Sodding insurers.

The wife was driving a pink ka 2 weeks ago until we replaced it with a cream beetle cab (v-nice btw)

She was insured with Adrian Flux - Trinity Lane being the underwriters. It cost £270 last year. When I rang up about the beetle, as there was only 2 weeks left to run, they swapped it for free, and indicated the renewal would be in the order of £400.

Had the renewal through last Thurs, £352.75, back of the net - I thought, so I let it go through, confused etc weren't bettering that so I was happy. Today I recieve notice of the direct debit, £56.51 for 10 months!!!

So I rang up to queery it, only to be told that there is a 14% charge, to pay monthly, yeah I said, but how does 14% apr equate to £17 PER MONTH interest?

her: Oh it just does
me: No it doesn't
her: well your policy cost £495 odd anyway
me: WTF!!!!
her: yeah, don't know where you got £352 from
me: err, the renewal, on your AF letterheaded paper, which is in my hand, ref No XXXXXX........
her: no you can't have that in your hand that's incorrect
me: well here it is

Insert here the last 2 steps repeated for a while, until it sank in with her

me: would you like me to scan it and email it to you right now?
her: no, that's wrong anyway, it's £495
me: I think it's a bit steep, the last renewal was only £270 and I thought I'd go with you as it was £352...
her: no last years actually cost you £335
me: WHAT!
her: yeah it says here £335, not £270
me: what's going on here?
her: your renewal quote is £495
me: well in that case you proceeded to renew under false terms so can I cancel it now.
her: no, it has to be your wife who does that, umm, wait a minute I'll speak to a manager......

hold

her: ah right, the price on your renewal is the actual cost of the insurance
me: yep
her: well it doesn't include the extras
me: extras?
her: yeah, our commission, admin fee, finance's admin fee etc etc, which makes it £495
me: so when was I going to find out what I actually pay or is it a big secret?
her: well we don't normally send that info out, but if you like I can send it today, in writing just to confirm the total
me: well I thought my renewal, from you, stated the 'total', along side where it says 'total premium'?
her: no, that's just the insurance cost
me: ok I'll get the wife to cancel
her: I'm sorry you feel like that

end of phonecall


Just rang the wife and she's cancelled it, got in through LV in the end, who I'm with anyway (and mrs is named on my policy) for £362, with guaranteed NCD, me on it fully comp, and guaranteed courtesy car, half the excesses too.

At this point, A Flux woman rings me back to ask if I've found a better quote, I say yeah, she asks the details, which I then give her

hold

her: just spoken to someone and I can do it exactly the same, £362 annual premium, £200 excess, you fully comp, protected ncd, courtesy car too, would you like to go for that
me: no ta, I like LV, I'll go with them

end of phonecall



RANT OVER

[Edited on 6/7/10 by Stott]

currently paying about £350 a year i think? got my renewal letter, £566. go on the net, same company will insure for £307! wtf?

I was with Adrian Flux for 3 years - they never did manage to get things right first time - always had to chase for the full policy (ran to 4 or 5 cover notes one time), and similar issues.

Gave up and went elsewhere at the last renewal...

quote:

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Originally posted by blakep82
currently paying about £350 a year i think? got my renewal letter, £566. go on the net, same company will insure for £307! wtf?

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I've never had good service from Adrian Flux... I don't like them one little bit. I've had good service from Roadsure on the kit and Esure for the tintop when some prick hit me.

LV are very good but I suspect as with a lot of companies if you had done the business through their own Web site might have got a better quote.

With LV we are currently paying £237 pa for the R75 with no surcharge for the LPG conversion.

[Edited on 6/7/10 by britishtrident]

Yeah I think they're awesome, my parents have been with them forever and myself for 13 years

That quote was via their own website by the way, in the end

Confused had them quoteing £30 cheaper so when i looked into it, the occupations you put into confused get translated to the nearest best on the LV website, which had my wife as a more accurate job description to the ones that were available on the lv site.

Did a webchat with them and got the cheaper price direct through the site after I explained it all.

In summary, confused got it cheaper for me, but I did buy via their own site in the end (for the confused price) lol

Flux are notorious for things like this. That said my renewals were always OK, but I went with 2gether this time and everything was good first time and they are literally 5 mins up the road so I can call in personally if required!

I was with flux for first year with kit car and reasonably priced. However when the renewal came through it shot up from £150 to £400.

