Car insurance void

cattilou

Hi
Looking for some.advice, I was recently involved in a car crash that was not my fault other driver taking full responsibility. My issue is that my insurance company has voided my insurance back to 2019 as they say I did not inform them of a motoring conviction from 2018. I am sure I did call and inform them at the time. My policy automatically renewed in 2019 and I admit I didnt double check the details. My insurance company is saying they have no record of the call and I can not remember the number I called them from. Is there any advice anyone can give as to where I stand. Also I have a claim going through at the minute that the other parties insurance have accpted  liability will I still be ok with this claim? 

fred369

Your current claim won't be a problem, however obtaining a new policy might be. 

AdrianC

cattilou said:

My issue is that my insurance company has voided my insurance back to 2019 as they say I did not inform them of a motoring conviction from 2018. I am sure I did call and inform them at the time. My policy automatically renewed in 2019 and I admit I didnt double check the details.

And therein lies your issue. Not the remainder of the 18-19 policy, because that's expired, when you say you did notify them.

They've cancelled your 19-20 policy, because you admit that you misinformed them on taking the policy out...

Sure, it was a sin of omission rather than one of commission - you didn't intend to deceive them. But that's no defence.

Also, I presume we're not talking about the difference between a clean licence and a single FPN SP30? For a minor discrepancy, they would be within their rights to charge the extra premium plus an admin charge. They can only cancel the policy if they can show that they would not have covered you in the first place had you informed them of the true situation. If that is the situation, then it would seem unlikely that you did indeed inform them during the 18-19 policy year. If it is just a minor discrepancy, you may want to get the ombudsman involved.

No, it won't affect this claim, given that your insurer are not involved since the other party have admitted liability.

cattilou

AdrianC said:

cattilou said:

My issue is that my insurance company has voided my insurance back to 2019 as they say I did not inform them of a motoring conviction from 2018. I am sure I did call and inform them at the time. My policy automatically renewed in 2019 and I admit I didnt double check the details.

And therein lies your issue. Not the remainder of the 18-19 policy, because that's expired, when you say you did notify them.

They've cancelled your 19-20 policy, because you admit that you misinformed them on taking the policy out...

Sure, it was a sin of omission rather than one of commission - you didn't intend to deceive them. But that's no defence.

Also, I presume we're not talking about the difference between a clean licence and a single FPN SP30? For a minor discrepancy, they would be within their rights to charge the extra premium plus an admin charge. They can only cancel the policy if they can show that they would not have covered you in the first place had you informed them of the true situation. If that is the situation, then it would seem unlikely that you did indeed inform them during the 18-19 policy year. If it is just a minor discrepancy, you may want to get the ombudsman involved.

No, it won't affect this claim, given that your insurer are not involved since the other party have admitted liability.

It was a clean licence with only the 1 driving offence to add on. So the main issue is the fact I let my policy automatically renew and not check the facts? I just think it's a bit harsh the punishment when it is a simple mistake.

Bradden

Surely it depends on the offence.. it is a simple speeding fine then I would agree it's harsh. If you were prosecuted for drink driving then it would be understandable why they would be so harsh.

cattilou

Bradden said:

Surely it depends on the offence.. it is a simple speeding fine then I would agree it's harsh. If you were prosecuted for drink driving then it would be understandable why they would be so harsh.

It was a simple speeding ticket, 3 points and a fine. 

shaun_from_Africa

A lot may depend on the age of the OP and their driving history.
If they are 50 years old and have been driving 30+ years and have plenty of accident free driving then 1 SP30 probably wouldn't make much difference to their premium and whether or not their current insurer would cover them.
If however they are 20 years old with only a couple of years of driving experience and have had an accident or two in that time, the insurance company may well have declined to provide cover if they were aware of the speeding conviction.

AdrianC

cattilou said:
So the main issue is the fact I let my policy automatically renew and not check the facts?

Or, to put it another way, you took out a new insurance policy based on you positively confirming information about your driving history and convictions that turned out to be inaccurate.

I just think it's a bit harsh the punishment when it is a simple mistake.

Like I said up there ^ IF the insurer can show they wouldn't have insured you at all had they known the truth, then they are well within their rights.

If, otoh, they would have simply charged you a bit more, then they're being a bit naughty to cancel the policy - escalate to the ombudsman.
https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/businesses/complaints-deal/insurance/motor-insurance

A single fixed-penalty SP30 on a previously clean licence, even in a fairly new driver, would rarely be sufficient for an insurer to run screaming.

dacouch

AdrianC said:

cattilou said:
So the main issue is the fact I let my policy automatically renew and not check the facts?

Or, to put it another way, you took out a new insurance policy based on you positively confirming information about your driving history and convictions that turned out to be inaccurate.

I just think it's a bit harsh the punishment when it is a simple mistake.

Like I said up there ^ IF the insurer can show they wouldn't have insured you at all had they known the truth, then they are well within their rights.

If, otoh, they would have simply charged you a bit more, then they're being a bit naughty to cancel the policy - escalate to the ombudsman.
https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/businesses/complaints-deal/insurance/motor-insurance

A single fixed-penalty SP30 on a previously clean licence, even in a fairly new driver, would rarely be sufficient for an insurer to run screaming.

Or if the Insurer can demonstrate that the OP had intentionally misled them.
Lot's of people fall fowl of this when they run quotes through on comparison sites and then take out cover without information the obtained a quote on. For some reason they don't realise Insurer are data hungry and tend to cross check the previous quotes they have provided for their customers.
I have a feeling the OP is not giving us the full picture

cattilou

Or if the Insurer can demonstrate that the OP had intentionally misled them.

Lot's of people fall fowl of this when they run quotes through on comparison sites and then take out cover without information the obtained a quote on. For some reason they don't realise Insurer are data hungry and tend to cross check the previous quotes they have provided for their customers.
I have a feeling the OP is not giving us the full picture

The full picture is I recieved a sp50 in dec 2018, which I advised the insurance company of at the time. My policy automatically renewed in 2019 and I admit I did not check the information in the renewal was accurate as I thought it was.
I have just recently been in a road accident which the other party is taking full responsibility and his insurance have admitted liability. I informed his insurance company re the points on my licence. I recieved a letter this week saying my insurance did not have the details of the motoring conviction. I advised by email that I had informed them at the time and could they contac me or provide a contact number for themselves. The next day I recieve an email advising my policy would be void from last year, no explanation. I called this morning and was advised it was due to them having no record of my call in 2018.
I held my driving licence for 30 years, i had maximum no claims bonus. I did have some previous speeding convictions and one claim for a minor accident that I took responsibility for.
Now u have the full.picture do u have any useful advice? 

cattilou

I did have some previous speeding convictions and one claim for a minor accident that I took responsibility for. This was in the 30 plus years of having my licence, my licence was clean at the time of the offence