Taking My Own Insurance Advice

Even worse than the Admiral Insurance logo - the Columbus Direct Dog

After writing my last post about insurance company inertia - the fear of changing policy, or at least the time it takes to source new quotes - I realised that I was guilty of not heeding my own advice on one of my policies.

My annual travel cover is due to expire in a few days and I have a trip at the end of this month. The renewal quote is a not unreasonable £45 for a worldwide multi-trip individual policy. However Travelplan Direct, the provider, annoyed me considerably the year before last when I came to claim - remember you only discover whether your insurer is any good when you make a claim.

A couple of Christmases ago British Airways grounded all flights for several days due to a prolonged spell of fog at London's Heathrow. The chaos was nationwide headline news. My flight to Scotland was repeatedly cancelled but when I claimed £100 for delayed departure the insurer said the policy wording was mistyped. Not my problem I replied - the printed policy is a binding contract. This didn't satisfy them, they wanted a letter of proof from British Airways - even though all they had to do was read a newspaper or watch the news to see the grounded planes. Eventually they coughed up - with the additional £10 due under their customer charter which I insisted on because they had incorrectly denied my claim.

I promised not to renew the policy with them, but last year it slipped through again on an automatic renewal. So after completing my last blog posting I decided to have a look for a new quote. Moneysavingexpert.com is always a good first call. In fact my current insurer was one of the best picks. But the site also links to moneysupermarket.com where I found a special on a Columbus Direct policy for £29. Comparing the 2 policies line by line they were almost identical - with Columbus providing more cover for baggage. As I'm flying from the notoriously careless Terminal 5 luggage cover is important to me.

This morning I called TravelPlan Direct to ask if they could improve their quote. They couldn't, so as they are 50% more expensive than Columbus Direct they lost my business. The only thing I don't like about the new policy is that logo. Quite why insurers are so keen on the guard dog idea I can't imagine. Cynically you might guess it's because insurer's dogs are friendly - until they bite you. Let's hope Columbus Direct's dog's bark is worse than its bite.

Comparing available travel insurance policies saved me 50% of the premium - OK only £15 but it only took 15 minutes, which is equivalent to an hourly labour rate of £60 or £480 a day. So worth comparing quotes - unless your income is £480 a day.

Car Insurance Renewal - Be Cheeky!

The Admiral Insurance logo
Wasn't it actually Pirates who kept Parrots?

I spend almost a thousand pounds a year insuring my house, car and foreign travel. The law says I must have car insurance. I'd be taking a big risk if I didn't insure my house and in any case mortgage providers insist on it. Foreign Travel without health insurance is idiotic - an air ambulance home costs upwards of £25K.

I haven't claimed on any of these policies for at least 2 years. The only claims I've made in 10 years are for 2 broken windscreens and £100 for delayed travel. So not great value for money then, although I'm not complaining that I haven't had to claim - frankly I'd rather not be involved in car wrecks, burglary, fire or worse.

The only sensible way to limit the insurance burden is to work at minimising premiums - while attempting to ensure your policy is with a provider who won't let you down. Its a sad fact that the only time you discover whether your insurance is any good is when you claim. There's no excuse not to compare premiums - when all you have to do is type your details into an online comparison site - but apparently a lot of people don't bother.

I just received my car insurance renewal quote from Admiral Insurance. Personally I think Admiral's logo is a bit cheesy and their Daytime TV ads even more so. But when RAC Glass let me down when it came to replacing my windscreen Admiral waived the excess and I was impressed with their personal service and apology. So in my book Admiral are going to be tough to beat on service - but what about price? Well the renewal quote has reduced a few pounds, which in itself is a welcome surprise, but then I haven't cost them any money either.

So I checked the comparison sites and Admiral's policy is unbeatable. But their inclusive breakdown cover struck me as expensive, so I phoned them up and asked if they could improve their package - taking into consideration my claims history. They amended the value of my car, reducing it by £2000 (even though cars decrease in value at an alarming rate insurers seem to carry on with the last value you gave them) and the operator went away to ask a manager if my quote could be improved. When she came back my quote had shrunk by £47.94 - just over 10%. Not bad for a 12 minute phone call.

A few years ago I received a house insurance renewal from Norwich Union. I requested a fresh quote online, as though I was a new customer, but using the name and address they already held on file. The new customer quote was £200 cheaper.

Insurance companies operate on the principle of inertia. If you keep renewing they generally keep increasing the premium. Only if you ask, threaten to change provider, or actually change provider is your premium likely to reduce.