Bell Telematics Policy cancelled out of nowhere?

pred02

Hi,

I purchased a car about 6 weeks ago and signed up for Bell Telematics policy. I'm 40+ years old had UK license for 6+ years this is my first vehicle in the UK but have been driving for 20+ years. I took the Bell policy as I am a safe driver - in fact just had a daughter born hence the car purchase.

I have been getting driving information e-mails from Bell periodically, mostly been positive but a bit conflicting. So for example, I got 97/100 on driving style but another record says 41/100 and I should be driving less? Yet it said I only driven a fraction of the miles i stated I would drive (like 200 miles)>

Last week I got an e-mail from customer services saying my policy is cancelled as the unit was unplugged. I called Bell and they gave me a handful of dates, these match when I was at the dealer to get the car services and battery replaced. And perhaps I occasionally plug and unplug the unit as its in the rear seat where the card seat is, but by god the unit must be plugged in 99% and I never driven with it intentionally unplugged. They would not consider any of this

I am not sure what is going on, an alternate policy now costs twice as much as this one  I am just appalled this is happening. I did appeal to customer services and they will see what they can do to escalate but I will need to get another policy in a day or two regardless. It feels like they don't want to insure me at all, I am just unsure what I did to warrant them.

Thanks

Ebe_Scrooge

You need to get this sorted, one way or another.  I'm assuming the T&Cs of the policy dictate that it must never be unplugged?  Try phoning them again to clarify the position.

The problem is, you'll have to declare a cancelled policy to any new insurer from now on (if they have in fact cancelled it), which will have a big impact on any future insurance quotes.  So you need to speak to them and do whatever you can to get the situation rectified.

Nobbie1967

Maybe they assume you drive badly for the 1% of the time the unit is unplugged? Why does it need to be unplugged? Your post doesn’t make sense to me and suspect the insurer would expect an installation that would be permanent.

Grumpy_chap

pred02 said:

I have been getting driving information e-mails from Bell periodically, mostly been positive but a bit conflicting. So for example, I got 97/100 on driving style but another record says 41/100 and I should be driving less? Yet it said I only driven a fraction of the miles i stated I would drive (like 200 miles)>

I have never had telematics insurance but it does not seem unreasonable that there will be mostly good results with the occasional poor outcome.  

What exactly is the wording of the "driving less" communications?  Could it be unrelated to your total mileage, but connected to your specific mileage on that day? 
Maybe you did a long journey with insufficient rest breaks?
Maybe you did a lot of driving on that day, so there is a concern about tiredness?
Maybe you did a small amount of driving, but at extreme timing?  An early shift to work, say 6am but then something in late into the evening, say 11am, so it flags driving too much?  Again - "tiredness" flag.

pred02 said:

Last week I got an e-mail from customer services saying my policy is cancelled as the unit was unplugged. I called Bell and they gave me a handful of dates, these match when I was at the dealer to get the car services and battery replaced. And perhaps I occasionally plug and unplug the unit as its in the rear seat where the card seat is, but by god the unit must be plugged in 99% and I never driven with it intentionally unplugged. They would not consider any of this

I suspect the "off" that matches the work at the garage could be explained and tolerated by the insurer - or a basis to appeal otherwise. 
What does the contract say about turning the system off? 
I can't imagine that "unplugged when the child seat is in" would be a standard agreement.
Perhaps you'd have been better if the tracker was hardwired / inaccessible.

You really need to know exactly how the policy was ended as a cancelled policy will need to be declared and affect premiums going forward.

pred02

Here is what Bell emailed me.

"We have been tracking your Plug and Drive unit, and our data shows your unit has been unplugged. Our Terms and Conditions state your unit must be plugged in for a minimum of 95% of the time. As your unit has been plugged in for significantly less than this you are in breach of your policy Terms and Conditions. The relevant condition can be found on page 8 of the Plug and Drive policy booklet. Due to the unplugging of your unit, we have made the decision that we can no longer look to continue to insure your vehicle."

