Wrong reg - a crime? BEWARE

felix345

At weekend I was stopped by the police saying I had no car insurance. i was amazed as I've never driven without it. When I got home I found that the incorrect reg was on my insurance. In a nutshell in Oct 2012 I used go compare to choose my insurance. It retained info from 2010 when I'd last used the site. This was a problem because I'd had a differnt car then. It was the same make and model & only fractionally younger but I didn't realise it was the old reg (probably because it was my old reg & therefore famaliar to me). In 2011 I had correctly insured my car without using go compare & with a diffrent insurance company. Hastings only e-mailed me a link to check my policy within 21 days & yes I admit I didn't.
Hasings have cancelled my insurance from 4th Feb although I reported what had happened to them on the 2nd within minutes of getting pulled up. the police have rung them & they say they will not honour the policy on the 2nd so it looks like I'm up before the magistrates!! Hasting had my money from Oct and the car is the same make, model so no change to the risk to them. Left feeling this is a great scam for the insurance companies. I fully admit the error was mine but I feel completely devastated that I am being treated as a criminal. I didn't input the wrong reg, just failed to notice when the wrong one was present on the go compare site & Hastings never sent me anything in writing. Just about everyone I've spoken to says they never check their docs. Any help????

hugoshavez

1. Where is the old car now?

2. Have you initiated a complaint?

3. Try to get a quote with the new car details on the Hastings site. Screenprint, save and print the details if you're offered cover.

4. What are the models and years of each car?

5. Have you had a letter from Hastings confirming the cancellation? What does it say, precisely?

dacouch

Hugo covers it well.

Hastings however carp an Insurer they're cannot cancel the Insurance over the phone on the say so of a police officer.

rs65

Do you have evidence of when you disposed of the old car and acquired the new one?

Its not impossible for someone to try to scam an insurer by having two similar cars, insuring one and alleging a simple mistake if something happens.

If you can prove the dates of disposal/acquisition it should be obvious its a simple mistake.

felix345

Thanks for the replies. We have evidence of the disposal of the old car against the new & have given police copies. Hastings in itially told us they were cancelling it from 16th & then promptly sold us new insurance from then (which cost slightly less than the poicy they had just cancelled). When we rang them again to absolutely clarify they said they were cancelling it from the 4th. We were stopped on the 2nd. When the police rang & said would they honour it for the 2nd they said no. I just don't get it. We have completely proved that it was an honest mistake but it seems Hastings are making the decision that we should be prosecuted. I know of other people who have got the wrong reg on their insurance doc but their insuarance companies have just changed it! Even the sales person at Hastings couldn't understand why they wouldn't just amend the policy. We have now had a letter (e-mailed) from Hastings that simply says they are cancelling the policy. Both cars are Mondeo LX 1798cc. One was a 52 plate & the new one 55 plate. Hardly any difference & no alteration to any risk element. It seems so unfair. Lesson learnt & I would ask everyone to check your car insuarance policy now (very carefully)

Gra76

The bottom line as far as I can see is that you didn't check the policy details and have therefore managed to insure a car which you no longer own, rather than the car which you are currently driving.

Unfortunately that makes it your problem rather than your insurers. It really isn't their fault you insured a car that isn't yours any more.

The arguement that it's a similar car etc doesn't really stack up for me. The license plate you insured is a unique identifier to your last car. If insurers were happy to insure us all on the basis that we owned 'a 1.8 LX mk3 Ford Mondeo' then we could in theory drive around in any 'mk3 1.8 LX Ford Mondeo' we wanted to.

dacouch

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/52/section/148

148 Avoidance of certain exceptions to policies or securities.

(1)Where a certificate of insurance or certificate of security has been delivered under section 147 of this Act to the person by whom a policy has been effected or to whom a security has been given, so much of the policy or security as purports to restrict—
(a)the insurance of the persons insured by the policy, or
(b)the operation of the security,(as the case may be) by reference to any of the matters mentioned in subsection (2) below shall, as respects such liabilities as are required to be covered by a policy under section 145 of this Act, be of no effect.
(2)Those matters are—
(a)the age or physical or mental condition of persons driving the vehicle,
(b)the condition of the vehicle,
(c)the number of persons that the vehicle carries,
(d)the weight or physical characteristics of the goods that the vehicle carries,
(e)the time at which or the areas within which the vehicle is used,
(f)the horsepower or cylinder capacity or value of the vehicle,
(g)the carrying on the vehicle of any particular apparatus, or
(h)the carrying on the vehicle of any particular means of identification other than any means of identification required to be carried by or under [F1the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994].

dacouch

If they've cancelled / voided the policy without properly investigating the situation eg asked you (Ideally in writing) for an explanation and then this is reviewed by a senior member of staff to enable them to ascertain whether the non disclosure was "Deliberate" or "Innocent" etc etc they will be on a very sticky wicket with the Ombudsman. Especially as one would assume the non disclosure was "Inadvertent" and that having "rewritten" the Insurance they would have covered the correct vehicle.

