Insurer taking money after policy expired

TJ106

Hello, this is my first post and I think it's an unusual one because I haven't found anything similar.
Last year we had a car insurance policy, it expired in August and we didn't renew it, we went elsewhere. We have no current contract with that insurer.
Last week we discovered that the insurer has taken a payment of over £550 from our bank without any notification whatsoever.
We have been phoning them every day trying to claim the money back. They have not provided any satisfactory explanation for this happening, they keep telling us they will refund the money the same day but then they don't.
We have been in touch with the FCA, the ICO, the FOS and even the police. The FOS suggested that all communication should be in writing.
The insurers have now held our money for 10 days and we have become badly overdrawn at the bank.
Has anyone else here experienced this or something similar?
I'm wondering what could be deemed reasonable in terms of compensation for our losses etc. and how long is a reasonable deadline for demanding a refund. I'm having to deal with this when I should be at work, I've spent several hours in total calling premium rate numbers, regular payments from our bank have been declined, I've had to borrow money to put fuel in the car to go to work and buy basics like milk, and my disabled wife has ended up stuck at home. All because these people have stolen our money.
Any advice on how best to approach this would be most welcome.

tasticz

Did you ring your old insurance company to cancel the auto-renew? If not, then it is your fault. If you did but they didn't action it then it is their fault.

All car insurance policies will automatically renew to prevent you from being uninsured unless you tell them...

Did you have any gaps between the policies when you went to your new insurance company?

If yes, the insurance company may argue that they provided you with cover and you did not actually move to a new company. If not then send a complaints letter to your old company and attach the proof of your current insurance certificate and state that there is double insurance by your mistake or they didn't cancel on their end after you informing them...

If it is your fault I would expect your old insurance company to charge you 50% of the cost since August and admin cost for canceling the policy.

You can then also contact your current insurance company and ask them if they are willing to return 50% of insurance cost since August since you had mistakenly double insured and they would have only been liable for 50% of costs had any claim occurred. I would keep it polite and say it was an unintentional mistake...

Whenever you are not satisfied with an insurance company the first step is to send a complaints letter and take it to FOS if you do not receive a satisfactory response.

Quentin

Did they take this money by way of a direct debit?

If so, contact your bank and ask them to refund you under the terms of the direct debit guarantee

The money will go back into your account the same day

TJ106

tasticz, just to be clear, the policy in question is ended and cancelled, it did not auto renew. We can log into the customer portal and it says "your policy has ended".
When I spoke to the company after they took the payment, they confirmed the policy is ended but they "forgot" to delete the payment details.
Where it is very murky and unclear is how and why this rogue payment was taken, it doesn't match with any renewal date or any renewal amount, it's just random and they haven't explained it.

Quentin, no it wasn't direct debit, it was taken by CPA, continuous payment authority that they failed to delete when the policy ended. They have admitted they failed to delete it. We have requested it back because it was taken wrongly and they keep telling us yes we'll refund it today, but the refund never comes. Each time I've called they have just given BS excuses, so the FOS told us no more phone calls, do everything in writing with deadlines for action.
Hence I am in the process of writing to them making a FORMAL COMPLAINT, stating the facts (supported by references to applicable FCA rules), our desired outcomes with deadlines, and intended action if they fail. I need to know what is reasonable hence my questions.

csgohan4

name and shame

molerat

1. Name and shame.
2. Contact your card issuer (bank) for a chargeback.
3. Formal written complaint to insurer.

TJ106

csgohan4 wrote: »

name and shame

It's BISL representing Lloyds Bank car insurance, part of the BGL Group that is perhaps better known for its Beagle Street and Comparethemarket Meerkat adverts.

Dangermac

It's not good if payments have been taken after policy has been officially cancelled. Chances are, it's an administration error.

You are entitled to a refund of the incorrect payments taken + appropriate compensation depending on financial hardship that you have suffered.

I'm slightly surprised at the level of immediate hardship that you have experienced, given that you have only just realised that the erroneous payments have been coming out of your account.

I would also suggest that you focus your efforts on speaking with a manager at the insurer. If it's as you say, they should be able to sort this matter pretty quickly. Speak with someone in charge, and mention their obligation to assist vulnerable customers.

I would recommend that at this stage, there's probably no point in contacting the FCA (who don't deal with complaints), police (who deal with criminal matters), ICO, FBI etc.

I dont think there is any need to take time off work to get this matter resolved.

I hope that you get this sorted. Bit of a pain, but should be able to be sorted quickly.

Good luck

DM

TJ106

Dangermac wrote: »

It's not good if payments have been taken after policy has been officially cancelled. Chances are, it's an administration error.

You are entitled to a refund of the incorrect payments taken + appropriate compensation depending on financial hardship that you have suffered.

I'm slightly surprised at the level of immediate hardship that you have experienced, given that you have only just realised that the erroneous payments have been coming out of your account.

I would also suggest that you focus your efforts on speaking with a manager at the insurer. If it's as you say, they should be able to sort this matter pretty quickly. Speak with someone in charge, and mention their obligation to assist vulnerable customers.

I would recommend that at this stage, there's probably no point in contacting the FCA (who don't deal with complaints), police (who deal with criminal matters), ICO, FBI etc.

I dont think there is any need to take time off work to get this matter resolved.

I hope that you get this sorted. Bit of a pain, but should be able to be sorted quickly.

Good luck

DM

Thanks DM for your advice.

I do think you're missing a few points and making a few assumptions about my personal and work circumstances.

In respect of the level of our hardship, obviously you don't know our personal financial circumstances, but it should suffice to say that when you suddenly lose 560 quid unplanned from your account with only days until other fairly large sums are due out, the circumstances can easily arise that there isn't enough left to pay them and so the bank declines. That has repercussions elsewhere. Before they took the money we had enough to meet all of our needs until next being paid, suddenly I had almost nothing with payments due out.

I have been phoning the insurers almost every day now for 11 days, they keep passing me around and I never get the same person twice. I wouldn't be in this position if they were being reasonable, but almost 2 weeks after they took the money we are no closer to getting it back. They keep saying yes then not doing it. I know I'm entitled to a refund and so do they, they keep telling me so, but making excuses such as "we don't have your bank details" when I've told them three times.

Regarding "time off work", I can only call them during my working hours, their offices close at 5pm, except for sales who can't resolve the issue. Each time I call them it lasts between 20 and 40 minutes because, like most service companies, they have a queue on hold system. My employer is only tolerant so far when it comes to personal admin in work time, I have to account for my time, hence time not working when I should be.

So your assumptions and opinions about my personal circumstances are based upon what exactly?
But thankyou for the helpful comments.

Quentin

OP, you say the money was taken by "continuous payment authority", but wrongly used by the insurer

But by what method was used to get the funds?

Via your debit card or by direct debit?

Whatever way your bank will assist, and as previously posted if it was by direct debit you will be able to get this money refunded today!

ceh209

Quentin wrote: »

OP, you say the money was taken by "continuous payment authority", but wrongly used by the insurer

But by what method was used to get the funds?

Via your debit card or by direct debit?

Whatever way your bank will assist, and as previously posted if it was by direct debit you will be able to get this money refunded today!

A Continuous Payment Authority is from a card, it is not a direct debit.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/recurring-payments/