M & S - aka Aviva and price hike of 24% on buildings only ..and total indifference from their staff

Jogon_2

I reside in the Midlands, nothing regarding my home has changed, circumstances have not changed, no claims in 40 years of insuring although only the last 5 seem to be relevant.

Year on year M&S put up the premium, it's invariably above the rate of inflation so last year for the first time ever I had to drop off contents as I simply could not afford it.

This years renewal is up 24% on just buildings insurance, over double the rate of inflation. So rather than simply go with renewal I thought I'd call in to see what/if anything could be done and I have to say their service on the phones is absolutely dire.

When you first dial in the automated system voice advises if you want to discuss the reasons as to why a renewal has increased head over to the relevant M&S section at Aviva where the answers to the hike can be found?  Reluctantly I put the phone down, followed the advice and trotted off to the Aviva website but was confronted with box atandard answers giving no concise answer as to my query.

Home Insurance is 'individually tailored to you' they tell me, so generic answers don't really cut it, so redialled and eventually spoke to their Home insurance team? I may as well not bothered, the staff member was indifferent, ignorant and altogether non-informative 'we don't discuss rates as we've given you the best one' and this despite my asking for some amount of justification for the huge hike,  as my cisrcumstances had not changed, no claims made, no difference in the property and after checking crime figures they appeared the same as what they have been consistently for the last decade or so (lower than the national average) so I'd like to speak to someone who can at least talk to me about the policy? no such luck, supervisor not available, call back monday possibly.

This from a company that has had close to 10k off me in the last 15+ years and with not a single claim made, is this is how M&S treat paying customers?

Meanwhile I have started checking with other insurers and can certainly lower my policy so M&S stating they are compeitive doesn't really stack up.

Anyone else haivng this poor customer service / 24% hike with the M&S Home Buildings Insurance?

daveyjp

Never have poor service with insurance renewals, if they want a high price I shop around.

It does not however surprise me building insurance may have increased, building material costs have increased massively in the last couple of years.

Aretnap

I don't know what you hope to achieve by phoning them up and arguing the toss over your renewal premium. The guy who answers the phone will not have access to the pricing algorithm - he just punches details into a computer and tells you what price comes out. So there is no way that he will know the reason why your premium has gone up, and even if he did know the reason he wouldn't tell you as the pricing algorithm is commercially sensitive information. Any answer he does give you will either be a generic reply from a script, or a wild guess on his part as he tries to edge slowly away from you (metaphorically speaking).

Ultimately if you think the premium is too high and you can find equivalent cover more cheaply elsewhere, the answer is to buy insurance elsewhere. If you think that bananas are too expensive in Tesco do you go up to the poor cashier and demand that he explains how wholesale banana prices, shipping costs and Tesco's own contracts with their suppliers justify the increase, or do you just go to Asda and see if bananas are any cheaper there? Insurance is no different, really.

As far as 40 claim free years, insurers don't really care what you were doing 40 years ago for good reasons. My lifestyle, personality and circumstances are completely different to what they were 40 years ago, and I'm sure yours are too. Also if you did get credit for 40 claim free years, the flip side would be that if you made a claim in 1984 (maybe you're window was broken during a riot at a striking miners' rally) you would still have to declare it, and pay extra because of it today. I imagine you wouldn't be too happy about that either. There are good reasons why insurers are only interested in about 5 years of claims history, and you will be getting credit for those 5 years.

dunstonh

I reside in the Midlands, nothing regarding my home has changed, circumstances have not changed, no claims in 40 years of insuring although only the last 5 seem to be relevant.

Insurance is not priced for you specifically though.  It is priced as collectives and wider issues you may not have suffered have come into play.

2022 was a drought year.   Significant increases in movement, subsidence, heave etc.
Builders are charging significantly higher than the rate of inflation as there is a shortage.  Plus, materials are getting higher than headline rate shortages and you cannot get some materials quickly.  Delays cost money.

Anyone else haivng this poor customer service / 24% hike with the M&S Home Buildings Insurance?

Never had poor customer service with a renewal but then I don't use white labelled/basic insurance policies.

SaverRate

Instead of dropping off contents cover shop around. Aviva brands include Aviva Online and Quotemehappy but there are other insurers out there. 

Don't just go for the cheapest insurer though make sure the company is a known company and check the Ts&Cs to ensure it covers everything you want it to. 

If you go down this route please let us know how you get on. 

Altior

If you can achieve a lower price elsewhere, why don't you do that? This is a very strange query. Dumping the contents cover is far more worrying, that should be the very last resort. My parents had not made a house insurance claim in 40 years, then their house was gutted by a fire and they lost a lifetime's accumulated possessions. Fortunately they were covered by insurance. It's distressing enough losing everything, the risk is small, but real. 

Ayr_Rage

I am very surprised that anyone would stick with the same insurer for 15+ years unless they are not financially savvy, need very specific cover or have a property that nobody else will touch.

If you have a standard house then most comparison sites will have many companies at very similar prices and switching every year through the likes of Topcashback means you can save a good bit of that premium.

I have stayed with Aviva for a few years as they offer the cover I need when I am away, this year my premium for exactly the same cover has dropped by 3%