Insurance Cancellation Charge at end of policy

Danelius90 · 16 July 2017 at 9:01AM

I sold my car this week with about 2 weeks remaining on the insurance this year (which I pay annually up front). Short story is they are saying that it's a cancellation and are trying to charge me £40 to leave - this is because I get a £5 refund because of the remaining time on the policy and a hefty £45 cancellation fee. I tried to reason with them but they wouldn't budge. Then I suggested to just let it run to renewal and not renew but they said because the car is sold this policy must lapse because otherwise the car will be insured by two companies which is apparently not legal.

Anyway I'm stunned by the fact they are trying to charge me as it effectively means I'll be paying over my annual premium, because I have 2 weeks left on the policy. The purpose of a cancellation fee really is for the funds they lose out on when I cancel 6 months into the policy.

I've escalated it to their complaints dept, which I'm confident will resolve the issue, however I'd like to know if anyone has had a similar experience and any advice should it not be resolved in a sensible and logical manner by the insurance company in question. I intend to contact their regulatory body should it not be resolved but I'd rather get it sorted on the phone when the complaints dept call this week

FutureGirl · 16 July 2017 at 9:15AM

You're cancelling the policy, thus a cancellation fee applies, it doesn't matter how long is left on the policy.

Danelius90 · 16 July 2017 at 9:34AM

So it's fair that I pay £390 for 50 weeks cover instead of £350 for 52 weeks cover? It would be easier to let it go to renewal and I should have just not notified them

Quentin · 16 July 2017 at 9:57AM

All you can hope for is a goodwill gesture.

You agreed to their ts& cs when buying the policy which will have included their cancellation fees

paddyandstumpy · 16 July 2017 at 10:32AM

They may waive the fee as it'll be cheaper than the FOS cost and for expediency.

However, if they do, you're lucky. As above you agreed to their terms when you took out their policy.

Whilst you may think it's unjust, the admin fee covers the cost of the admin; the cost of receiving the phone call to cancel, the cost of the contacting MID to remove the policy, the wage for the staff handling all this.

Would you work for free?

stockton_2 · 16 July 2017 at 11:51AM

Danelius90 wrote: »

It would be easier to let it go to renewal and I should have just not notified them

That would have been a very bad idea. You would have failed to have informed them of a material fact and that could have disastrous consequences for future insurance.

If the person who bought your car failed to insure it (some do not) then your insurance company would have been responsible for the insurance of an unknown quantity driving the vehicle around (albeit for only two weeks). They would not be at all pleased.

The ability to insure online means decreased insurance costs for most. Once you involve a human being you have to pay more. Never take short cuts with insurance.

Danelius90 · 16 July 2017 at 12:47PM

OK thanks, those replies have been helpful.

I have no objection to paying cancellation fees, but when it means I pay more than my annual price, I see this as a flaw in the system. If I chose not to renew I'd still need to make a phone call and someone would need to process the request, but I wouldn't be charged for that service. As of June I wouldn't expect to receive any refund (as it would be offset by the fee), but had I cancelled in June or not renewed I would be still be paying what I expected when I took out the policy. I'm sure that this doesn't qualify as treating customers fairly under the FCA code of conduct.

paddyandstumpy · 16 July 2017 at 12:56PM

Don't pull out paying a cancellation fee as un TCF - that's complete horse excrement.

It really winds me up when customers throw TCF into a complaint when it's not justified.

Danelius90 · 16 July 2017 at 7:05PM

paddyandstumpy wrote: »

Don't pull out paying a cancellation fee as un TCF - that's complete horse excrement.

It really winds me up when customers throw TCF into a complaint when it's not justified.

That's your opinion, which I think is also horse excrement.

Whilst you may think it's unjust, the admin fee covers the cost of the admin; the cost of receiving the phone call to cancel, the cost of the contacting MID to remove the policy, the wage for the staff handling all this.

Would you work for free?

As is the reasoning given here, as per my comment regarding the work required when a policy is not renewed.

You also seemed to have misconstrued the issue: it isn't cancellation fees, it's a fee that takes me above and beyond (by 11%) of the annual premium for the sake of two weeks! Funnily enough the person I spoke to said that if it had been about a week to renewal they would probably have let it run. So much for consistency and this supposed "legal requirement". Thank goodness for telephone notes and recorded calls.

rs65 · 16 July 2017 at 7:13PM

Danelius90 wrote: »

Funnily enough the person I spoke to said that if it had been about a week to renewal they would probably have let it run. So much for consistency and this supposed "legal requirement".

That person was wrong. Whether a week or two weeks is irrelevant. You could still end up in the same position.

In hindsight, you could have asked to suspend the policy pending replacement car.

Any change or cancellation would put you over 100% of the original premium.

Danelius90 · 16 July 2017 at 7:24PM

rs65 wrote: »

In hindsight, you could have asked to suspend the policy pending replacement car.

Something like this was exactly the reason I opened the thread. Thank you. I don't know if this may still be an option but will definitely be the approach I take in future.
Yes the person (the manager actually) was definitely wrong, but I intend to quote him when I get back in touch this week.

Insurance Cancellation Charge at end of policy

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