asda car insurance

dianah

i have recently insured my car with asda, sent off the driving licence and no claims bonus paperwork.

they got back to me saying that there is a discrepancy between the info i gave when purchasing the policy - i said that i've had a licence for ten years whereas my licence is dated 2007 (their wording was actually that i stated that i've had a licence for ten years, yet i only passed my test in 2007)

the case is that i swapped my original licence for an isle of man licence when i moved over here in 2007. the manx licence states that it was issued in exchange but there's no further information (however, i believe that this implies that i held a licence before 2007)

i contacted the licensing office today and they wrote me a letter to say that they exchanged my original licence which was issued in 2002. unfortunately they did not keep a copy (they sent the licence to issuing authority) of the back of my original licence which states when i took the test for each group (the 2002 licence was my second licence, where I come from, you get a 2-year licence after you pass your test, it's a probation period, sort of equivalent to R plates i guess)

so, i basically have a piece of paper that says they exchanged the licence issued in 2002 - they can't say 2000 because they don't have that information which is fair enough, they've been very helpful providing the letter anyway.

asda wants to charge me extra because of this (i've not sent the letter yet, i only got it this afternoon), yet i have not lied. i've been insured with other companies since 2008 and no one has ever questioned this.

i'm not quite sure what to do. i don't want to pay extra because i have not done anything wrong, yet i cannot prove that i passed my test in 2000. i cannot cancel the policy without paying the admin fee and % for the period i've been insured with them for.

i have asked my dad to go and ask my original issuing authority for a copy but we're both doubtful that they will provide it for him, data protection and all, usually it needs to be me in person asking for it and it's abroad so that's not an option.

is there anything i can do? i really do believe they are being unreasonable and blatantly trying to get money off me.

thanks!

bouncydog1

Write and offer an explanation - when you passed your original test and where and then detail the exchange of licences and see what they say.

Provide the IOM letter - after all this will show you have held a full licence for 9 years (2002 - 2011).

dianah

thank you. i have tried to explain it to them before i got the letter but they actually said that because my manx licence does not state when the exchange was processed, it could have been actioned anytime between 2007 (when it was issued) and now. it is not legally possible for me to have been issued with a valid manx licence without the exchange but nevermind.

i have sent the letter - it's only 8 full years rather than 9 because i took the test in the summer. they've adjusted it, they still want the money. the thing is, i's not even as if there was a premium increase. there isn't, they're just charging me admin fee for a discrepancy. it's only £35 but they are absolutely not entitled to it and i've already given them nearly £500 for the actual insurance!