GAP insurance mis sold

Red_Marco

December 2017 completing a new vehicle purchase i was faced with the indecision of do i take on board the a raft of protective insurances. being offered and ignore the warnings of minor bodywork damage, blown tyres, chipped alloy rims and write off offers being short of vehicle value (GAP insurance).
On reflection i was a little hasty and a lot out of pocket having agreed to a single premium 4 year policy in the case of each potential risk.
as it happened i was claiming minor damage within 3 months and a new tyre in 6 so I guess the the policy/s were a kind of bet but the GAP...
Mind the GAP they used to say at the railway stations and maybe i should have minded this GAP insurance.
Twelve months later, renewing the road insurance my insurance broker asked why i had felt it necessary to have GAP when their policy covered the same for the first twelve months (i had queried double insuring) and in subsequent years so for two months i have deliberated on whether i should look into it and subsequently upset my dealer and perhaps jepodise my service/guarantee future relationship with them on a £60k vehicle.
the policy cost £699 for 48 months. i feel embarrassed approaching the dealership direct but feel i was over eager and a little foolhardy taking on the policy for so long without proper advice at the time i.e. from my broker/insurance company.
now i am less so but don't know how to proceed without approaching them direct.
any comments other than being an over eager twit

dunstonh

GAP insurance mis sold

Nothing in your post suggests anything that would make it missold.

It appears you have buyers remorse. That is not a missale reason.

Nasqueron

Sorry but caveat emptor - you have 14 days cooling off period to cancel the policy if you didn't want it and you signed up to it by agreeing to the Ts & Cs.



Dealer insurance policies are well known to be poor value. I bought a new car in 2014, they tried to sell me all the usual stuff, I didn't have any of it and cancelled their gap in writing after the guy bunged it on the final quote (didn't sign until car pickup by which time it was a bit late!). They wanted £499 for a 3 year policy, I picked up a return to value policy (the one that gives you top-up money for a new car) which was for 4 years (with a year deferred as insurance covered me for a new car in the first year) so in theory I can still crash the car and get a new one even today lol

Red_Marco

interesting comments, welcomed, thank you

Doc_N

dunstonh wrote: »

Nothing in your post suggests anything that would make it missold.

It appears you have buyers remorse. That is not a missale reason.

An old thread, but Paul Lewis, who does know about these things, thinks otherwise:

https://money.radiotimes.com/news/buying-gap-insurance-read-this-first/

A small extract:

"So if you’ve bought Gap insurance at the time you were sold a car,a trip or any retail product, you should consider if it was properly sold at a fair price. If not, then complain and ask for your money back. If that fails, appeal to the Financial Ombudsman Service."

dunstonh

What FCA rule has been breached that would cause the FOS to rule against the car dealer?

but Paul Lewis, who does know about these things,

You mean he thinks he knows. Sometimes he talks sense. Sometimes he is way off the mark.

Doc_N

dunstonh wrote: »

What FCA rule has been breached that would cause the FOS to rule against the car dealer?


You mean he thinks he knows. Sometimes he talks sense. Sometimes he is way off the mark.

Very rarely is he off the mark in my experience, and his views carry many years of experience and a lot of weight. He won't have just invented the idea.

I see that you're an IFA:

I am an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA). Comments are for discussion purposes only. They are not financial advice. If you feel an area discussed may be relevant to you, then please seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser local to you.

Isn't this potentially going to adversely affect IFAs?

dunstonh

Isn't this potentially going to adversely affect IFAs?

IFAs are not car dealers.

Very rarely is he off the mark in my experience, and his views carry many years of experience and a lot of weight. He won't have just invented the idea.

The FCA consultation paper on this specifically said it would only apply to PPI. Not other insurances. So, his views are not consistent with the FCA position. The FOS makes decisions on FCA rules.

It either needs a court case or a campaign to get the FCA to change the rules.

Doc_N

Did no IFAs sell these policies?

Nothing whatever for anybody to lose by following Paul Lewis’s advice.

Can you see any possible downside, apart from a few minutes time?

dunstonh

Did no IFAs sell these policies?

no.

And even if they did it wouldn't matter. If bought from a third party, it would not be built into any debt and S140a of the consumer credit act only applies if there is a debt.

Can you see any possible downside, apart from a few minutes time?

As long as you have a low expectation then its fine. Quite possible some will get a goodwill gesture. However, if the car dealer refuses don't expect the FOS to rule in your favour.

societys_child

Doc_N wrote: »

Very rarely is he off the mark in my experience, and his views carry many years of experience and a lot of weight. He won't have just invented the idea.

Oh dear. he gets his face on the telly, he gets paid . .



He has to come up with something to make a living