Car insurance increase

[Roddy0000]

Hi
My insurance renewal has had gone up yet again, how can insurance companies justify that as we are using our cars less due to the lockdown and therefore less accidents on the road and savings made.
Perhaps I have missed something ?

[madasafish]

If you accept it and pay it and don't search for better alternatives, you are the ideal customer for companies to make money.( eg screw you).
Lots of comparison websites. Use them.

[123Drive!]

That's how the industry works and it's normal practice. You need to get a cheaper quote from comparethemarket.com and then negotiate with them with a lowest quote you obtained.

I know it's hassle but otherwise you will be paying too much.

[Roddy0000]

Hi
My insurance renewal has had gone up yet again, how can insurance companies justify that as we are using our cars less due to the lockdown and therefore less accidents on the road and savings made.
Perhaps I have missed something ?

ok, I am now confused, phoned up the other day and had increased premium, rang up today and premium is lower than last year, anyone got any logical ideas ?
I thought that the earlier you renewed the cheaper the premium, think this blows that out the water !!

[richardfrost]

It is called Inertia in the business (which I was in). The assumption, which is true in most cases, is that customers will just let their insurance auto-renew as they either...

- cant be bothered with the effort of looking around and switching
- or there is something in their claims history which they believe might impact their premium

So the increases are small enough, usually, for you not to notice or be bothered with the effort of switching. If you auto-renew a few times then they assume you don't care and really start to ramp up the premiums.

Basically, you snooze, you lose.

[peteo48]

Yes - it's irritating but you do have to go through the annual search for a better deal. I was with Tesco for a number of years. I'd get the renewal with a big increase, go on Compare The Meerkats or Go Compare and find Tesco quoted a lower figure on these sites! Quick phone call and they matched their own on-line quote!

[Derkie54]

I'm with Directline and down as 10,000 miles per year. If I do a lot less they will give me a rebate.

[123Drive!]

Hi
My insurance renewal has had gone up yet again, how can insurance companies justify that as we are using our cars less due to the lockdown and therefore less accidents on the road and savings made.
Perhaps I have missed something ?

ok, I am now confused, phoned up the other day and had increased premium, rang up today and premium is lower than last year, anyone got any logical ideas ?
I thought that the earlier you renewed the cheaper the premium, think this blows that out the water !!

That's good to hear. Some times when you log in, the offers are not yet available hence the higher price. Glad it came down anyway. Just have to keep checking and quoting.

[Kremmen]

I must be the only person who never uses comparison sites because the cover they supply is often 'bare bones' so they get into your top 5 hits where most buy from.

I manually scour the various companies websites and make my own mind up.

If you do use comparison sites carefully read the small print for exclusions that will only bite when you claim.

[sparky Paul]

I must be the only person who never uses comparison sites because the cover they supply is often 'bare bones' so they get into your top 5 hits where most buy from.

I'm not really sure what you mean by "often bare bones", the insurers on comparison sites offer exactly the same products that are available directly, and that usually includes several different policies from the bigger insurers. You punch in your requirements with regards to what cover you want, and the prices are scraped directly from the insurer's websites, and that is where you make your purchase - not on the comparison site.

There are indeed some very basic policies on the comparison sites, they are also available on the insurer's websites, but unless you have specifically declined the additional policy features, they will not appear on your results. You will only see policies that meet the very detailed requirements you have to input when first setting up your account.

Of course, you should always check the policy details before committing to any new insurer, that applies wherever you buy your insurance from.

I don't get this mistrust of comparison sites, they really are an excellent tool that helps you save money. I get an email a month before my insurance is due, it reminds me to look around, and lets me know if my existing insurer is still competitive. I do exactly what Jocko does, get the cheapest quotes I can find and ask my existing insurer to match it - 9 times out of 10, they cave in.

[embee]

As above, you have to treat the comparison sites as a tool. They do a job, they are not the answer to everything. You still have to look at the products offered and check that the T&Cs suit your needs.
The lowest price policies offered usually either don't fit my needs, or when you do a check on trustpilot or equivalent review site you find you wouldn't want to touch the particular companies with a barge pole, some of the reviews are true horror stories if they are to be believed. The supply of temporary replacement vehicles while yours is being repaired is a complete scam industry on its own, beware.
If I've had a decent service from a company for a few years and they are prepared to renew at a sensible price I'm happy to stay with them, the odd £20 a year doesn't worry me, but each to their own. Occasionally I just get fed up with the negotiating game and go somewhere else out of principle (they don't really care but it makes me feel better).

[sparky Paul]

If I've had a decent service from a company for a few years and they are prepared to renew at a sensible price I'm happy to stay with them, the odd £20 a year doesn't worry me, but each to their own. Occasionally I just get fed up with the negotiating game and go somewhere else out of principle (they don't really care but it makes me feel better).

No, I'm the same - I'm not going to mess about swapping company just for the sake of a few quid, although it is much easier now with the centralised database for NCB etc.

I don't particularly enjoy the ringing up and negotiating bit, but most companies now have an online chat facility where you can converse directly with a human being and do the job in half the time. No waiting for an 'advisor', no being stuck on hold listening to crappy music, or press 1 for this, 2 for that, etc..

[ColinS]

If I've had a decent service from a company for a few years and they are prepared to renew at a sensible price I'm happy to stay with them, the odd £20 a year doesn't worry me, but each to their own. Occasionally I just get fed up with the negotiating game and go somewhere else out of principle (they don't really care but it makes me feel better).

No, I'm the same - I'm not going to mess about swapping company just for the sake of a few quid, although it is much easier now with the centralised database for NCB etc.

I don't particularly enjoy the ringing up and negotiating bit, but most companies now have an online chat facility where you can converse directly with a human being and do the job in half the time. No waiting for an 'advisor', no being stuck on hold listening to crappy music, or press 1 for this, 2 for that, etc..

For the last few years I've just got an on-line quote from the same company, then phoned them up to say that they are cheaper on-line than their renewal quote.  They have always dropped the price.

Next year "rinse and repeat".  It's just a perpetual game that we play.

[Kremmen]

That ploy worked for me with DL for many many years until last year.

Last year their auto renewal quote was £150 more. I put in and double checked my details on their website and that was £200 more !

Put in  my details on LV= and they were £150 cheaper. I had to double check again my input but I'd made no errors.

I'd been with DL 26 years and never claimed, clean licence.

[Westy36]

I look upon the annual insurance renewal process as just that, a process. There is money to be saved, and if you have the time, do so. 
Comparison websites have their place, but not all information about the policy is on there, or indeed all insurers.

Questions I like answered:
If I make a change to my policy, admin fee? Can vary by huge amounts.
If I have a claim, where will my call end up? Is it handled in the UK by the insurers themselves?
Defaqto rating? A few quid more can get a lot more cover.
Windscreen Excess? - These have shot up in recent years.
Driving Abroad? - Most years we've had a trip or two abroad with the car, some insurers now charge a lot for this.

A few quid saved may be a false economy when taking some finer details into account. 

With regard to renewals, have you seen this: https://www.fca.org.uk/news/press-releases/fca-sets-out-proposals-tackle-concerns-about-general-insurance-pricing