Advice needed please

Mr_Bun

My wife took out car insurance in July through Abbey and paid the premium in full at the time.
She got a phone call today from Abbey saying the quote she was given over the phone at the time was different from the one that was printed on the paperwork she received,in other words it was a typo on behalf of Abbey.
They now say she owes them £39, which was the difference in the two figures, and her car is not technically insured as the premium was not paid in full:eek:
Should she pay it or refuse as this is now November,3 months later?
Any help would be much appreciated

totallybroke_2

we had a major problem with abbey, and 7 months later they asked for more money as it turns out they quoted us wrong, so if anything had of happened in the initial 7 months we would not have been covered!! they kept demanding and demanding. in the end we typed up a long letter of complaint and we left them and changed to open and direct. it was a nightmare

warmhands.coldheart

Mr_Bun wrote: »

My wife took out car insurance in July through Abbey and paid the premium in full at the time.
She got a phone call today from Abbey saying the quote she was given over the phone at the time was different from the one that was printed on the paperwork she received,in other words it was a typo on behalf of Abbey.
They now say she owes them £39, which was the difference in the two figures, and her car is not technically insured as the premium was not paid in full:eek:
Should she pay it or refuse as this is now November,3 months later?
Any help would be much appreciated

So you have already Paid in full for a service/product according to the amount printed on the paperwork they provided and now they are admitting that they made a mistake and want you to pay more..... Yeah right! I'd give the FSA advise line a ring and see where you stand before writing them a very long letter of complaint. personnaly I don't hink they havea leg to stand on. you've paid for the service already and they are only now realising a mistake they made !!

warmhands.coldheart

Mr_Bun wrote: »

They now say she owes them £39, which was the difference in the two figures, and her car is not technically insured as the premium was not paid in full

Oh and if this is the case they are therfore saying you have given them money for a service they are not "technically" providing so ask for a full refund!! See what they say then!!:rotfl:

catroe

I work for a N.Ireland insurance broker (not Abbey, thankfully) and this is the maddest thing i've ever heard... If an error is made on our part we write the money off, at our expense.
Contact the financial ombudsman if your issue hasnt been resolved to your satisfaction

eithnemc

catroe wrote: »

I work for a N.Ireland insurance broker (not Abbey, thankfully) and this is the maddest thing i've ever heard... If an error is made on our part we write the money off, at our expense.
Contact the financial ombudsman if your issue hasnt been resolved to your satisfaction

We recently took out second car insurance online, husband main driver bringing 5 yrs no claim bonus, myself and son who is 20 years old. They accepted application and took £630 out of my bank account, we never received documents. 2 months later they have contacted us to say the underwriters won't insure us for that price and it is now going to cost over £2000. Are they legally right to do this.

warmhands.coldheart

eithnemc wrote: »

We recently took out second car insurance online, husband main driver bringing 5 yrs no claim bonus, myself and son who is 20 years old. They accepted application and took £630 out of my bank account, we never received documents. 2 months later they have contacted us to say the underwriters won't insure us for that price and it is now going to cost over £2000. Are they legally right to do this.

I read a very similar story to this in the Sunday Times a few weeks back. In the end the insurer held up their hand and admitted it was their fault and honoured the origianal quote. (No doubt because it was the papers on their case.)

Only options I think you have would be to call ombudsman and see where you stand before writing a letter of complaint or look for another policy and demand a full refund.

Sounds like these companies are making mistakes and then trying to claw back money by chancing their arm by calling back the customers.

NAR

eithnemc wrote: »

We recently took out second car insurance online, husband main driver bringing 5 yrs no claim bonus, myself and son who is 20 years old. They accepted application and took £630 out of my bank account, we never received documents. 2 months later they have contacted us to say the underwriters won't insure us for that price and it is now going to cost over £2000. Are they legally right to do this.

So you thought his was a realistic and fair price? I'm sure you got other quotes and I bet none of them were in the ballpark. So you chanced your arm and are looking support? :rotfl:

steveymp

NAR wrote: »

So you thought his was a realistic and fair price? I'm sure you got other quotes and I bet none of them were in the ballpark. So you chanced your arm and are looking support? :rotfl:

In fairness they took £630 out of the account so therefore entered a contract, the price does seem low considering a 20 year old is on the insurance too

Does Wendy Austin still do the consumer stuff on Radio Ulster ? may be worth dropping her an email with the details, she sorted out a problem for a relative of mine a few years back pretty sharpish and gave the company some pretty bad PR, she was like a dog with a bone :T

its a bit naughty that it has taken them 2 months to come back and say they want more money, mistakes should be flagged up the same day or week at the latest.

Mr Bun you should do the same, I find all NI insurance brokers the same, I equate them to estate agents :rotfl: to get proper insurance and prices go national

warmhands.coldheart

NAR wrote: »

So you thought his was a realistic and fair price? I'm sure you got other quotes and I bet none of them were in the ballpark. So you chanced your arm and are looking support? :rotfl:

Come On, that's a bit harsh !!
The OP got a quote from a legit insurance company who made a mistake.. The mistake was the Insurers Fault not the OP's so the insurer should have to live with it as the customer has accepted their offer and they have accepted by taking the money !!

In the same note, are you saying if a shop marked up an item as for sale at £50 and when you put it through the checkout and it scanned as £25, would you highlight this error or keep schtum and say nothing..... if you were contacted by the store 2 months later highlighting their error, would you pay the differnece or return the goods????? somehow I doubt it !!

bout_ye

I have heard of brokers holding onto people's money and then only putting the paperwork through once a claim is made. It might be that they are asking for an increase as they realise the amount you gave them will never cover the premium if a claim is made. It is their mistake and they have to live with it, but don't ignore their request, write back and tell them.