Insurance policies "cooling off" period?

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Brandane

Legendary Member
Location
Costa Clyde
I am sure I have heard of a "cooling off" period for insurance policies; i.e. if you take out an insurance policy and then decide it is not for you (for whatever reason) then you can cancel it and get your money refunded.

Is that the case, or am I stuck with it?

The reason I ask is that I am due to renew insurance (today!!) for my motorbike. I found a substantial saving with Swinton. Did it on-line and made my first payment (it's only a tenner). It's only after you have done that, that the cheeky bar stewards tell you that you now need to set up a direct debit with them to pay the outstanding amount over 10 months.

Then comes the bit that has really peed me off.... They then take another 2 monthly payments as a "deposit" for NEXT years policy!! It will be refunded if you don't renew with them, but don't you just know you are going to have to jump through several hoops and make several frustrating phone calls to their premium rate call centre to get YOUR money back :angry:.

So bottom line is; I want to tell them where to shove it, and get my tenner back. Reading through the policy they say that if I cancel now I will have to pay a £15 admin fee. They can sing for that too. Gits; never again.....


 

asterix

Comrade Member
Location
Limoges or York
They then take another 2 monthly payments as a "deposit" for NEXT years policy!!

You are saying they take 2 of 2012's payments before you have paid for 2011?

Never had that before!
 
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Brandane

Brandane

Legendary Member
Location
Costa Clyde
You are saying they take 2 of 2012's payments before you have paid for 2011?

Never had that before!

Correct. Never heard of it before either. Obviously another legal but very cheeky way of trying to secure ongoing business.
When next years renewal notice arrives it will sound nicer when they say "You can renew for £x, less a discount (??) of 2 x £y that you have already paid. Oh and for your convenience as you have already set up a direct debit with us, you need not do anything other than watch in horror as we remove monthly payments from your account of £(this years payment) + 50% or whatever else we decide."

Cynical about insurance companies, moi? You bet!!
 

cisamcgu

Legendary Member
Location
Merseyside-ish
Buying online from shops or suppliers
The purchase of goods and services over the internet, by phone or by mail order generally is subject to the Distance Selling Regulations. One of the most important implications of these regulations is a cooling off period of 7 days during which you have the right to cancel. You must provide notice of cancellation in writing and it must be posted to, left at, faxed or emailed to the business address of the supplier, and you must ensure this is done no later than 7 working days after receipt of goods. Contracts for financial products sold by distance means are subject to different rules, see below for more on this.

Something else worth mentioning is that the supplier must have sent you written confirmation of your order no later than the time of delivery of the product or performance of the service. If they did not, then your 7 day cooling off period will not begin until they do, and may be extended by a further 3 months.

Hope this helps

http://whatconsumer.co.uk/cooling-off-and-cancellations/
 
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Brandane

Brandane

Legendary Member
Location
Costa Clyde
You are saying they take 2 of 2012's payments before you have paid for 2011?

Never had that before!

Reading the wording of your question again, just to make it clearer:-

You pay 2011 premium by 10 monthly payments while the policy is running. After that, they keep the direct debit going so that you pay another 2 monthly payments (while the 2011 policy is still in force) which they then discount from the cost of the 2012 policy.
 
OP
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Brandane

Brandane

Legendary Member
Location
Costa Clyde
Buying online from shops or suppliers
The purchase of goods and services over the internet, by phone or by mail order generally is subject to the Distance Selling Regulations. One of the most important implications of these regulations is a cooling off period of 7 days during which you have the right to cancel. You must provide notice of cancellation in writing and it must be posted to, left at, faxed or emailed to the business address of the supplier, and you must ensure this is done no later than 7 working days after receipt of goods. Contracts for financial products sold by distance means are subject to different rules, see below for more on this.

Something else worth mentioning is that the supplier must have sent you written confirmation of your order no later than the time of delivery of the product or performance of the service. If they did not, then your 7 day cooling off period will not begin until they do, and may be extended by a further 3 months.

Hope this helps

http://whatconsumer....-cancellations/

Thanks for that, just what I need when I phone them! :thumbsup:
 
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Brandane

Brandane

Legendary Member
Location
Costa Clyde
We reached a compromise. I paid in full for the year and scrubbed the direct debit credit agreement. Also means I saved a wee bit because there is no interest to pay. So a result, of sorts!
Have told them that they do not have my permission to automatically renew next year (as some of them like to do, for our convenience of course) just because they now have my card details.
 

Fiona N

Veteran
You really do have to watch insurance brokers/companies.

I had a recent skirmish - a letter from the broker saying that my house/contents insurance would need to be requoted as the provider had stopped the current policy 'product'. So I rang and guess what - the quote was 30% higher than last year. I noted that this was the case and I would need to get quotes elsewhere and guess what - the quote was miraculously reduced by an amount bringing it to <£1 more than last year. When I got the documents, it was the same policy as last year :blush:
 

henshaw11

Well-Known Member
Location
Walton-On-Thames
A common thing with M&S insurance - dunno if it's changed now, our renewal is due sometime soon - is that the online price is discounted/sensible, the renewal price is significantly more. Answer is to let the existing policy lapse, take out a new one on-line. All rather silly...
 

nickprior

Veteran
Location
Kelso, Borders
Actually the policyholder has the right to cancel the policy and obtain a full refund of the insurance premium.
------------------------
Insurance Adjusters

... subject to a reasonable admin fee being levied. In the case of car insurance, Swinton wanted £25 as an admin fee for a cancellation when they started messing me around about the direct debit arrangements.
 

MarkF

Guru
Location
Yorkshire
I just bought and sold a motorbike, I fancied a quick tour. I paid the premium in one payment and cancelled 12 days later, I only incurred a £25 admin charge. This is not the first time, and won't be the last, that I've done this, it keeps my motorbike NCB "live" too. Bought the bike on Ebay for £550 and sold it for £780 too, free tour!

BTW there is a Ebay advert offering touring motorbikes for 14 days tours advocating this very policy, buy the bike, get insurance, go for a tour, return, cancel insurance and get refund less admin charge, return bike and get refund less areed 14 day "rental" fee.
 
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