Insurance Quotes without having to provide your personal details?

rajeshk4u

I am trying to get insurance quotes, but frustrating, as they get your to fill your personal detail before they give you a quote. It is taking up extra time.

Under the data protection act, they are asking for more information then is necessary. If I don't take up the quote, they still keep my details.

Why can't they give a quote first and if I like it, then I provide details. It is a complete waste of my time asking for information, if they quote is expensive or they don't cover me.

dunstonh

Under the data protection act, they are asking for more information then is necessary

You dont say what insurance you are talking about.  But in most cases you would be wrong.

Why can't they give a quote first and if I like it, then I provide details. 

How can they quote without knowing the details they base the quote on?

chrisw

You could always use fake details which are similar to yours such as a neighbour's address, a date of birth slightly different, etc. If its car insurace, put in the car details manually rather than the registration number.

Aretnap

You're not clear on which personal details you object to giving but many of them are required in order to give you a quote. For example your date of birth and your address have a big impact on your premium for obvious reasons, and even your name can affect it - if they can't find you on the electoral register at the address you claim to be living at, you are likely to pay more.

So giving you a quote, then asking you for details which affect the quote would be an obvious non-starter. 

TELLIT01

Assuming you mean insurers who provide instant quotes rather than sending it to an email address, do a chrisw suggests.  The figure quoted then may not be 100% accurate but will give a pretty good guide.

Aretnap

TELLIT01 said:

Assuming you mean insurers who provide instant quotes rather than sending it to an email address, do a chrisw suggests.  The figure quoted then may not be 100% accurate but will give a pretty good guide.

The OP's a bit vague about exactly why he objects to entering his details, but I read it more as a complaint about wasting his time - the countless seconds he spends typing his name and email address into comparison sites - than about his fear that an insurance company will use his personal details to steal his identity.

If he's primarily objecting to the amount of time the process takes, entering fake details then having to repeat with real details doesn't obviously improve things.

Also be aware that repeatedly getting quotes with different details (especially if done from the same computer) is likely to trigger anti-fraud systems and may lead to some insurers increasing prices, declining to quote, or demanding proof of who you actually are after you've taken the policy out. Which isn't going to save you any time either.

Probably simplest just to use your real details and watch five minutes less of bad TV that evening.

TELLIT01

Fair comment Aretnap, but once they have a valid e-mail address it's almost inevitable that you will get bombarded with carp from them.  One way round that problem is to set up a gmail, hotmail or similar account purely for that purpose.

mattyprice4004

Because the quote relies on your details to be accurate - fairly obvious! 

MysteryMe

Under GDPR they are obliged to give you the option as to whether you want to receive marketing material from them. If you indicate that you do not and they bombard you with emails on special offers etc then they are breaking the law so it's not inevitable that you will receive spam at all.

This would not include emails necessary for the actual matter in hand i.e. sending you a quote.

I would do as Aretnap advises, don't start entering false information. The anti fraud systems in place are sophisticated.

Smithcom

rajeshk4u said:

I am trying to get insurance quotes, but frustrating, as they get your to fill your personal detail before they give you a quote. It is taking up extra time.

Under the data protection act, they are asking for more information then is necessary. If I don't take up the quote, they still keep my details.

Why can't they give a quote first and if I like it, then I provide details. It is a complete waste of my time asking for information, if they quote is expensive or they don't cover me.

Good idea.   You could write a letter to the relevant insurers and put your suggestion forward. 

However, some/many quotations are credit-checked, and better credit checks can sometimes mean better premiums.  But they cannot credit check without your personal details.  

For what its worth, I don't disagree with your comments.    And I wish you luck with your endeavours.

SC

csgohan4

Some comparison websites keep your details and you simply need to requote for the renewal year. Saves me time and I have no tinfoil hat on regarding information stored.