Black box car insurance

Helenevans

I took up car insurance with ingene. I don't recall any mention of a black box in the detail.  I received a text message some time after taking the insurance referring to a box, which I hadn't received.  I thought it was spam.  I then had it through the post and subsequently came down with a nasty virus and could barely get out of bed - I do doubt could ha e asked hubby to fit it, but I wasn't driving anywhere, or rational enough to give a damn at that point.  I received one warning text, then one telling me my insurance was cancelled! There's very little in the t+c's and I have no correspondence and nothing in the contract referencing what happens to my deposit.  Also, strangely when I looked online, it only references the box as part of their 'young drivers' scheme - I m 40, so don't fall into that category ☹️.  I have 5years no claims and no points on my licence.

So 1 - do they not need to be explicit about consequences, specifically financial also of not fitting the box?

2- could they have sent it to me in error in the first place? 

Any pointers would be much appreciated! 

Sandtree

The brand only does black box insurance and whilst aimed at young or inexperienced drivers that doesn’t mean others can’t buy it.

how did you buy from them?

angrycrow

The policy wording which you agreed at point of purchase you had read and agreed to is very clear this is a black box policy. The self fit black box which you confirm you received fits into the obd port of your car. The policy wording is very clear that failure to install the box within 10 days and failure to register on their driving results portal within 10 days can result in the insurer cancelling the policy. 

Whilst there was a delay in sending the box out or you receiving it you then failed to fit it. 

Your only option now is to raise a formal complaint about the cancelation on the basis the box was late and then you were to ill to fit it. Of course the times scales of how long between the box arriving and cancellation will be critical in the outcome. If they reject your complaint or fail to respond in 8 weeks you can refer it to the ombudsman within 6 months. It is worth doing so in the hope of getting the cancellation overturned as currently you need to declare a cancelled policy to all future insurers which will be expensive. 

Link to policy wording https://www.ingenie.com/young-driver-insurance/policy-information 

Helenevans

Thanks for the replies.  I hadn't noted the detail on pur haze, but I can see it's on their 'welcome email', so I fully accept I dropped the ball on that one.  My main query though is around the financial repurcussions, which it doesn't make clear before purchase or in my cancellation email.  I would assume that the loss of a deposit would need to be explicit in the contract.  I am unable to find any reference to this at all.  The call handler told me she was unable to inform me of the financial repurcussions and told me it would be in my cancellation email, but it isn't.

Helenevans

Sandtree said:

The brand only does black box insurance and whilst aimed at young or inexperienced drivers that doesn’t mean others can’t buy it.

how did you buy from them?

I purchased online

Sandtree

Helenevans said:

I would assume that the loss of a deposit would need to be explicit in the contract.  I am unable to find any reference to this at all.  The call handler told me she was unable to inform me of the financial repurcussions and told me it would be in my cancellation email, but it isn't.

Your policy will state the cost for a cancellation; they will presumably have cancelled from the date of their email rather than back to inception and so you will have to pay for time on cover as well as the cancellation fees etc which is likely to consume any deposit paid.

However you are missing the much bigger picture here... you now have to declare that you have had insurance cancelled to you next car insurer, home insurer, travel insurer etc etc indefinitely which will have a massively higher impact than any lost deposit 

Helenevans

Sandtree said:

Helenevans said:

I would assume that the loss of a deposit would need to be explicit in the contract.  I am unable to find any reference to this at all.  The call handler told me she was unable to inform me of the financial repurcussions and told me it would be in my cancellation email, but it isn't.

Your policy will state the cost for a cancellation; they will presumably have cancelled from the date of their email rather than back to inception and so you will have to pay for time on cover as well as the cancellation fees etc which is likely to consume any deposit paid.

However you are missing the much bigger picture here... you now have to declare that you have had insurance cancelled to you next car insurer, home insurer, travel insurer etc etc indefinitely which will have a massively higher impact than any lost deposit 

Thanks sand tree, I had also considered that.  I've put in a complaint relating to this.  While I take full responsibility for not fitting the box, this can't be the only time someone has been unable to fit within the allotted time frame (and unable to read or act upon communication from them).  The financial consequences are not clearly detailed, they are implicit.  On top of a raft of issues I am currently facing, car insurance is just a further kick in the teeth (albeit one crisis I could have averted)