Cancellation/Refund T&Cs for Breakdown Cover

Tuesday_Tenor

I’ve had very little response to this on the Motoring and Consuner Rights Boards, and know more people hang out on this one. I'll cross-link if there are any useful responses.

Can a company insist that I take a refund as 'credit' even if the range of products I could spend it on is too limited to be of use to me?

Context: I’ve recently had to give up driving (sight problems) and yesterday sold my car. Today I’ve tried to sort out refunds for the remaining insurance (8 months) and vehicle breakdown cover (10 months). Insurance sorted fine. Well, a hefty cancellation fee, but this was expected, and a cheque for the remainder is on its way.

Problem: The organisation providing Breakdown Cover is insisting that I take the refund in the form of credit with their organisation, which I can spend on other products or services from them. However, there is a limited number of such items, none of which are relevant for me! [More details below]. I am of course familiar with the concept of the ‘credit note’ which can make sense in the context of a shop/business where there is a wide range of clothes/shoes/households goods/books/repair services/whatever to choose from and you could purchase something in the future/for future use, even if you didn’t actually need it now. The main question is: Is there any consumer legislation which would deem a ‘credit note’ for such a specialised/limited range of products, as below, unreasonable or unfair? Anyone know whether this is a common practice (e.g. with AA or RAC cancellations)? The organisation will be holding over £100 of money that I am very unlikely to be able to redeem. I would prefer a hefty cancellation fee and to get SOME of my money back! But they say that’s not possible.

Details: My vehicle breakdown cover is with the Environmental Transport Association https://www.eta.co.uk/
Have been with then since shortly after they started in 1990. They use a wide range of garages for recovery, rather than their own staff. Have received excellent service over many years.
However, the ETA cancellation policy is to refund you in the form of credit which you can spend on other products and services from them. This is clear in the printed T&Cs; I’d just not had reason to read the small print since I joined 20 years ago!
The problem is that the limited range of products is as follows:
Car insurance – I will never need
Cycle insurance – I will never need
Vehicle breakdown service – This is what I am cancelling and will never need
House insurance – I do not need as I am happy with existing cover from another company. At renewal time I can investigate changing, but the ETA cover may or may not meet my needs as well as my existing provider.
Travel insurance – Again I do not need. Am happy with the European cover on an existing annual insurance from another company. While I may travel further afield another year, who is to say that the ETA product would meet my particular needs better than another company?
These limited options are a very different scenario from getting a ‘credit note’ from a business providing a wide range and/or ‘everyday’ products.

So, do I have to lose the £100+ of unused breakdown cover? Any comments or suggestions?

McKneff

Can it be transferred to any other member of your family or a freind perhaps.

pinkshoes

I would WRITE to them, tell them you've been a valued customer for over 20 years, and that you are VERY disappointed, given you can no longer drive through no fault of your own, that they won't use their own good will to refund your remaining breakdown cover, given a voucher is of no use to you.

fannyanna

I don't think you have any recourse.

I suspect the only way you'll get the money returned will be via a gesture of goodwill.

Tuesday_Tenor

Thanks both.
Doubt whether the credit would be transferable. I should have made clear it's not like a 'credit voucher' but a sum to be held 'in account' against my membership number. In addition, family is limited to a single sister who doesn't drive either! But I'll check anyway.
Pinkshoes - that will be my next step. Was wondering if there was anything else re 'unreasonable T&Cs' I could add in, but think it will be a question of applying to their good will, as you suggest.

vikingaero

Is the cover vehicle based or individual based. If it is based on you as an individual then you could still get cover whilst travelling as a passenger in a car.

Tuesday_Tenor

vikingaero wrote: »

Is the cover vehicle based or individual based. If it is based on you as an individual then you could still get cover whilst travelling as a passenger in a car.

Thanks for thinking laterally.
My cover was vehicle-based but I believe ETA also do personal-based, so possibly I could transfer.

Not really a lot of use to me though. Most of my journeys will be by public transport now. There's no one I travel in a car with consistently enough such that my cover could replace theirs - they'd still need their own for the other 98% of their journeys. So no saving!

Jojo_the_Tightfisted

I would suggest that you write an official complaint, pointing out very clearly the reason for your wish to cancel and obtain the refund, not be refused it to try and force you to buy further motoring related products when you can no longer drive due to disability.



After all, any halfway awake manager will realise that refusing a refund to somebody with a sight issue could make wonderful headlines for something like the Daily Venom.


So don't bother with the people on the phone anymore, they can't do much because they're just call centre operatives, for the AA;

write to: Customer Support, AA, Fanum House, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 4EA

RAC:

Membership Customer Care
RAC Motoring Services
Bradley Stoke
Bristol
BS32 4QN

Green Flag:

The Customer Relations Manager
Churchill Court
Westmoreland Road
Bromley
Kent
BR1 1DP.


Hope I've covered the company you used. But a quick google with the organisation name and 'complaints' should help.




That'll teach me not to read the OP properly.

68 High Street
WEYBRIDGE
KT13 8RS


Try a Private and Confidential letter (labelled on the outside of the envelope) to Andrew Davis explaining the situation why you cannot make use of their other products and why it is quite upsetting to be refused. And cc the Press Office at the same address. The T&Cs may say no, but a gesture of goodwill would be the most likely response fro them (if they have sense). It may get handed back to the Customer Services Manager, and then back to a minion, but the general result should be more satisfactory.

VK-2008

i would love to say there is something you are entitled to monetary wise but i doubt it, the company may say that you signed up to use the service for 12 months tough luck
i dohope out of goodwill that they give cash refund
but def write a letter of complaint
the only thing is they may see no point in issuing a refund as you will not use them in future so its not like they will get repeat custom (sorry)

good luck though
at the very least i hope they let you put it in form of gift voucher that you could sell on for part of the value?

Tuesday_Tenor

Good news! ETA have refunded the whole £153.80.

I wrote Customer Services a polite explanation, along the lines suggested by Pinkshoes. Definitely gets a better response than dealing with the 'first line' person on the phone.

They rang me last week to say they would refund, given the circumstances, and the money appeared my bank account this morning. Thanks to ETA for their goodwill in being reasonable. Thanks to those of you who responded with understanding.

I didn't have to write a threatening or complaining letter.
I would have been prepared to take this issue to somewhere like Radio 4's 'You and Yours' as the refund T&Cs did seem unreasonable to me.

[Can't see how to update original title to say *Update* .....]