http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/ombudsman-news/46/46_non_disclosure_insurance.htm

When you take into account the fine the FSA imposed on Hastings for cancelling incorrectly priced policies (Slightly different circumstances) you would think they would have check and balances in place...

http://www.fsa.gov.uk/library/communication/pr/2008/080.shtml

Also bearing in mind their Policy Wording which is a contract states this when explaining how they will cancel a policy (Which are contractual terms) are thus. (This will not apply if they're voiding a policy)

3. Cancelling this policy
You have the right to cancel this policy within 14 days of taking it out or renewing it (or within 14 days of receiving the policy documents or renewal schedule, if later), without giving a reason. Unless you have made a total loss claim under the policy, you will receive a refund of premium paid, subject to your insurer’s minimum premium for any period of cover provided. In these circumstances, the effective date of cancellation will be the date that you serve notice of your wish to cancel. If you serve notice of cancellation prior to commencement of cover, you will be entitled to a full refund of the premium you have paid.

We or your insurer may also cancel this policy by sending you 7 days' notice, in writing, to your last known address.
A refund of premium for the remaining period of your policy will be allowed as long as no claim has arisen in the
current period, subject to your insurers minimum premium.
You may also cancel the policy at any time after the initial 14-day period detailed above by returning the Certificate
of Motor Insurance to us. In this event a refund of premium, subject to your insurers minimum premium,will be
calculated with effect from the date that the Certificate of Motor Insurance s received at the offices of Hastings.
If any claims have been submitted during the current annual period of insurance, no refund will be due and if you
are paying the annual premium by instalments, then the outstanding loan will become payable in full."

http://www.hastingsdirect.com/documents/Policy_documents/Car/HD_Defaqto_Policy_Book_10-2012.pdf

OFFICIAL MSE HASTINGS REP, I SUGGEST YOU SHOW YOUR UNDERWRITTING REP THIS THREAD AS THEY'RE NOT HANDLING THIS MATTER CORRECTLY

starrystarry

It wasn't the wrong reg number it was the wrong car! That is relevant to the risk, whether you think it is or not.

Dangermac

felix345 wrote: »

At weekend I was stopped by the police saying I had no car insurance. i was amazed as I've never driven without it. When I got home I found that the incorrect reg was on my insurance. In a nutshell in Oct 2012 I used go compare to choose my insurance. It retained info from 2010 when I'd last used the site. This was a problem because I'd had a differnt car then. It was the same make and model & only fractionally younger but I didn't realise it was the old reg (probably because it was my old reg & therefore famaliar to me). In 2011 I had correctly insured my car without using go compare & with a diffrent insurance company. Hastings only e-mailed me a link to check my policy within 21 days & yes I admit I didn't.
Hasings have cancelled my insurance from 4th Feb although I reported what had happened to them on the 2nd within minutes of getting pulled up. the police have rung them & they say they will not honour the policy on the 2nd so it looks like I'm up before the magistrates!! Hasting had my money from Oct and the car is the same make, model so no change to the risk to them. Left feeling this is a great scam for the insurance companies. I fully admit the error was mine but I feel completely devastated that I am being treated as a criminal. I didn't input the wrong reg, just failed to notice when the wrong one was present on the go compare site & Hastings never sent me anything in writing. Just about everyone I've spoken to says they never check their docs. Any help????

This is obviously a genuine error, however, I'm not sure that your current insurer have done anything wrong. If it was simply the registration plate that was slightly wrong, they should be able to correct it, and are unlikely to have cancelled cover.

However, you have insured the wrong car. Maybe the car is similar, maybe the same make/model - but nevertheless the wrong car.

You should be asking the police/courts to be lenient, in view of the fact that you have made an honest mistake.

However, my sympathy for you ran out when you suggested that this was somehow an insurance scam. This wasnt a simple typo - you insured the wrong vehicle.

Insurers often dont help themselves, but in this case they have done nothing wrong. It is you who made a fundamental mistake, and you who ended up driving around without any insurance as a result.

Clearly an honest and genuine mistake, but you need to take a good look in the mirror before blaming anyone other than yourself

DM

dacouch

starrystarry wrote: »

It wasn't the wrong reg number it was the wrong car! That is relevant to the risk, whether you think it is or not.

Which would not be a problem with a decent Insurer who would investigate the situation and if they were satisfied it was an honest mistake would rewrite the policy on the correct basis with any adjustment in premium to be paid.

It's difficult to comprehend why an Insurer (Even one as bad as Hastings) would feel it justified to cancel / void a policy due to a customer insuring the incorrect car. Even if they do not feel it warranted to correct the Insurance to the right vehicle the OP has not done anything to the warrant voiding or cancelling a policy.