Santander Home Insurance Discounts 123 Account

Leodogger

Hi there

Has anyone else experienced the Santander 123 Home Insurance Discount Con ?

I have just undertaken a comparison of home insurance for our new property and one of the quotes that came back was for Santander at £107 so as I am a 123 account holder I decided to check if there were any discounts as a customer of a Santander Account on their web site and yes they were offering 30% off as a 123 customer on Home Insurance. I went through the quote system and was quoted exactly the same £107 (bearing in mind the system does not know I am a 123 account holder), so I telephoned to check what my discount would be for being a 123 account holder. Surprise, surprise, she said this was the price for being a 123 account holder and there would not be any further discount. I asked how then they were offering a discount as the system did not know me from Adam ? She said after the policy is taken out they check if you are an account holder and remove the discount if you are not a 123 account holder. I said how is it then that exactly the same price is quoted to me on a comparison website as the one they quoted me with supposedly 30% discount for being a 123 holder. She stated that the comparison web sites offer:( a new first time customer discount. So I said, basicly there is no discount for being a 123 customer as I can get exactly the same discount on a comparison web site. She was obviously used to this argument being used as she said they have no obligation (after I questioned why they do not state in their quote system that this should not be compared to any other quote offered on any other online comparison web site), to make this clear on their online quote system.

I was very angry as to me this is plain deception, pure and simple. She soon finished the call when she could see that I saw through their little deception !

Anyone else had this experience with Insurance from other suppliers ?:mad:

Jevvers

I was wondering the same, having just got a quote myself in similar circs. But £107 is a good price for home insurance, non? (I know that wasn't yr point...)

Leodogger

Jevvers wrote: »

I was wondering the same, having just got a quote myself in similar circs. But £107 is a good price for home insurance, non? (I know that wasn't yr point...)

I paid a bit more with Legal & General for a higher sum coverage but as you say none of them state the details of coverage and insurance companies being what they are, any excuse not to payout is always a priority with all of them so I need to find out who would be responsible. My solicitor who has been very thorough in her work, is concerned we could end up with a hefty bill if there was a leak and we are pensioners who would not be able to afford to pay for it should there be a break beneath the ground.

Caterina

Just cancelled my Nationwide buildings and contents insurance (£600+ per year) and renewed with John Lewis online, shaved a clean £300+ off, getting better cover, paid it all with Partnership card so got their points as well and will not have a DD for the rest of the year!

Got 15% discount for applying online too, so am very happy.

Leodogger

Caterina wrote: »

Just cancelled my Nationwide buildings and contents insurance (£600+ per year) and renewed with John Lewis online, shaved a clean £300+ off, getting better cover, paid it all with Partnership card so got their points as well and will not have a DD for the rest of the year!

Got 15% discount for applying online too, so am very happy.

Just tried John Lewis and it came back with £322 per year :eek:
It only offered Premium cover and it had added items I didn't want like cycles cover and personal possession cover and unlimited buildings cover when we are not living in a millionaire's house, only a modest 2 bed bungalow but there was no option to reduce the level to the rebuilding cost which lowers the premiums, or take olff things like pedal cycle cover of £2,500. I have paid £128 with Legal and General for £250,000 buildings cover and £30,000 contents which is plenty for us. I consider John Lewis to be very expensive when compared to all the other quotes I got on a comparison web site

*Scarlett

JWhite - what the agent has told you sounds plain dodgy to me.

They have told you the price assumes you are a 123 acc holder and if not, any discount would be removed afterwards.

If I had taken insurance through their website at a certain price and was then told at a later date that they had checked and the price would increase by 30% as I was not a 123 acc holder I would be well miffed :mad: (unless it was clearly stated that the price was conditional on having this acc).

I would complain to them formally and ask for a full explanantion (but I'm in a bad mood today and would complain about anything! :eek:)

Leodogger

*Scarlett wrote: »

JWhite - what the agent has told you sounds plain dodgy to me.

They have told you the price assumes you are a 123 acc holder and if not, any discount would be removed afterwards.

If I had taken insurance through their website at a certain price and was then told at a later date that they had checked and the price would increase by 30% as I was not a 123 acc holder I would be well miffed :mad: (unless it was clearly stated that the price was conditional on having this acc).

I would complain to them formally and ask for a full explanantion (but I'm in a bad mood today and would complain about anything! :eek:)

To be honest the attitude of the customer services assistant was so bad using a "take it or leave it" attitude when I questioned the legitimacy of the advert which didn't state up front the price only applied to people with a 123 account, basicly it said they would give you a 30% discount if you were a 123 customer, NOT that the quoted price INCLUDED the discount which was totally misleading. To be honest my reaction was that they could stick their insurance if they couldn't be honest and upfront with people and as soon as I move house I am going to look into moving my account. :mad:

*Scarlett

You probably feel you have wasted enough time with this but as you are unhappy with the service then do take a bit longer to lodge a formal complaint. You can normally fill these in online in a few minutes.

If they have mislead you you could try

http://www.asa.org.uk/Consumers/How-to-complain.aspx

http://financial-ombudsman.org.uk/

If you are serious about moving your acc they will probably want to keep your business and may do something for you. But if not make sure you have a suitable backup in place.

Also if you are moving house make sure any future insurers will cover properties "on the market" if you are selling - some will not take on as new business.

Leodogger

*Scarlett wrote: »

You probably feel you have wasted enough time with this but as you are unhappy with the service then do take a bit longer to lodge a formal complaint. You can normally fill these in online in a few minutes.

If they have mislead you you could try

http://www.asa.org.uk/Consumers/How-to-complain.aspx

http://financial-ombudsman.org.uk/

If you are serious about moving your acc they will probably want to keep your business and may do something for you. But if not make sure you have a suitable backup in place.

Also if you are moving house make sure any future insurers will cover properties "on the market" if you are selling - some will not take on as new business.

Thanks for the advice. I don't need to worry about your last paragraph. We are covered in our present home under our housing association blanket insurance (we don't pay for it), so we only have to sort out our new home and we have signed contracts and the property is no longer on the market.