Car Insurance Admin Fee?

vaio

fuzzgun19 wrote: »

Sorry to hijack this thread, but I have a similar question.

I have car insurance (full comp) with Sheilas Wheels Broker.

I have just changed my car, and their admin fee is £26.
The guy on the phone said it would be another £45 in insurance for the car change.

Is there any way I can haggle with regards to the £45? I did ask if this could be lowered, but he said no as it's set by the underwriter or something.

I did a price comparison and the quote from the same insurer is only £8 more than my old car...? so around this is what I was expecting, not £45.

If they are charging you £45 for what remains of your policy but would only charge a new customer £8 for the whole year then it looks like they are unfairly taking advantage of your "captive customer" status.

Pay it and then print out the respective quotes and lodge a complaint with the insurer. They are obliged to treat customers fairly and if they don't then you can escalate to the FOS who will point out the error of their ways (and charge them £500 for pointing it out)

There might be a very good reason for the difference which they will explain once they get the complaint, if there is then everything is fine and dandy, or they'll discover a mistake and give you your money back.

fuzzgun19

vaio wrote: »

If they are charging you £45 for what remains of your policy but would only charge a new customer £8 for the whole year then it looks like they are unfairly taking advantage of your "captive customer" status.

Pay it and then print out the respective quotes and lodge a complaint with the insurer. They are obliged to treat customers fairly and if they don't then you can escalate to the FOS who will point out the error of their ways (and charge them £500 for pointing it out)

There might be a very good reason for the difference which they will explain once they get the complaint, if there is then everything is fine and dandy, or they'll discover a mistake and give you your money back.

Thanks Vaio. Do you know if there's a template letter I can use to complain with?

vaio

not that I'm aware of, just follow their procedure & keep it brief & to the point

rs65

fuzzgun19 wrote: »

I did a price comparison and the quote from the same insurer is only £8 more than my old car...? so around this is what I was expecting, not £45.

Wen you say 'only £8 more' is that £8 more than you paid at last renewal for the old car? Or have you done a quote today for both cars and it is £8 different?

fuzzgun19

rs65 wrote: »

Wen you say 'only £8 more' is that £8 more than you paid at last renewal for the old car? Or have you done a quote today for both cars and it is £8 different?

I was basing the £8 on the price I paid on my old car in March.

But.. I just did a new quote on the 'old' car, and it's actually now £7 more that when I bought the policy!

rs65

So, as Vaio says, keep it brief.

Today's annual difference is £1. You are being charged £45 in premium for now until renewal. You feel you should be paying pro rata premium based on the £1 difference.

mills705

So you decided to change your vehicle and your insurer or broker quoted you 42 to change it keeping you with the same insurer.
If you searched online then you are getting a 12 month premium for the new vehicle and this is not representative of the change of vehicle. An insurer might not want to insure a vehicle at new business but as they are existing customers accept the vehicle onto a policy until renewal and at that point decline a quote.

vaio

mills705 wrote: »

So you decided to change your vehicle and your insurer or broker quoted you 42 to change it keeping you with the same insurer.
If you searched online then you are getting a 12 month premium for the new vehicle and this is not representative of the change of vehicle. An insurer might not want to insure a vehicle at new business but as they are existing customers accept the vehicle onto a policy until renewal and at that point decline a quote.

Think you have misunderstood some of the thread, as I understand it....

Original quote for old car = £x
Quote today for old car = £x+7
Quote today for new car = £x+8

So the difference between the two cars is £1 for 12 months rather than the £45 the OP has been quoted for the seven months remaining on his existing policy.

Something doesn't seem fair to me, no doubt all will be explained once the complaint lands on a desk

rs65

Fuzzgun, just noticed you said Sheilas Wheels Broker. Is it the same insurer that is quoting £8/£1 more?

fuzzgun19

rs65 wrote: »

Fuzzgun, just noticed you said Sheilas Wheels Broker. Is it the same insurer that is quoting £8/£1 more?

Yes, the same broker.

I do accept I'll have to pay the £26 admin fee, but think the £45 in extra premium is taking the mick.. I'd be happy to pay say £10.

I will have to call up later to do this, do you think I should mention the comparisons I've had over the phone, or as Vaio said, just pay it then send a letter to complain?