Quinn-direct Insurance Ltd - anyone had any experience of them?

virgin_moneysaver

just had a quote on-line of £970 for my 17yr old learner driver son - they are regulated by the Irish Financial Regulator - has anyone had any experience of these & are we in the UK covered by this regulation?

mattymoo

Not to sound mean but if you do a search for "Quin" (to account for typos) you will find quite a few threads on this board about them.
General concensus is they're cheap but you get what you pay for.

millymollymandy2K7

I was insured by Quinn 2 years ago as they came out cheapest for me on confused.com. they have an Irish group and also a british section - this is based in belfast. I was perfectly happy with them and the only reason I didn't renew with them was I got cheaper quotes elsewhere

virgin_moneysaver

mattymoo wrote: »

Not to sound mean but if you do a search for "Quin" (to account for typos) you will find quite a few threads on this board about them.
General concensus is they're cheap but you get what you pay for.

they are offering named driver no claims accrual for my 17 yr old, free breakdown, windscreen cover & various other things for around £1k less than most of the other insurers & this is also with me being the main driver, which I will be as he's in school, & I've never had insurance in my own name, only named driver on my husbands policy - so all in all I think £550 for me & a learner driver is a pretty good deal

we don't need a load of bells & whistles on the policy as my brother owns his own car repair firm & the car only cost £700 (from a neighbour & she never drove it more than 10 miles from our town) so all we need is a basic policy for him to legally (unlike some) drive on our roads, to gain some experience & build up some no claims in his name

some of the quotes we've had, these poor kids don't stand a chance unless their parents are able to help out - not every 17yr old lad is a petrol head

IAN_of_PRESTON

My Son Took Out An Insurance Policy With Quinn 2 Years Ago, Alas He Had To Scrap His Motor, On Informing Quinn They Told Him He Must Continue Paying For His Policy (monthly Instalments). When I Spoke To Them They Said It Was Company Policy And That The Insurance Would Be Frozen Until He Had Another Car! My Son Stopped Payments Due To No Job And Having No Car To Insure.
My Son Just Recieved A Letter Threatening Court If He Does Not Pay £200+ Immediately, Nice Company Or What.
All Our Efforts To Speak Sense To These People Falls On Deaf Ears, Bring It On I Say.

BruceyBonus

virgin_moneysaver wrote: »

build up some no claims in his name

Named driver NCD isn't interchangable between companies. It will only ever be accepted by the company who gave it.

BruceyBonus

IAN_of_PRESTON wrote: »

My Son Took Out An Insurance Policy With Quinn 2 Years Ago, Alas He Had To Scrap His Motor, On Informing Quinn They Told Him He Must Continue Paying For His Policy (monthly Instalments). When I Spoke To Them They Said It Was Company Policy And That The Insurance Would Be Frozen Until He Had Another Car! My Son Stopped Payments Due To No Job And Having No Car To Insure.
My Son Just Recieved A Letter Threatening Court If He Does Not Pay £200+ Immediately, Nice Company Or What.
All Our Efforts To Speak Sense To These People Falls On Deaf Ears, Bring It On I Say.

When you pay monthly, you are basically agreeing to pay the full annual amount plus take out a loan from the insurance company which you then pay back in instalments every month. If he claimed on the policy then he will be liable for the remainder of the policy.

IAN_of_PRESTON

Thats What I Am Saying He Did Not Claim Anything, He Had No Car To Claim Off! If I Have Ever Had Any Dealings With Reputable Companies They Pay Back What They Owe You, Obviously This Amount Decreases As The Months Tick By!!

Steve1981

OK with Quinn, it is very important to realise that learner drivers are deemed to be less of a risk than those who have newly passed their test.

they see it as less of a risk when you are on a provisional and have someone sat with you than they do of you passing your test and being able to go out on your own.

yes they will be hundreds of pounds cheaper than anything else you get when quoting on a provisional licence, but once you pass your test that price will sky rocket (and because you are being quoted on information that you give them at the time the policy starts and due to it being your responsibility to inform THEM of changes, they dont have to explain that it will go up)

Im my job on a dailey basis i quote for people joining us from Quinn who upon passing their test are told they must fork out more money (one 17 year old about 2 weeks ago was told it was an extra £1,800 for the rest of the year)

yes there are companies who are more expensive to start with, but with provisional licence holders you need to check if they rate against number of years someone has held a FULL licence (ie on provisonal that is 0 and when they pass until it has been held a year it is still 0 - meaning they are rated the same) this way you wont get any nasty surprises.

admitadley it does mean my easy sales will dwindle a bit, but Im sure I'll cope

cogito

There's a distinct possibility that Quinn will pull out of the UK market altogether to concentrate on Ireland as a result of their recent disastrous investments. They're not helped by the fact that Standard & Poors and other credit rating agencies don't give them a rating for lack of financial information. One of the agencies did give them a rating but it was withdrawn recently. Some brokers have stopped supporting them for this reason.

Personally, I wouldn't insure with a company without that sort of reassurance.

blisteringblue

IAN_of_PRESTON wrote: »

My Son Took Out An Insurance Policy With Quinn 2 Years Ago, Alas He Had To Scrap His Motor, On Informing Quinn They Told Him He Must Continue Paying For His Policy (monthly Instalments). When I Spoke To Them They Said It Was Company Policy And That The Insurance Would Be Frozen Until He Had Another Car! My Son Stopped Payments Due To No Job And Having No Car To Insure.
My Son Just Recieved A Letter Threatening Court If He Does Not Pay £200+ Immediately, Nice Company Or What.
All Our Efforts To Speak Sense To These People Falls On Deaf Ears, Bring It On I Say.

He must have made a claim then I can see it in their T&Cs. You do get refund for a cancellation as long as you have made no claims. Also if paying monthly it only says you will not receive any refund for deposit or instalments you have already paid. So even if paying monthly you can cancel without paying out the full premium, however only if you have made no claim.

I've just taken a policy out with them as my twin step-daughters are 17 and learning to drive. They were by far the cheapest for Provisional Drivers but I know it will go up massively when one of them pass. I've bought a little 1 litre runabout so they can drive outside of their lessons and needed a policy for it.

My dilemma is that although I have 9 years no-claims bonus it is currently in use on my wife's car. To get the kids on that was stupid o'clock money (Mini Cooper) and as it is a lease car I just give it back in March when Mrs Blue will only drive the little runabout (the sacrifices parents have to make hey )

However Quinn Direct do a Company Car experience bonus that is similar to the standard NCD, so as I have a company car I have used that to get the little car insured at slightly more than the full no claims discount rate. Means the kids can drive it while they are learning, and as soon as one of them passes (might take a long time ) I was going to cancel the policy and get back whatever they are offering.

By this time the Lease Car will have been returned and I will have freed up my 9 years no claims discount so I can then apply that to the full policy when they have passed.

A little long winded but is probably the best I can find to suit all our circumstances.

Just have to hope we don't need to claim or else my plan is out the window.

I have read up about Quinn though, and to be honest I think all insurance companies are pretty much the same these days. Just make sure you have not told any un-truths or they will not pay up.