Car insurance more expensive when I use my surname

Riccimouse

Hi all,

My car insurance is due for renewal at the end of the month. I've been shopping around but this year all the quotes are much higher than previous years.

For a number of the quote however I changed my sure name which is an Eastern European Name "Torskyj" to a more traditional sounding name "Bramhall" and found that my insurance was over £400 cheaper. The only change I made was the last name everything else was identical. Address, NCB, profession ect..

I have contact my current provider and a potential new provider who are both unable to tell my why my premium is more expensive. I have never had a crash, I've never made a claim and I've got a clean licence.

I have requester all the information my insurance provider has for me through GDPR (they were reluctant at first, but after getting some free legal advice they were more agreeable.)

On paper it looks as if I'm being discriminated but both insurance companies state they do not rate on name or ethnicity. (I'm white British) it was my grandad who was from the Ukraine.

Im starting to panic as my insurance is due to expire and I no insurance provider will give me a reason as to why my insurance is so much more expensive.

On another note. My fianc!e premiums are a lot less than mine also, she had fewer NCB and has been driving 6 years less than I have.

Anyone got similar experiences? Or know what I could do? I've already taken this to the ombudsman but this could take up to 3 months.

Thank you
Rich

Riccimouse

I've just re read my post Sorry for all the mistakes, I've written this on my mobile.

rudekid48

Do you have any adverse credit or ccjs, bankruptcy etc against your real surname?

Riccimouse

Unfortunately I've got a CCJ which is all done and paid for and satisfied.

I've always paid for my insurance annual though. Surly a CCJ shouldn't effect my ability to drive?

MovingForwards

A CCJ is deemed to make you a higher risk.

When I renew insurance I declare my CCJ as some insurance companies will not touch me.

[Deleted User]

Be very interested to see the result of your GDPR request. Did you ask for a human to review the decision as is your right?

Riccimouse

I have heard that this could affect the price. But historically I've always paid up front and I wouldn't be applying for credit from any insurance provider.

It's seams counter productive to charge someone more if there is financial difficulty for the same "product" and although my CCJ was for something completely unrelated to insurance and it was settled as soon as I was aware of it.

(I was unaware of the CCJ as they sent all correspondence to an old address, I paid the CCJ as soon as I was aware of it)

rudekid48

Riccimouse wrote: »

Unfortunately I've got a CCJ which is all done and paid for and satisfied.

I've always paid for my insurance annual though. Surly a CCJ shouldn't effect my ability to drive?

There's your answer then unfortunately. Appreciate that it's more exciting to look for a "discrimination" angle but the truth is usually found closer to home...

You are correct that a CCJ doesn't affect your ability to drive but it is a reflection of your 'attitude to risk' and the hike in premium indicates that statistically people with ccj's represent a higher risk to insurers.

The increase in risk is not always directly linked to the likelihood of you having a crash - for some insurers it may be that the ccj indicates a statistical increase in the likelihood of fraud or other risks.

Not saying that this applies to you personally, just an example of why the presence of the ccj may increase premiums.

Riccimouse

Each one of the companies I've contacted have stated that they cannot tell me the reason as to why the price the way they do. All they state is that this would put them at a disadvantage from there competitors.

Riccimouse

Thank you for this.

I still find it incredibly hard to grasp that as car insurance is mandatory, how a satisfied CCJ makes me more of a risk. The rest of my credit profile is immaculate and I have no trouble obtaining finance for anything.

I terms of risk, I pay for my insurance up front, I've never claimed or had an accident my fault or not.

I'm struggling to justify when I should pay double that of anyone else for essentially the same thing.

rudekid48

Riccimouse wrote: »

Thank you for this.

I still find it incredibly hard to grasp that as car insurance is mandatory, how a satisfied CCJ makes me more of a risk. The rest of my credit profile is immaculate and I have no trouble obtaining finance for anything.

I terms of risk, I pay for my insurance up front, I've never claimed or had an accident my fault or not.

I'm struggling to justify when I should pay double that of anyone else for essentially the same thing.

Understand completely but insurance pricing is not based on you as an individual. It is based on the 'risk profile' that your details create.

Look at it this way; A mythical insurer has 500 customers who have a gold tooth and 500 customers that don't. Out of those 1,000 customers, 200 have a crash. Of those 200 that crashed, 150 had a gold tooth. That tells you that someone with a gold tooth is a higher risk than someone without. 350 people with a gold tooth didn't crash, but statistically they now pose a higher risk to the insurer so anyone with a gold tooth will now be charged a higher premium.

It's not fair on everyone, but insurance isn't about fairness - it's all about risk...