 It is a telematics unit that plugs into the 12V charger. There are 3 occasions where it was unplugged that I was aware off, all three times when I was at the dealer trying to sort the the issue with the car. When I first spoke to a first person he did give me dates when it was unplugged and I did confirm on those dates that it was at the dealer and was ready to send invoices.

They called me back this morning saying they are sorry they have to cancel the policy. I appealed with customer services, but I don't want this affecting my premiums going forward. This is causing a lot of anxiety, what is the best way to manage this forward?

I might have accidentally plugged unplugged the unit but certainly not to the amount they are saying. In fact I was worried that when abroad for 3 weeks it would drain the battery but left the unit in the 12V charger.

What surprise me the most is the fact that if they notice the unit was off shouldn't they mention something, e.g. Hey the unit is off, can you confirm its working?

How do I not know that the unit is not defective? Or my car does not give signal in 12V charger when off?

Grumpy_chap

pred02 said:

Our Terms and Conditions state your unit must be plugged in for a minimum of 95% of the time.

How do I not know that the unit is not defective? Or my car does not give signal in 12V charger when off?

So, it is time that the unit must be plugged in, not just driving time (which makes sense).  So, when you unplugged because of the child seat, if you left it unplugged, then the 5% off could be easy.

The latter point is a real possibility.  Some cars have the cigarette lighter live when ignition off and others not.  There are pros and cons either way.  If your power switches off, how do the insurance company know the car was off or being driven like it was stolen?

Do the Ts&Cs also stipulate that it must be a power supply that is powered when the ignition is switched off?

I have never had telemetrics, but understand many systems are hardwired.  Having a unit that is plugged in seems excessively prone to exactly this type of scenario.  

It is worth finding out about your power socket in the car - the handbook will tell you if it powers off.  That might give you the basis for some kind of appeal or complaint to an ombudsman.

jimjames

Can you see how many miles have been recorded on the tele system and how many miles have been driven in the car? That will prove that the system has been plugged in most of the time if they numbers correspond. If they don't then it might be more problematic.

As per comment above from GC, one of my cars has live 12V charger when turned off, the other doesn't. Both are the same brand of car.

GrumpyDil

We've had two telematics units, one hard wired and one plugs into OBD11 port.

A couple of times we've had emails warning us that the OBD11 unit had been unplugged, which happened when the car battery went flat and on one occasion when I was servicing the car.

Either way we had warning emails so not impressed with this policy

pred02

Thanks everyone for your feedback. They will terminate my policy the day after tomorrow, the 2nd appeal with customer services is pending. The T&Cs, unit and as well as the car handbook are in my car which is in the UK and I am currently with family abroad until the New Year.  I think the mileage matches what they recorded vs. what is on the odometer based on the e-mail reports they sent (it feels right). I will again need to wait until back in the UK.

Reading a bit on the Internet the Bell telematics cancellation issue seems to be a common issue:
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/bell.co.uk

Can I ask for an amicable termination (no fault) so it does not impact my future premium?  They said they will refund remainder of premium and no admin fees.

I need to buy a policy tomorrow so have the car insured. If I loose my appeal I am not sure what my options are? 

I am quite frustrated that a simple thing can cause such a significant impact, I was going down the telematics route not only to save money but to prove I'm a good driver. 

I am new to the UK motoring insurance so any support is appreciated. 

pred02

One thing they did say is that:

We understand to avoid cancellation being invoked by us on 22/12/2021 you may prefer to seek alternative cover before then. As part of the quote process insurers often ask if you have ever had insurance invoked, cancelled or declined and this factor can increase your premium. Should you wish to cancel your insurance within the next 7 days you will not need to declare this.

Therefore the best option is to ask to terminate my policy tomorrow to avoid this and pay for a new non-telematics policy.

GrumpyDil

If they are offering that as an option it is definately the way to go. Do not let them cancel the policy if it can be avoided. 

I might then consider a complaint about their handling of this but at least that would avoid the cancelled by insurer issue.