Spurious Claim affecting ability to get insurance

sick_parrot

Please can someone help
My insurance is due for renewal this week and I've got a MAJOR PROBLEM

In June I was asked by my insurance company if I'd been involved in an accident in December. (This is 6 months after event!)- Apparently a car of my registration had gone up the back of another car. I've been told nothing else about this "accident", i.e. Where, Who or What etc etc

I told them I was most definitely NOT involved and further more couldn't have been as I was in hospital for 3 weeks at the time! Over Xmas you don't forget that!

The vehicle keys where with me in hospital with my house keys so no one else used it without my knowledge. It is also parked offroad on my driveway.

I've send them proof from my hospital Consultant and admission records

Its now 7 months since the accident my vehicle registration was supposedly involved in and the issue is still not resolved!

I've been told that I've lost all of my No Claims Bonus until this “outstanding” claim is resolved.

It now appears that I'm going to have to pay 60% on top of a normal premium of approx £600.

I will get this loading back if and when I'm proved innocent!

I haven't got the extra money to pay and I'm being treated as guilty until proven otherwise

I am 55 years old have had no claims since the 1996 (a minor incident)
My vehicle is a 4 year old VW T5 Campervan worth £30,000+

The Insurance company is indifferent to my plight, have I got any rights or any course of action I can pursue
:question:

Quentin

sick_parrot wrote: »

.... have I got any rights or any course of action I can pursue
:question:

Yes - appeal their decision, and escalate the issue by way of their complaints procedure (which will be set out in your policy document).

If their reply isn't the one you want, then you can take your complaint to the ombudsman (though the downside of this is that it will take some more time to resolve).

Although the incident happened in December, it seems your insurer only became involved last month, so the time frame (though unfortunate for you because of your renewal) isn't too long since they started their enquiries.

(Confirm the safety/security of your spare keys whilst you were in hospital to them)

I've been told that I've lost all of my No Claims Bonus until this “outstanding” claim is resolved.

This is a separate issue you need to take up with them now.

You say your last claim was in 1996, so (assuming you have been a policyholder since then) prior to this you had maximum NCD.

One (open) claim should not result in the loss of all your NCD, but you should go down (temporarily) by 2 years (from the usual max of 5) at renewal. So you should be getting 3 years discount off your renewal (with the agreement that when the matter is concluded in your favour the full NCD will be reinstated and your premium adjusted back to the policy start date).

Get back to them about this (check your policy to see what happens to NCD after a single claim, and ask them to abide by the policy and allow you the 3 years NCD - or justify why you have lost the lot.

kingstreet

Take photographs of your vehicle and ask your local MOT garage if they would be kind enough to inspect the vehicle and confirm in writing it shows no signs of accident damage, repaired or otherwise.

Send to insurers with letter of complaint.

Ch1ckenlady

Definately get this escalated.

It may be a scam (in that someone has cloned your registration number) or simply a mistake (in that an error has been made in noting the registration of the fault vehicle).

Is the actual 'fault' vehicle the same make and model as yours? If not, then clearly it wasn't your vehicle.

If it is the same make and model and you are confident that it was definately not your vehicle (could someone else have used it without your permission?), you may have been cloned.

Cloning would be unusual for a vehicle of your type though as it's not the most common vehicle about.

If your registration has been cloned I would insist that you be allowed to speak to the insurers fraud motor investigation unit. They have better knowledge and increased search capability to the claims unit.

It might be best to do this before making a formal complaint as the complaints process usually has to follow a certain timescale/procedure, which could impact on the third party claim (in that their claim may increase, citing delays in payment) putting pressure on the insurers to pay them.