Car insurance ..this mornings dealings

[BigonaBianchi]

So the Mini Cooper is up for renewal...much as I despise the thing it is a necessary evil and has to be insured...so they send the renewal through at £445. I go online to see what else is around...and call them saying theirs is expensive and I can get £380ish...he does a price comparison online and comes back to me with a lower quote still and instantly drops his renewal premium to match it at £307. The policy is exactly the same as my original one, no changes at all..full breakdown, legal, protected NCD, windscreen,fully comp, £100 excess, foreign travel driving to 90 days, personal effects £300,able to drive other cars £60 excess, etc

So whilst I am happy and renewed, I have to ask how many people out there just renew automatically as per there renewal invitation?

....whilst on there I read this

"
Telematics/Black Box/Tracking Policies

Telematics/Black Box/Tracking Policies, there are a number of names for it, but what does this actually mean?
In all cases these types of policies will require you to have a tracking device fitted to your vehicle which will be provided by your insurer (there may or may not be an additional charge for this).
This tracking device will monitor your driving habits and transmit the data to your insurer. Insurers will use this data in different ways. Some insurers may only look at your mileage and times of travel throughout the day whereas others may look at your driving behaviour such as acceleration, braking and speeding.
The above data can be used to calculate adjustments to your annual premium. These adjustments could either increase or decrease your premium and may be applied throughout your policy term or at your renewal.
In most cases the insurer will provide access to a personalised dashboard where you can view the above data online."



Whilst my policy doesn't require it I have to say its a dam good idea....maybe all cars should be fitted with such boxes??...erm..including mine

 

[Globalti]

The premium should be LOWER than last year because motor insurance costs are coming down, thanks to the industry's efforts in stamping out bogus whiplash claims. Tell your insurer you are looking around for a cheaper quote and they need to reduce the premium by 10% to keep your business. They were trying to shaft you so why should you give them any loyalty?

BTW.... some advice I received recently from someone who works in motor insurance, strictly private: if you have a small scrape, fix it yourself and don't tell your insurer because they will put you down as an accident magnet and your premiums will creep up.

 

[Silver Fox]

Just goes to show what can be achieved by shopping round in a competitive market. Slightly o/t, I recently saved £100 off my AA renewal just by playing them off against the RAC for the same cover.

 

[Frood42]

If people are willing to have a car tracker in their vehicle voluntarily then that is the choice they make, but the insurers should pay for the device and for the device to be fitted.

My personal choice would be to tell them to go jump off a large cliff (or just a firm No if you prefer ).

I would not be adverse to it being used against repeat driving offenders (although not a perfect solution admittedly).

 

[ASC1951]

BTW.... some advice I received recently from someone who works in motor insurance, strictly private: if you have a small scrape, fix it yourself and don't tell your insurer because they will put you down as an accident magnet and your premiums will creep up.

Or fraud, as we call it if someone does it to us.

 

[4F]

It's the stupid game I play every year. Renewal comes through at a higher rate , get quote online, phone current provider and say beat the online price or I am switching. They beat the price and we wait to play the game in a years time.

 

[Nigel-YZ1]

Renewal was £375.
Did the comparison thing, and now insured for £170 with another trading name of the same company with the same cover.
And cute Meerkat on the way for my better half.

 

[Doseone]

It's the stupid game I play every year. Renewal comes through at a higher rate , get quote online, phone current provider and say beat the online price or I am switching. They beat the price and we wait to play the game in a years time.

^ This. Every time. House, 2 cars so we play the game 3 times a year.

 

[BigonaBianchi]

..b b B But ...i want a meerkat toy

 

[ColinJ]

..b b B But ...i want a meerkat toy

The power of marketing, eh! Actually, having spent millions trying to get you to 'compare the meerkat' with them, you still didn't ...