Auto renewal who has been caught out

sanfly

If we were honest we all know that every form of auto renewal, from whichever type of business it comes from is not done for the benifit of the consumer, it is done by companies to try and retain customers. The auto renew system relies on people forgetting, not reading it, not recieving it, etc, i've never been caught by it, but it should be outlawed.

dreamypuma

sanfly wrote: »

If we were honest we all know that every form of auto renewal, from whichever type of business it comes from is not done for the benifit of the consumer, it is done by companies to try and retain customers. The auto renew system relies on people forgetting, not reading it, not recieving it, etc, i've never been caught by it, but it should be outlawed.

I personally don't think it should be outlawed. Without it, those that are not competent enough to organise their lives, finances and be bothered to read could end up driving without insurance.

I agree that they probably end up paying a premium through auto renewal and yes the companies probably profit from this, but the choice is the consumers and avoidable.

I personally don't relish the increase probability of getting hit by a car with no insurance.

Auto Renewal is the price you pay for stupidity.

darich

birkee wrote: »

And what happens when [STRIKE]you've never heard of 'auto renewal'[/STRIKE]you don't read the terms in the first place?

More accurate I think.
If someone signs something they haven't read fully, then the one person to blame for any consequences, is the reader.

dunstonh

If we were honest we all know that every form of auto renewal, from whichever type of business it comes from is not done for the benifit of the consumer, it is done by companies to try and retain customers.

It certainly is cheaper for the company as they dont have to lay on staff to deal with people phoning in to renew. It could also be easily argued that it does allow for the lazy to take the easy option rather than to force them into action. However, whilst the majority of people stay with the same company at renewal, clearly they are benefiting from it.

If someone is too lazy to read to their renewal letter then they pretty much deserve to pay what whatever it is.

it appears from following several of your responses on various forums that you are of the opinion that the financial / insurance industry is whiter than white and do not make mistakes, you always seem to imply that is the consumer who is in the wrong,

I dont think that and plenty of times I have told people to put in complaints. However, certain sections of this board are filled with liars, fraudsters and try-it-on merchants who are looking to exploit loopholes or technicalities to gain some compensation payment. In with them you will often find people with genuine complaints and issues who deserve all the support they can get. I will always aim to help the genuine but I don't think those trying it on or blaming others for their own incompetence should get away with it.

darich

Insurance companies exist to make a profit - I think every one accepts that.

The big problem isn't that insurers auto renew - the big problem is that many people either don't know about it or forget - both of which are amazingly easy to rectify.
Don't know about it??? You haven't read your terms and conditions. Auto renew isn't hidden in small print. Any time I've seen it, it's been in the main letter covering all my documents telling me they'll do it if I don't contact them prior to the policy expiring.
Forgot about it??? Every company sends a renewal quote so that acts as a reminder. It's also easy to put a note in your mobile phone calendar. Change phone? then copy future appointments or sync it with pc to copy everything over. Write it in a paper calendar for next year.
No paper calendar? Write it on the existing one in late december so when you're changing the calendar the date is visible.

It's so easy and it's not the fault of insurers.

There have been countless threads on this forum covering this and the majority lambast the insurer for auto renewing when the poster didn't even know what was going on ie they forgot to renew but the insurer kept their car on the road legally and saved them from points on their licence.....but it's still the insurer's fault for having the audacity to increase prices.

There are many people who need to get organized and some of them shouldn't be allowed outside unattended.

Brodiebobs

i used to work in insurance and got this at least once a day... people never seemed to get their renewal, or the 3 chase letters we would send if the payment method had failed... but they always seemed to receive their cancellation letter and would phone playing holy hell about it, or when they got stopped by the police for no insurance!

Then you would have the other side who knew when renewal was, would phone ask when docs were coming, what their price was and if they wanted to cancel to go elesewhere it would be weeks before the renewal was due as they had organised it in time.

Theres only so much the company can do, and it has to be down to personal responsibility at the end of the day, nothing is 'hidden' its all in the documents you get sent, the FSA makes sure of that, and if that isnt the case report it to them, but if you choose not to read them its not the insurers fault.

Mr_Man_Full_of_Love

hartcjhart wrote: »

as the title says,
a friend has been recently caught by the slime ball house insurers hiding 'auto renewal' in the small print,
it would be interesting to see how many others have been caught

How did they hide it? Invisible ink?

molerat

My house insurance is 1 Sept
My car insurance is 3 Jun
My car tax is end Jun
My MOT is 31 Jan
My breakdown insurance is 15 Jul
My credit card bill is 7th each month

These came out of my head. I could also tell you which day all of my DD's and bank credits are due. By coincidence I do not pay bank charges and have never been caught out by auto renewal, I wonder why. What is difficult !!

keith1950

Hi, mikey72, what I am saying is that the customer should receive the renewal probably at least 3 /4weeks before and if , for instance, it has been lost in the post , then the customer should not leave it too late to ring up and query the non-reciept.If the customer did leave ringing up until the last minute then the renewal price could be given over the phone and a decision made. A lot of posts on here appear to be people who have ignored the renewal and then when things go wrong blame anyone but themselves. As I originally said, I do not like auto renewal but too many people these days do not read the terms and conditions, whatever way you look at it that is their choice and ultimately their responsibility when things go wrong.Why do so many people seem to need spoon feeding, they should grow up and accept responsibility for their own actions or inactions.

dreamypuma

keith1950 wrote: »

Why do so many people seem to need spoon feeding, they should grow up and accept responsibility for their own actions or inactions.

For the same reason, that these same people believe, Sky TV, 50meg broadband, and the iPhone is a birthright, and compensation is a form of income.