1st Central Insurance Thieves

NJCFC87

Hello all,

I'm new to this but I felt the need to vent my anger and frustration at bandit companies like 1st Central Insurance.

My car insurance was up for renewal on October 5th 2013 and I decided to do a comparison to find a cheaper rate and opted to use 1st Central Insurance. On joining, I was required to pay a £50 set-up charge which I already considered quite expensive.

Yesterday (November 10th 2013) I sold my car as me and my partner have decided to go from 2 vehicles to 1. My partner added me to her insurance yesterday afternoon with no fuss and at a cost of just 21p per month. I tried to call 1st Central Insurance but apparently they don't work on Sunday's.

So today, I've just rang 1st Central Insurance to notify them that I no longer require insurance for a car I don't own. Considering I paid a £50 set-up fee just 1 month ago and paid an instalment of £30 on November 1st 2013, I expected this to be quite a simple process.

But no, 1st Central Insurance wasn't satisfied with taking £80 from me for 1 month's insurance on a 2007 VW Polo. They wanted an ADDITIONAL £50 to cancel!

I suggested to customer services that surely the £80 I've already spent for just a month's cover (of which I didn't even have any contact, let alone make a claim) was sufficient. But my suggestion fell on deaf ears.

Instead, I am now waiting for a complaint call back for a 'manager' who I'm sure will be equally as helpful and understanding.

It's daylight robbery and there's no other way of describing this company other than GREEDY THIEVES.

I've since realised that I'm not the first person to fall victim to 1st Central Insurance. But I'd be interested to hear other peoples stories and thoughts on this bandit company?

Cheers

Quentin

Cancellation charges are the norm.

You will have agreed to their cancellation policy when you took the policy out.

If it's any consolation, you can have to pay more than £50 with other budget type insurers.

22johnny22

NJCFC87 wrote: »

I tried to call 1st Central Insurance but apparently they don't work on Sunday's.

How dare they not work on Sundays!!!

McKneff

It isn't robbery or thievery, if there is such a word.

As Quentin says, it's the norm.

You haven't read the terms and conditions before you signed, simple as that.

At least it's a lesson learned, reading terms and condition will become the norm for you in the future.

scheming_gypsy

It is a simple process.

you pay a set up fee, then monthly costs and an admin fee to cancel the insurance AND credit agreement with the third party credit company.

See, simple.

nessynoos

I too have fallen foul to First Central. I have had the insurance for 55 days and have now sold the car. Considering the annual policy is £427 the cancellation balance to pay is £167!! This consists of the setup fee of £50 a cancellation fee of £50 and the other ancillaries such as hire car, legal expenses and personal accident, which are due in full and are non refundable!! What angers me the most is that they state on the cancellation breakdown I have paid £63 since the start of the policy, when I've actually paid £82 (2x£41) and part of these £41 monthly payments include a payment towards the setup fee and the ancillaries, but they are trying to charge me for them in full separately!!

I waited on hold for 10 minutes and spoke to someone who first cut me off, then I called back to be put on hold for another 10 minutes then the guy said he'd call me back within an hour to give me my cancellation figure and didn't bother, so I had to call up again.

Absolute robbers, yes yes I should have read the T's & C's but in all my years of having car insurance I've never been charged so much and incorrectly to cancel a policy. Daylight robbery!!!

Do not use this company !

vaio

The FOS has fairly clear views on this....you should be paying broadly pro-rata plus a reasonable (up to £50) cancellation fee.

Do the sums and if you are being charged more than that then lodge a complaint and if still unhappy then take it to the FOS

jonesMUFCforever

Both posters complaining fail to understand that a car insurance policy is for 12 months not one month or slightly more.
Both would have digitally signed confirming the terms and conditions for the policies and cancellation.

I see nothing to suggest that they have been thieving anybody here.

vaio

yep, but post #7 still applies

nessynoos

I did not digitally sign anything as this was automatically renewed. They are robbing as they are trying to tell me I owe more than I do.

jonesMUFCforever

nessynoos wrote: »

I did not digitally sign anything as this was automatically renewed. They are robbing as they are trying to tell me I owe more than I do.

By whatever way you applied for the policy it would have been in the terms and conditions on how to renew or not - most auto renew these days.