When I questioned it they said I could always take my business elsewhere, so I did.

i must be one of the lucky ones with flux. used them a lot over the years and never had a problem.
yes, the renewals are usually high but a quick phone call with a cheaper quote and they have always matched it.

In defence of Flux they always try it on, and other companies always give you a good rate to get you on board.

I have been insured with Flux for about 12 years same car etc every year we have the same discussion, its gone up? why? ill see what I can do...does that sound better... yes but I want an agreed value and x amount of miles a year included.

End result is I am happy and they seem happy too. Sometimes its whats in the policy that counts not just the price.

James

ive always found adrian flux to be awkward thieving gits. i would go out of my way to put people off there scammy approach to selling insurance. not trusted.

Most of them bleep you about, my last insurance comapany wanted more than double for the second year (Even though I'm older, the car is worth a bit less ect) then when I changed it told my new insurance company I had a different lisense to the one I'd told them (because Aviva didn't give me the option of saying I was restricted to automatic and said on the phone they count it as a full lisence) so I had to muck about to scan and post copies of my lisence (The letter also arived two weeks after it was dated demanding the copies the day after).

My Grandad goes to an insurance brokers office once a year and buys insurance from the same people and has done for almost 40 years because they don't muck him about.

I think as insurance companies go in my experience, LV are really good.

The policies are good and so are the excesses.

All the incidents in my family have been dealt with speedily and very well, also when my dads cossie got pinched in '96 they agreed top money for it and paid out quickly, they also have done all my ammendments over the years for free, and they are UK based so you always get someone sensible to speak to rather than the usual "wayals, where in the world is wayals, I'm not seeing it on my map sir"

That's an absolute farce, someone's screwed up and they're trying to deny it. If they have offered you a premium and you accept it they should have to stand by it. Fees, taxes etc. now have to be disclosed (commission doesn't, as far as I'm aware) so they must be included in your renewal letter. They can't just add them on over the phone.


The discrepancy in what you paid last year and what they think you paid last year was probably due to the change of vehicle - £335 would have been 12 months' cost if you'd had it the full year (maybe).

Remember about your right to complain - they then have to investigate and if you don't like their conclusion you should have the right to appeal to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

I've only got one quote from Adrian Flux (from their Bikesure operation) and the bloke on the phone sounded like he really couldn't be bothered to sell me a policy.

In the 80's I insured with AF and they were great, good prices and no quibles. When I built the "Custard Pie" I went to them due to the good service in the past, what a load of cack they turned out to be, fecked me about no end, so i cancelled the insurance and they said that would cost £180, (I had been with them for just 30 days, premium was only 195), so I said I would take them to insurance ombudsman. Guess what ten minutes later phone call from them saying that they would only charge £30, what a load of w****rs. I will NEVER EVER use them again, and would recomment anyone else not to as well. Grrrrrr! Ray

quote:

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Originally posted by Chippy
In the 80's I insured with AF and they were great, good prices and no quibles. When I built the "Custard Pie" I went to them due to the good service in the past, what a load of cack they turned out to be, fecked me about no end, so i cancelled the insurance and they said that would cost £180, (I had been with them for just 30 days, premium was only 195), so I said I would take them to insurance ombudsman. Guess what ten minutes later phone call from them saying that they would only charge £30, what a load of w****rs. I will NEVER EVER use them again, and would recomment anyone else not to as well. Grrrrrr! Ray

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quote:

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Originally posted by RIE
That's an absolute farce, someone's screwed up and they're trying to deny it. If they have offered you a premium and you accept it they should have to stand by it. Fees, taxes etc. now have to be disclosed (commission doesn't, as far as I'm aware) so they must be included in your renewal letter. They can't just add them on over the phone.


The discrepancy in what you paid last year and what they think you paid last year was probably due to the change of vehicle - £335 would have been 12 months' cost if you'd had it the full year (maybe).

Remember about your right to complain - they then have to investigate and if you don't like their conclusion you should have the right to appeal to the Financial Ombudsman Service.

I've only got one quote from Adrian Flux (from their Bikesure operation) and the bloke on the phone sounded like he really couldn't be bothered to sell me a policy.

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quote:

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Originally posted by Stott
The payments for the policies are only 10 installments, turns out I thought we were paying about £300 plus interest, turns out all the quotes from previous years (4 years) were in the order of £270 but I have actually been paying £35 x 10 every year for that, as you can see , it's not just the interest or a change of vehicle, but some £80 more total cost, than the "total premium" shown on every renewal I've ever had from the robbin sh1ts!

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