Invalid Insurance

turvell21

hi

my insurance company have said they will not pay out and that i have not been insured for the last yeah and a half. i drive a lease car and they have told me that i am not the keep of the car. i thought i was since i lease it for 3 years and i pay for it. but im not the lease company is. my insurance company tell me i acted fraudulent way and lied to them. i didnt as i just did not know. i am making a complaint about this to them. but i have just had to pay lease company 14 thousand pounds which i just havent got. does anyone think i have a case to fight this or am i just waisting my time

please help me if you can

InsideInsurance

The question is if it would have made a material difference to their decision to insurer you or not and/or the premium they have charged.

Most insurers will happily insure you on a lease car and to the best of my knowledge it isnt used as a rating factor. That said, some insurers, for whatever reason, do not insure leased vehicles where the leasor isnt put down as the registered keeper.

Which insurer is it? Did you go direct to them or via a broker when buying? If not direct who did you go through?

turvell21

InsideInsurance wrote: »

The question is if it would have made a material difference to their decision to insurer you or not and/or the premium they have charged.

Most insurers will happily insure you on a lease car and to the best of my knowledge it isnt used as a rating factor. That said, some insurers, for whatever reason, do not insure leased vehicles where the leasor isnt put down as the registered keeper.

Which insurer is it? Did you go direct to them or via a broker when buying? If not direct who did you go through?

hi

i bought it online from swift cover but i had no idea that i was not the owner of the car. and dont even remember been asked if i was. but i would think they would know who it belonged to when they run the number plate thought there system. as it would show the owner as the lease company i would think. but it really was genuine error as i just did not know. and now im stuffed as i have not got 14k to pay off the lease company. i have sent a letter of complaint as i feel there decision was un fair and i did not act out of fraud at all. im worried to death and i do not know what to do

lisyloo

{QUOTE]and dont even remember been asked if i was[/QUOTe]

Online there is often a "declaration" part that you tick. It could have been part of that.

Pursue your formal complaint.
If they would have insured you had they known then I think they will have to pay out. If they wouldn't have insured you had they known then that's more tricky.
If you say which company it is then the people that work in the industry might be able to say.

If you aren't sucessful you can eventually take your complaint to the ombudsman, but it ain't quick I'm afraid.

I would say which company it is and see whether you can get further advice on here.

turvell21

it was swiftcover.

dunstonh

i had no idea that i was not the owner of the car. and dont even remember been asked if i was. but i would think they would know who it belonged to when they run the number plate thought there system.

Well, if you didnt know who it belonged to, then why should they?

System data is not always looked at during applications (sometimes left until claims - due to cost) and system data is not always up to date or of much use. e.g. you buy a car today second hand and its registered owner is the seller, not you. Your records wont show as owner to about a week later and the computer systems may lag that as well.

my insurance company tell me i acted fraudulent way and lied to them.

Have they actually said that? Typically, it is very hard for the insurer to prove it and the FOS non disclosure guidelines (which also covers incorrect disclosure) are pretty clear on what they can and cant do.

With the insurer appearing to treat it as intentional non-disclosure, you are stuffed (see caveat below). They can keep the premiums and void the policy.

If it was inadvertent non disclosure and they would have offered cover had the correct info been known, then they cannot reject the claim and should pay out minus any difference in premiums that should have applied.

If it was inadvertent non disclosure and they would not have offered cover had they known the correct info, then they should refund the premiums paid and reject the claim.

The caveat mentioned above is that if you disagree, you can complain and if still rejected, you can go to the FOS who apply the above rules. The FOS may still side with the insurer if the insurer can persuade them that it was intentional. If they cant persuade the FOS it was intentional then the FOS will tell them to use inadvertent non disclosure.

InsideInsurance

Unfortunately with SwiftCover they make a massive number of assumptions when doing a quote which are all in the box down the right hand side headed "review your details" which you have to click on to say they aren't correct. If you try to change the ownership to Other (there is no leased option) then it refuses to quote.

Then on the T&Cs which you must click to accept it also states

We do not insure certain types of vehicle:
The policyholder or their spouse, civil partner, partner, parent or child is not the registered keeper and legal owner

On the basis you are leasing the vehicle I think you have a bit of an up hill struggle to claim you didn't realise you weren't the owner of it (the keeper of it could have been easier to argue).

You will simply have to try and argue the case of a geniune mistake that doesnt make a material difference to the policy/ premium or is relevant to the incident. Have a look of cases about disclosure the FoS have already ruled on and highlighted as case studies http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/ombudsman-news/48/insurance-non-disclosure.htm

vax2002

Whos name is on the registration certificate.

turvell21

you know i just didnt think it matters who car it is as i assumed i was just insuring a car. the reg certifacte is in the name of the lease company who told me that it used to be that i would have been the keeper and not them. but they changed this. i guess i have no chance then in arguing this with swift or anyone else. a genuine mistake it was. and now im been told by a lot of insurance companies that they wont insure me. i get my car stolen and i end up paying over and over again. whilst the crooks laff at me in my car

dunstonh

Have a claim rejected and your insurance cancelled due to non-disclosure is a killer on your premiums and will reduce those that will offer cover and it stays with your for the rest of your life.

So, if you feel hard done by on this and were not intentionally trying to defraud the insurer, complain about it.

turvell21

who wins in the end tho the !!! that ravaged my home and stole my car crime does pay does it not. criminal in this case gets a new BMW i get shaffted from every single angle