AutoAid Car Breakdown Discussion

I've been with auto aid for a year (never had to call them out) and have just had renewal quote. It's gone up by less than a £1 so will renew however, it seems to be saying that if I don't renew I'll have to pay £15 +IPT and a further £15 admin charge. When you go on to the site there's only a renew button not one to cancel. Just thinking ahead as quite happy for this year. Am I reading it right?

I am also very annoyed by AutoAid's requirements as to "proof" of common law spouse. (Even proof of legal spouse/partner to be honest - their requirements are just OTT and stupid.) It isn't that they won't offer to non-legalised relationships (or only, as now, to a select few on the basis of having joint finances) - well, actually that does seem pretty discriminatory in fact, as regards car breakdown insurance - but it's the demonstration of their huge lack of understanding of legal and financial aspects of relationships which gets me.
And it doesn't protect them in the slightest from scammers or fraud or whatever, as they and others claim; quite the opposite actually.

A huge number of couples, both married/civil partnered and 'common law' do not own any joint property, do not have joint financial arrangements or accounts, do not lease or rent anything together. Household bills, as far as I am aware, are only ever in 1 name, which is usually the person who owns the house which they live in (if it is not jointly owned). Council Tax must be in 1 person's name only.

To ask for proof of "partnership" as I was asked, is just stupid. I said that I could send a photograph showing we'd been together for over 25 years, but according to them that isn't proof. I can prove that my partner lives at the same address as me, but apparently that isn't enough either. We must have joint assets according to them.
I pointed out that we are not in business together as per the Partnership Act 1890; they didn't understand that.
I pointed out that in law there is no such thing as 'Common Law Spouse'. They didn't get that. (So how on earth can you prove something which doesn't exist?)

What on earth has that got to do with car breakdown insurance???!!!! (It's a singly-owned car by the way, too - and the V5 can only be in 1 name as well.)

Fundamentally, however, someone with the same surname, living at the same address, is quite possibly your parent, child, sibling or other relative. But according to their required 'proof', they will qualify (or, rather, you can pretend that they do) as your common law spouse, whilst your real 'partner', with a different surname, does not.
Similarly, a friend or relative or just co-occupier with a different surname but with whom you happen to own or rent the house which you live in, and/or with whom you have a joint bank account, will also qualify easily and you can produce the appropriate documentary evidence of this.
Therefore, discrimination against and exclusion of the real 'common law spouse' in many cases, false inclusion (if people want to play the game) to an awful lot of people who have no relationship of or like marriage at all. Even the benfits people wouldn't be that stupid...

Ultimately, it's AutoAid's business, and their decision as to who they want to discriminate against (although I'm starting to think that they may be on dodgy ground here, but can't really be bothered to check). It's my business if on principle I'm prepared to renew with them again after this attitude.

Martin - can't you make them see sense?