iGo4 dodgy practices

Guanajuato

I've just changed home insurance provider using a comparison site. It came up wit igo4 as the cheapest quote by quite a way. So I switched to them. I then got an email a couple of days later saying there was an 'undisclosed claim', for which the premium would increase by £2.60 and there would be a charge of £35 for changes during the policy life (although the policy has not started yet).
However, I have checked with the insurer that iGo4 said the claim was through. Although I have had a policy with them, it was after the date of the supposed claim. And there were no claims lodged on the database at that time. neither have here been in the intervening 4 years.
The date quoted ties in with a heavy snowfall, which resulted in 2ft of snow bringing down my gutters. I phoned my insurer at the time, but was told it was an 'act of God' so wasn't covered. Hence no claim.

From reading posts on this site and others, it would seem that this isn't unusual for iGo4. Is it something that should be investigated?
Hopefully the response from the other insurer that I have forwarded to iGo4 will suffice. It is CLEAR proof that there was no claim.

The thing is, I switched from Swinton, who are no better with their taking of deposits before they even know what the (inflated) renewal premium will be. They're all a bunch a crooks.

Quentin

The question you have answered usually asks about your claims history to include any losses that you have experienced.


You attempted to make a claim, but it was rejected. Nevertheless you reported the incident and this went down on your record and was put on the shared database.


Whenever you experience a loss, make sure you are covered under your policy before contacting your insurer. Once you report a loss then you have to disclose it as part of your claim/loss history to other insurers you approach for quotes over the next 3/5 years depending on how long a history they ask for.

Guanajuato

No, I didn't. I enquired whether I could. No claim, therefore no insurance loss. this is exactly the sort of !!!!!!!! money people spout to get out of their obligations and it is completely unacceptable. there was no undisclosed claim because there was no claim.

Strange how in the intervening 5 years, its never come up. thieves, conmen & shysters the lot of them. Show me an honest person in the insurance industry and I'll show you an porcine airfield.

Despite documentary evidence, they've taken it anyway. Is that theft or fraud?

mills705

Some but not all insurers share claim information so you might have been with people that aren't signed up to the database.

The question asks about losses as well as claims. Unfortunately I've never dealt with home insurance however to put into context. If you hit your car and dent a bumper on your gate post technically you should inform your insurer. It would go down as notification only as a loss has occurred. Basically De valued the car.

Answer the question correctly and you wouldn't have had this problem! Technically over the last few years you will probably have had cheaper insurance than you should have done

Quentin

Guanajuato wrote: »

No, I didn't. I enquired whether I could. No claim, therefore no insurance loss. this is exactly the sort of !!!!!!!! money people spout to get out of their obligations and it is completely unacceptable. there was no undisclosed claim because there was no claim.

Strange how in the intervening 5 years, its never come up. thieves, conmen & shysters the lot of them. Show me an honest person in the insurance industry and I'll show you an porcine airfield.

Despite documentary evidence, they've taken it anyway. Is that theft or fraud?

You misunderstand. The question you have answered no to was not just about any insurance "claims".


Insurers don't just record your "claims". They also record any losses you notify to them.


You notified your loss when attempting to make a claim.


That went on your record at the time (correctly), and that is why your non disclosure has now caused this issue.

sithemadmonkey

But if it isn't an insured loss (i.e. not one of the perils under a policy), then does it still count as a loss?

It's a bit like calling your insurer to enquire about something that turns out to be wear and tear, so isn't covered. I wouldn't expect this to be something that would have to be disclosed to an insurer.

I can't find it now, but I'm sure I remember FOS saying that CUE records should only be created for insured events (whether claimed or not), not uninsured ones...

Guanajuato

Stop trying to in the blame on the person being ripped off! I'm guessing those doing that are in the insurance business themselves and are quite happy with the status quo of fleecing the customer, and it being the customer's fault. Do people like that deserve a place on this forum?

The question I answered was

Have you or anyone living at the property had any insurance claims in the last 5 years?

I truthfully answered No, because I have had no claims in the last 5 years. Nor in the 12 years preceding that.

They've taken my money though. £2.89 premium increase and £35 charge for a change during the policy. However, the change was mad BEFORE the policy began, so the charge shouldn't have been applied. Entirely unfair practice, bordering on fraud/theft. Not sure whether I should speak to the ombudsman or the police.

mills705

What site did you use to get the quote for home insurance? If that was the question asked and doesn't mention any losses or anything other than claims then yes you might have a case. However if they took details from you and then decided it was not a claim then yes it would go down correctly as an information only claim. Ie non fault

Yes I work in insurance. All I am doing is providing you with information I know a bit more about than you.

Guanajuato

Sucess, eventually.
Mills705, thanks and sorry for my tone of my replies. I was quite cross.

I'm still quite annoyed that its taken nearly 3 months to get a positive result and the additional charge has been refunded on the basis that the question I answered purely related to Claims, not 'accidents or incidents' as igo4 were insinuating. I've made a point that if they mean 'claims, incidents or accidents' then they should state this. Everywhere else where clarification is required, there's a little ? and pop-up. Nothing here to clarify that 'claim' also means you've phoned up to clarify whether you're covered.
Not impressed. But I very much doubt iGo4 are any different to any of the others. From reading threads on here, it seems this kind of thing is becoming the norm as a way for in sewer ants to make money fraudulently.

kuras76

[FONT=&quot]Hi, I have also problem with the insurance company igo4. In September 2014 I insured my car with them. But I made a mistake and gave that I have 9 years No Claim Bonus. I thought that igo4 accept discounts from my country but I realized that I have not had any confirmation for them…When after a few days I realized that I do not have those nine years discounts, I informed them of this and to those annual 800 quids they added another 1300. However, at the beginning I thought that they changed 1300 instead 800. When I realized in December that my monthly payment is 234 pounds, I called them (14.12.2014r) to cancel insurance. They accepted my resignation and sent notice what I owe them. It was as:[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Here's a breakdown of what you owe us:[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Total paid to us £172.64[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Total paid to your Installment Provider £306.26[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Time on cover charge £879.56[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Optional Extras £0.00[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Cancellation Fee £75.00[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]All Other Fees £35.00[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Outstanding balance due £510.66[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I could not afford to pay them at once over 500 quid, so I called them back to keep me with insurance and that I will still pay them the 234 quids per month. So they not canceled my insurance.[/FONT][FONT=&quot] The payment date[/FONT][FONT=&quot] 15th of each month, so they charged me 234 quids on 15 December and 15 January (total of 468). At the end of January I called them to again cancel the insurance. I thought that if I paid them already 468 quids so now I can safely cancel my policy and I will pay them total approx. 40f. However, the company sent me such a settlement:[/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot] [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Here's a breakdown of what you owe us:[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Total paid to us £172.64[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Total paid to your Installment Provider £775.56[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Time on cover charge £1,076.78[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Cancellation Fee £75.00All Other Fees £35.00[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Outstanding balance due £238.58[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Do you think that everything has been counted correctly, because "common sense" is something here does not agree? I think if is closer to the end of the[/FONT][FONT=&quot] [/FONT][FONT=&quot]insurance period then cancellation fee should be lower. And I do not know whether they rightly require me to pay the 238f. [/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Thanks in advance for your help.[/FONT]

weejonnie

Cancellation fees (charged by the intermediary) are usually fixed and you must be advised what they are before you take out the policy.

The TOR increases (naturally) the longer you are on cover. You have been on cover for 6 - 8 weeks more - hence the increase (and it will go on increasing).