Kwik Fit Insurance, BCW Group formal demand

lazlow_2

I insured my car in 2007 and 2008 with Kwik Fit Insurance. I paid by Direct Debit each month (£118.93/month due to a claim in early 2007) and when the renewal was due, I shopped around to find Elephant could offer me the same cover for around £68. So I took out a new policy with them and I phoned Kwik Fit Insurance to say I didn't wish to renew.

A few days later I received a formal letter in the post confirming Kwik Fit had discontinued my insurance as of the renewal date. The same day I recall logging onto my online banking and cancelling the Direct Debit, not realising the knock-on effect.

Fast forward to November and I received a letter from Kwik Fit Insurance stating that I had an outstanding balance on my account and to contact them to pay (online or by phone). It was odd as it didn't state how much and what for. I phoned them and Customer Services explained it was for £118.93 - when they went to take a further payment the bank declined (due to me cancelling the Direct Debit).

This is where I think they're at fault, if they had contacted me on the day of the Direct Debit being declined, I could have paid the outstanding balance straight away. However, Customer Services explained that Kwik Fit Insurance do an Audit every 6 months, so they had only just noticed.

6 months on and my payment commitments have changed and with Christmas in the coming weeks, I don't have £118.93 to spare. I asked Customer Services what I could do, she said leave it 28 days and I'd receive contact from an external agency to arrange repayment.

So today I received a letter in the post from buchananclark + wells (BCW Group) demanding the repayment on behalf of Kwik Fit Insurance. The letter itself is worded harshly, whereas Kwik Fit were polite on the phone.

I need 2 bits of advice:

1. What are the legalities regarding Kwik Fit demanding repayment - I no longer receive a service from them (since June 2009) and wasn't aware I had an outstanding balance until I phoned them to ascertain what it was for
2. Has anyone dealt with BCW Group? Are they understanding with repaying the outstanding balance, i.e. small monthly repayments?

In hindsight, I should have double-checked my Direct Debit instalments to ensure they had all been paid, prior to cancelling it. I also feel that Kwik Fit should have contacted me instantly, as every other company I've dealt with regarding Direct Debit problems has informed me in writing within a week (EDF Energy, Virgin).

Thanks in advance!

Oscar_The_Grouch

Hi there

If the £118.93 relates to a period when you were insured, then you have to pay it. That's the simple and polite answer, so feel free to ignore the rest of this post if you want; I thought a long answer was also justified, but it's not as polite as this paragraph. You have been warned.

When you take out a policy, you are agreeing to insure with the company for a whole year and pay the premium in full. There are various clauses about cancellation fees and the like, but from what I understand from your post, you had a years cover but only paid 11 months of premium. So why the hell are you blaming the insurance company for finally catching up with you? You didn't pay the premium you agreed to, so I think I know where the fault lies!

I don't really want to know about your financial arrangements, but if you didn't notice £118 NOT going out of your bank account, then I'd be really worried about what is going out. Do you not check your accounts? From the comment about other firms that have contacted you about DD problems, I presume not.

You say "had they contacted me..." but why did you not contact them when you should have realised that you'd only paid 11 months of premium? Surely this works both ways.

You signed up to a credit agreement that split your premiums over 12 months. You then cancelled the DD too early for the last payment to be taken. Why is that your insurance companies fault?

Finally, your insurers have 6 years in which to make a claim against you in court for the unpaid premium. Whether they have a 6-monthly audit or not is not relevant. The FACTS are that you are trying to get away with not paying £118 for your insurance. Grow up. Pay what you owe and stop wasting everyones time trying to blame other people for your failure to manage your finances correctly!!!

PNPSUKNET

bcw are all talk and no action, they are phone monkeys who dont really have respect