Insurance

Yep today I am going to talk about insurance, boo, hiss and all that. Most of us will have some form of insurance whether it be car, home, travel or life insurance. I work within the insurance industry and today I am going to give you all some advice. This isn't mean to sound patronising and most of it is common sense but you would be surprised how many people ignore this.

1. Make sure you declare everything and be honest! That includes speeding convictions and claims. If you have been in an accident you are required to inform your insurance company and yes it does have to show on your insurance. Failure to disclose information can and does result in increased premiums, declined claims, insurance refusal and in certain cases criminal convictions. We can and do check the information you provide!
2. No claims discount. Just because you are named on a policy does not mean you have no claims discount. If you cancel a policy mid term you will loose that years no claims discount. Telling insurance companies the wrong amount of no claims discount can result in huge premium increases for you. If they ask you to provide proof then provide it! There are insurance companies that will cancel your policy over incorrect no claims discount.
3. Read your documents! Once we provide you with the policy documents the onus is on you read them. It will spell out what we will and won't cover and any charges.
4. If you cancel your policy after the cooling off period you WILL be charged for it. When you take out a policy you are told about any charges and they are in the documents. Shouting, screaming or being rude about it doesn't help and won't get charges waved. They form part of the contract that you agree to when you take out the policy.
5. Direct debit, annual card authority policies automatically renew. You agree this when you take the policy out. Do not ignore your documents.
6. If we send you a letter about payments on you policy then respond to it!
7. It is illegal to backdate insurance. So if you call to set up a policy it can only be started from the day you call onwards.
8. Make sure you have the correct information with you when you speak to us. We can't guess and it saves you having to call back when you do have the correct information.

Lastly I want to talk about cancelling the policy. Only the policy holder can cancel an insurance policy regardless of who pays for it. Cancelling a direct debit at the bank does not mean your insurance policy is cancelled. If you want to cancel a policy then you must phone the insurance company and tell them, if they want it in writing they will ask for it.