Car Insurance Cancellation Fees

Tina_Arena101

£50 is fair(er) if you have a policy and then end it. If the Policy never even began I think that is different.

Can you technically cancel something that never began? Surely its more of an annulment?

Hastings Direct did not even present me with my cars details - instead you had to expand a box (which again did not provide me with any *incorrect* details) - they were all correct.

The only time I was presented with the incorrect details with regards to my car was by email once I had paid for it.

Hastings_Direct_company_representative

Hi Tina_Arena101,

Thanks for posting your experience, I am sorry that you consider the charges applied to be unfair. If you would like to discuss this further or you would like me to follow up the letter you have sent to our complaints department I would be happy to do so. [EMAIL="socialmedia@hastingsdirect.com"]socialmedia@hastingsdirect.com[/EMAIL]

Many Thanks,
Jamie

Make_Peace_Not_War

Hey, I'm new - and maybe I'm missing somethin? But you say you cancelled before this thing even started? How on earth can they justify demanding £50 for sweet FA? Also, y are people on here so quick to stand up for insurance companies & holiday companies that seem to screw people over the first chance they get? #Confused!

Stick with it chuck... can't say I'm likely to go with Hastings Direct for my insurance now if it makes you feel any better? :P But then I also had a crash last year and had a complete nightmare with them so maybe you got off lucky?

If you're interested I will tell my story??? Don't wanna be a bore needlessly!!! Heh!

dunstonh

How on earth can they justify demanding £50 for sweet FA?

For work done. The bulk of the cost in any insurance policy arrangement is at the start.

Also, y are people on here so quick to stand up for insurance companies & holiday companies that seem to screw people over the first chance they get?

Better to have people that know what they are talking about giving reasons to help you understand rather than just agree with the ranting and raving that occurs on some sites.

Nathanparkes

Do car insurance companies not give you a cooling off period?

rs65

Nathanparkes wrote: »

Do car insurance companies not give you a cooling off period?

I believe that most do. I just looked at one which allows cancellation before cover starts with a full refund.

Hastings Direct seem to be a broker - their T&Cs allow a set up fee and cancellation fee. From the first post it seems the insurer isn't charging anything - its just brokers fees that are applying.

Nathanparkes

I hate dealing with third parties, it always muddies up situations.
Insurance companies (and in fact all companies that sell at a distance) should be giving a cooling off period with all products and services, in which you can cancel with no charge. This always seems to get somewhat difficult when a third party company is involved. It's my understanding that even a broker should be offering a cooling off period when selling at distance under the distance selling regulations, which cannot be superseded by their own terms.

Tina_Arena101

Hastings Direct are charging the cancellation fee - there is no way that it would have been processed to the Broker that quickly (we are talking within 2 working hours). Additionally they never mentioned the Broker so I can only assume it is Hastings Direct that are charging £50 for a policy that never even began.

I can't think of anything else you can buy that wouldn't allow you to change your mind as soon as you realise that there is an error. It's not like I thought about it all for a few days - I called as soon as they were open the next day.

I went back over the whole purchasing process after my first post to see how it was possible that I did miss that my engine size was actually wrong as I couldn't believe that I could have been such an idiot (I am normally incredibly careful with such things - inherent paranoia). Anyway, it's no where obvious within their site about the engine size once you have been sent there by https://www.comparethemarket.com - in fact even seeing the "details" of your car requires you to expand a section on the right hand side. When I expanded that all the details were correct (it didn't state the engine size there).

I will pursue it anyway, if I was wrong for missing the engine size (which I clearly needed to hunt for on their website) then they were also wrong for not presenting the information adequately enough for me to be able to notice the error and correct it.

dunstonh

Do car insurance companies not give you a cooling off period?

There is a cancellation rights period but charges are allowed to be made for time on cover and an administration charge. The cancellation rights period gives you no rights not to be charged. Some people believe they shouldnt be charged but that is a myth spread by people that are mixing things up with the distance selling regs which do not apply to insurance.

Tina_Arena101

dunstonh wrote: »

Some people believe they shouldnt be charged but that is a myth spread by people that are mixing things up with the distance selling regs which do not apply to insurance.

I believe I shouldn't be charged because no fee has been incurred to the organisation. If there was (somehow) some fee it would be minimal - not ~£50. I do not believe I should be charged because it is not fair and it is not just. No wonder this site has lost the tag "consumer revenge" from its banner.