Cancelling Elephant Policy Mid Term...Fee?

nzpod

Hi all,

Quick question. I am exporting my car and leaving the country in a couple of weeks. My insurance runs until Feb 2015.

AFAIK I cannot get a refund from elephant for ending the policy early.

And is that is the case do they charge a cancellation fee. I paid my premium in full at the start of the year.

If they do charge a fee and do not give a refund can I just let the policy run and let them know in Jan 2015 I won't be renewing?

Cheers

Quentin

You aren't supposed to - but if the car is being exported, it looks as though they would never know!


Though although they will have a cancellation charge, you should get a refund of some premium (assuming no claims made during this year) which should over the charge and still leave a refund.

InsideInsurance

A late cancellation will often mean that the cancellation fees pretty much wipe out any return premiums due but the only way to say for certain is to call them and find out.

The risk of letting the insurance run is if they find out you have changed where the vehicle is kept overnight then cancel the policy as a consequence. I dont know if you are emigrating or just exporting your vehicle but if you ever want future UK insurance then you'd have to declare this cancellation.

Quentin

InsideInsurance wrote: »

The risk of letting the insurance run is if they find out you have changed where the vehicle is kept overnight.......

If it's exported how they gonna find out where it's kept overnight?

nzpod

InsideInsurance wrote: »

A late cancellation will often mean that the cancellation fees pretty much wipe out any return premiums due but the only way to say for certain is to call them and find out.

The risk of letting the insurance run is if they find out you have changed where the vehicle is kept overnight then cancel the policy as a consequence. I dont know if you are emigrating or just exporting your vehicle but if you ever want future UK insurance then you'd have to declare this cancellation.

Thanks. By late do you mean after the cooling off period?

I am emigrating but may come back in the future so don't want to burn any bridges so to speak.

Lets say there is no refund due, even if I am happy to pay the policy out until it ends, which I have already done, they still charge a cancellation fee? They have not lost financially so I don't see the reason. May be I am confused.

Cheers

Quentin

The cancellation fee is a separate issue to the premium.


Check your policy wording about what happens when you cancel mid term regarding any refund of premium


But as you are cancelling with around a third unused, so see what they say - enquiring about the full cost of cancelling (because you are thinking of disposing of your car) won't cause any problem and you will be able to make an informed decision.

InsideInsurance

Quentin wrote: »

If it's exported how they gonna find out where it's kept overnight?

Because if its not in the country its clearly not being kept in the OPs garage (for example) as they have stated when taking out the policy.

Now how they'd find out its been exported is another question. One possible route is if they do a new DVLA lookup on the reg plate as part of their renewal process. Presumably the export removes the vehicle from the database and thus the DVLA loopup would throw up an exception - either no vehicle, actually show its been exported or possibly a different make/model if the reg plates been allocated to a different vehicle. I've never done a lookup on an exported vehicle so dont actually know what comes back.

Given the OP is leaving the country too their insurer may send mail, eg the renewal quote, to their postal address here and the new occupants of the OPs home may helpfully inform the insurer that the OP left the country a few months ago.


Obviously not all insurers are going to do a new DVLA look up but certainly some might and so there is a risk there. The OP hasnt said whats happening to their property here and even if it is going to have new occupants we dont know if they'd bother dealing with the OPs post or not. Hence I said IF they find out.

nzpod

Thanks for the post. A good friend is taking over the property so I should get any new mail.

Anyway I will do as Quentin said and call them up to enquire and let you know the outcome.

I just HATE fees!

r2015

I bought a new car and my then current insurer wouldn't insure it.
When I tried to cancel the insurance on my old car they wanted their cashback back and a cancelation fee.
I had only paid £75 for the year and they wanted £100 to cancel it.


I just left it running.

nzpod

So spoke with elephant I just pay for the days used and the rest is refunded less a 47.50 quid admin fee. So a reasonable refund due.

Thanks for your help everyone should have just called them!

chanz4

Wont it be 2015?