulling out or upping prices. My "guess" is that those that were dependent on sites like this promoting them are likely to suffer more for business in future if they are not competitive. So, pulling out or trying to find an underwriter that can give them competitive terms are their choices.

ally88

Hello people. Just a quick (probably idiotic) question regarding this.
If Ant Insurance are in trouble, could that affect any future claim I put in?
As I understand it, the policy is actually with the underwriter (Assurants), so even if Ant went down I should be fine, right?
I saw Ant’s site this morning, and since then all I get is an answer message when I call the old Ant number, and an engaged tone with Assurants. Thought I’d just pop on here and ask.
Thanks!