Vent: Admiral car insurance renewal price increase of 88%

TheMidnightSkulker

I'm just venting, not asking for advice. I've already bought a new policy from Darwin.

Just, holy inflation, Batman. I got my email from Admiral saying they'll auto-renew if I take no action.

I didn't read it all the way, because I decided a long time ago that they were frustrating to deal with and I'd find another insurer next time.

So I buy my new policy and then I turn my attention to cancelling my Admiral policy.

Of course, their website doesn't want to accept that it's over, and makes me disclose all the details of my new policy and offers me discounts if only I'll give them another chance.

I am not going to give them another chance, because their website is unusable, and interactions with customer service never really went smoothly (probably not the individual agents' fault, but the overall system).

But even if they had had the best customer service imaginable, I still wouldn't stay with them because when I look properly, the email is giving me a renewal price increase of 

EIGHTY-EIGHT PERCENT!?!?  

Eighty-EIGHT????

All this for driving 1/8 of my already very low expected mileage this year?

And for going the entire year without making a claim or bothering them in any way, nor having any change in circumstances?

And according to our esteemed leader "From 1 January 2022, the Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates insurance, banned car (and home) insurers from charging existing customers more at renewal than they would expect to pay when taking out a new policy with the same firm."

I mean, really? I'm supposed to think that they would offer a new customer the same quote? The same FOUR-FIGURE quote? I believe them, thousands wouldn't.

The new policy I just bought from Darwin, was 0.8 what I paid to Admiral last year.

Yowza!

Grey_Critic

***Of course, their website doesn't want to accept that it's over, and makes me disclose all the details of my new policy***

And did you? Providing you informed them you would not be renewing before the due date then you do not have to disclose anything.

Perhaps your tale should be a warning to others, in these days of rising prices we all need to be very much on the ball if we want to save money.

grandadgolfer

Happens all the time move on to a different company

Ectophile

I wonder if it was a hint that, for reasons known only to them, they don't want to insure you next year.  Rather than refusing to renew your policy, which you would have to disclose to the next insurer, they are giving you the opportunity to go elsewhere without any penalty.

Car_54

Ectophile said:

I wonder if it was a hint that, for reasons known only to them, they don't want to insure you next year.  Rather than refusing to renew your policy, which you would have to disclose to the next insurer, they are giving you the opportunity to go elsewhere without any penalty.

Are you sure about that?

shiraz99

Car_54 said:

Ectophile said:

I wonder if it was a hint that, for reasons known only to them, they don't want to insure you next year.  Rather than refusing to renew your policy, which you would have to disclose to the next insurer, they are giving you the opportunity to go elsewhere without any penalty.

Are you sure about that?

I think @Ectophile is correct, don't most insurers ask you to disclose whether you've had insurance cancelled, refused or voided?

400ixl

Many insurers have demographics they do and don't want to insure. Some don't like new drivers for example where as others specialise. One of the way they control getting people in their demographics is by pricing. If they are not in their area of interest they will put up the price to discourage them, but if the customer decides to accept they have minimised their risk.

Just plain out refusing to quote for most is worse reputationally than doing it this way.

Not saying this is whats happening here as there is way to little information.

For the OP, very low mileage is not seen as a good thing by insurers as whilst there is less time on the roads lowering that risk, statistically very low mileage drivers have more accidents per mile than higher mileage drivers. So overall their risk is often seen as higher.