Zurich home insurance ripping me off

Drunken_Duck

Just had my renewal for my building and home contents insurance also personal possessions, from Zurich at £666.60 a year £55.55 a month..

That is excessive and people tell me to dump them and get another insurance company.
The insurance was provided by my mortgage provider but over the 11 years or so I've been with them the insurance company has changed at least twice.

Zurich have been the insurance provider for about 3-4 years, it rises every year and I have only attempted to make one claim which was refused because they told me it was wear and tear..

I'm not really up on this subject so I need a bit of guidance.

Been on a few comparison sites and the quotes are much lower.

Am I being ripped off or are Zurich a better company than say, Swinton for example, and am I better sticking with them?

Zurich say I have "14 days of receiving the policy (or renewal, within 14 days of the policy renewal date)"
Will there be any charges for cancelling?

InsideInsurance

The policy will say say if they have cancellation charges but assuming it hasnt renewed yet you can ask them to allow the policy to lapse (use the word lapse not cancel) and there will be no charge for this

Many on here will say that Swinton give a shockingly bad service. Generally you may want to consider paying a touch more and avoiding them. If you use Confused.com or one of the other aggregators you can look at the top few insurers and compare their policies and feedback

Drunken_Duck

InsideInsurance wrote: »

The policy will say say if they have cancellation charges but assuming it hasnt renewed yet you can ask them to allow the policy to lapse (use the word lapse not cancel) and there will be no charge for this

Many on here will say that Swinton give a shockingly bad service. Generally you may want to consider paying a touch more and avoiding them. If you use Confused.com or one of the other aggregators you can look at the top few insurers and compare their policies and feedback

Thanks for the info, very informative..
Just been reading a few bad points about Swinton so I'll give them a miss..

dacouch

Zurich offer a good policy, if you buying a Zurich policy through your mortgage company, you will probably find the same policy from Zurich direct or through a broker for a fraction of the price

*Scarlett

Check the comparison sites for prices - make sure you have adequate cover levels and acceptable excess fees.

Look at this site to compare cover and star ratings

http://www.defaqto.com/insurance

Also here for home insurance guides and recommendations

http://www.which.co.uk/money/insurance/reviews-ns/home-insurance/

Drunken_Duck

Thanks for the help guys..

Voyager2002

Don't forget to check Direct Line and Tesco, who are not included in comparison services. In the past I have had good service from Direct Line.

mikey72

Drunken_Duck wrote: »

Thanks for the info, very informative..
Just been reading a few bad points about Swinton so I'll give them a miss..

To be fair, you say the only claim you made to Zurich was refused. So I wouldn't rate them.

dacouch

mikey72 wrote: »

To be fair, you say the only claim you made to Zurich was refused. So I wouldn't rate them.

Virtually all but the High Net Insurers would decline a wear and tear claim eg a claim where something stopped working through age

mikey72

dacouch wrote: »

Virtually all but the High Net Insurers would decline a wear and tear claim eg a claim where something stopped working through age

That is guesswork though, as the op gave no information on the claim, just the excuse Zurich used to decline it.

Mjteacup

I had to renew my buildings insurance policy with Zurich today, for the third year (I have to stay with them because of previous work done to the property under their predecessor Eagle Star). Out of sheer desperation to reduce the insane £840 premium on a two-bed flat I asked if anything could be removed from the policy or excess increased to save me money now. I was told - by the first helpful employee of theirs that I have ever dealt with, including during a claim that was made far more stressful by their incompetence - that increasing the excess by £50 would save nearly £50 on the annual premium. Increasing the excess by £150 reduced the annual premium by, you guessed it, nearly £150 (I think £148, to be precise). It's a total no-brainer and I am kicking myself for not having asked the same question in the previous two years. But I don't think customers should have to ask this when it is so obviously a rip-off to pay the equivalent of an excess in an annual premium. I wanted to share so that forum users would know to ask very explicit questions about the exact cost of lower excesses - you really could be paying money for nothing, especially if you are a Zurich customer.