cost V value with car insurance

lindos90

Hi there, Im using Martins step guide to try and get cheaper car insurance, but I keep thinking about the phrase 'you only get what you pay for' and im concerned I may get a much cheaper quote and live to regret it, say, potentially poor service if I needed to ever make a claim.

I have obviously decided to avoid any quotes from companies I have not heard of, but does anyone have any advice about companies that maybe a household name, but have been less than helpful when a claim had been made?

(Or links to places that may help)

Thanks MSers!

V_tricky

It's really difficult to establish who are good at claims, and who are, because SO much depends on the individual handling the claim.

Two people on the same day might register a similar sort of claim with the same company, but one person will get their claim allocated to someone super efficient, and the other might get the dirty end of the stick and get a really lazy handler who's just doing the job til something better comes along.

I don't know whether avoiding quotes from companies you've not heard of is necessarily a good idea - some names might be underwritten by the big players - they might use a different trading name to attract different customers, but actually have the same handlers - as an example - MoreThan, Volvo Insurance, Royal & SunAlliance, Bradford Pennine, Motorshield, plus a whole load I can't think of all use the very same claims handlers working to the same claims practice.

Also the genuinely smaller companies might actually provide a better more individual service.

"The Sun" has a over a 25% of market share (the top of all newspapers) when considering daily newspapers, but I don't think that that necessarily means that it is the one that provides the best quality newspaper.

I think you just need to be wary of all companies - and in the event of a claim, make sure that you ring them regularly and ask if there's anything you don't understand or want help with.

lindos90

Hi, Thanks tricky, a really well thought out answer, at the moment 'shelias wheels' seems to be offering me a consistantly good price on a couple of comparison sites. (over £100 cheaper than my tesco renewal, and with a lower excess.

There were cheaper, but when I linked to their site they had not included legal protection, and NCBonus protection, shelias wheels seemed the most transparent and straightforward one as well.

I'll just get my pink sequin dress on and I'll be on my way!!!!!:T