What's the relationship between insurers and accident management companies?

Hoof_Hearted

Following my accident on Monday, I didn't really know what the options were. Anyway, phoned my insurance company as the car had to be recovered. They seem to have handed everything over to Kindertons who are an accident management company. I have no complaints so far but there is no attempt to keep costs down. I thought my insurers would deal with everything as it's such a straightforward case.

OnanTheBarbarian

Insurers ride on the gravy train of kick backs that they earn from sending their customers to accident management companies.

Kindertons will now sort you with a nice expensive hire car and the other side will get stung for the costs.

Yet insurers then moan about the excessive hire car costs etc, but they are usually the ones feeding the beast they are moaning about and squeel like pigs when they are on the receiving end of a credit hire invoice.

I would expect a call from Carpenters Solicitors to follow soon also....

Foxy-Stoat_3

OnanTheBarbarian wrote: »

I would expect a calls from various Solicitors to follow for the next 5 years....

Fixed that for you !!

Quentin

Hoof_Hearted wrote: »

Following my accident on Monday, I didn't really know what the options were. Anyway, phoned my insurance company as the car had to be recovered. They seem to have handed everything over to Kindertons who are an accident management company. I have no complaints so far but there is no attempt to keep costs down. I thought my insurers would deal with everything as it's such a straightforward case.

It's better for you that this is happening.


Had your insurer dealt with this then you would have the hassle of paying for your excess and reclaiming it, as well as your NCD being (temporarily) impacted till your insurer got full reimbursement from the other side.

Babbawah

Please STOP confusing insewerance companies with insewerance brokers.

Most folk buy their insurance through a broker, these brokers make a MASSIVE percentage of their profits from customers involved in non-fault incidents.

Nobody, including me, fully understands the UK vehicle insurance market & how it all works.

sh0597

Meanwhile other people have to pay for it all.

InsideInsurance

Babbawah wrote: »

Please STOP confusing insewerance companies with insewerance brokers.

Most folk buy their insurance through a broker, these brokers make a MASSIVE percentage of their profits from customers involved in non-fault incidents.

Absolutely agree that for brokers and other intermediaries that selling details to AXMs etc are significant income streams to them - along with a number other ways of generating revenue other than insurance premium.

It is not unique to brokers though and plenty of actual insurers will sell details to at least credit hire companies if not full AXMs

It is always slightly concerning to me that people dont understand the difference between broker and insurer but when you start adding MGAs etc then lines do get more blurred especially when you take the likes of Towergate where they are a broker but also an MGA and so can sell a product thats written by themselves or others.

Hoof_Hearted

MGA? AXM? please explain...

InsideInsurance

Hoof_Hearted wrote: »

MGA? AXM? please explain...

AXM - accident management, just a slightly odd abbreviation based on the phonetics rather than spelling



MGA - Managing General Agent. These are basically a pseudo insurer, a true insurance company delegates some of its authority to another company to set terms/ pricing etc on their behalf. The true insurer ultimately remains on the hook for any claims but depending on how far the delegation goes the MGA may deal with all claims under £Xm, set all terms and pricing within limits without prior approval from the insurer etc.

Generally, but not in all cases, MGAs exist to target very specific niches of specialist policies that are too small a market to get a giant insurer interested in and the company wanting to target it dont want the massive complexity in becoming an insurer in their own right. So for example Towergate has an MGA across a consortium of insurers and they write Home insurance for non-standard construction, unoccupied, second home, overseas holiday home and budget high net worth. They sell this via a range of brokers (as well as via their own brokers)

So you could be buying a policy from the broker A Plan, the policy comes badged Towergate Underwriting but if you read the small print it will say the underwriter is a consortium of insurers lead by Axa

Babbawah

I used to run a vehicle recovery co' a few years ago.

A non fault incident, car extensively damaged (poss write off), 2 occupants 1 with fractures, 1 with heavy bruising, cuts etc. A typical RTI.

This would earn me £1800 in commision alone from the accident management co', just for signing up the non fault driver & the passenger.

Easy money, paid in cash pound notes.

Hoof_Hearted

My insurers just handed everything over to an accident management company. I wasn't referred to them nor was I given a choice.

I hate the artificial inflation of insurance claims -- it's dishonest and I try not to be. I have a hire car -- a modest one (Corsa) -- but I turned down a Ka as the dog wouldn't fit in the boot. I do need a car. I am waiting for the accident management company to tell me if my car is to be written off. The sooner they do this, the sooner I will hand the hire car back, but they don't seem to be in a hurry.