Please Please someone help!!

shortchanged1

I had an accident on the weekend and I was borrowing my mum’s car as mine was in the garage.

I have my own fully comprehensive insurance for my car and I was under the impression that this entitled me to drive another privately owned car with the owner consent and I would be covered third party.

The police were called to the accident and they informed me that I am in fact not covered.

The next day after accepting my fate, I called my insurers to inform them of the accident and they told me I was covered and not to worry. I was over the moon and asked them to send me confirmation as I will need to send this to the police. (they then said no problem and put me through to the claims department)

I reported the accident and they also confirm that I was insured. I then came off the phone a lot happier about the whole situation until an email came through an hour or so later. This email said thank you for changing your policy and that my renewal will go up in line with the changes I made. I was informed on the phone that this was due to the accident but the email says that it is to insure me to drive other cars (which is already on the renewal I was offered) which is applicable 3 weeks after the accident

I then spent the whole weekend speaking to people who kept telling me that I was insured and yet no one put it in writing until they then all of a sudden could not tell me if I was insured or not. I have since had a phone call back saying it now looks as though I was not. I have also had another rep tell me that the DOC clause automatically adds on to your policy when you hit twenty five( I took out the policy at 24) as long as you make a change to your policy that does not have to be related.

I have been calling back again today and they are now saying they have listened to the calls and have no record of anyone telling me that I was insured. How is this possible? They never call me back when they say they will or they stick me on hold and never answer my question.

Do I have any legal rights?

I am an honest working guy who is about to have his life turned upside down by this does anyone have any suggestions?

FlameCloud

What does your certificate of insurance say about doc?

bouncydog1

As Flamecloud says, have a read of your insurance certificate and see what that says. If the insured (you) is permitted to drive other cars it will say so. If it doesn't you don't have the cover.

The only time you may have had the cover is if you had contacted your insurers before you borrowed the car to see if it could be added, and they had agreed and issued a cover note and charged an additional premium.

Insurers are not allowed to backdate cover, so even if you rang them after the event and agreed cover, this would be for the future and would not cover you at the time of this accident.

InsideInsurance

bouncyd!!! wrote: »

Insurers are not allowed to backdate cover

Insurers can and do backdate cover but only in exceptional circumstances and (virtually) always when it is the insurer or broker that has made a mistake.

To the OP - as has been said, you need to read your insurance details which will state if you have the Driving Other Cars extension or not on your policy.

shortchanged1

Thank you all for your repsonses. the originall does not have DOC, my renewal offer did have it on which is what I checked before I went out. ( had it in the back of the car when I crashed) When I rang my insurance company they were the ones who told me I was covered and then when I asked them to put it in wrighting they took 48 hours after me consistantly phoning and asking is I was covered to say no. I would of accepted a simple no but the fact no one could tell me for a couple of days makes me suspect that they are not entirley sure them selves. Three people said I did one person said I have not. I asked for a meeting they declined, I asked for a manager to call me back, no one did. and now I got a letter saying the have retracted my renewal and now refuse to continue insuring me.

Quentin

Did the renewal take place (ie, did you pass your renewal date)?

If so, what does it say about doc on the new certificate? (ie the one that was in place on the date of the incident)

You need to find out why they no longer wish to insure you - (have they given you notice of this cancellation?) - as this may mean you now have a cancelled policy or refusal to renew to dosclose to other insurers.

bouncydog1

InsideInsurance wrote: »

Insurers can and do backdate cover but only in exceptional circumstances and (virtually) always when it is the insurer or broker that has made a mistake.

Yes of course you are correct - I was looking at it more from the point of the insured asking for cover to be backdated.