ADMIRAL - you make my blood boil.

[Jackpilk]

Just received a letter today from Admiral saying that I didn't mention the "accident" I had 2 years ago, as they have only just found out that the information differs to what was said in a phone call, as a result of this a change of balance of £1794.49 is due which has been distributed over the remainder of my monthly payments.

Yes you read right £1794.49.

The accident:

2 years ago I was parked outside my Granddads house and my car was left parked, in a parking space while I was in the house, and my Granddads next door neighbour drove into my car. After I head the noise I went outside and was confronted by the man asking for all my insurance details saying that it was my fault because I was parked in his usual space and he didn't see my car there.
I had to restrain myself from laughing in his face and just photo'd the hell out of the area before swapping insurance details.

A good month later this was all resolved in his insurance accepting all blame for the accident, the damage was minimal on my car so going through insurance would be costly and a waste of time so I just left it.

But now I have been hit with this letter from Admiral and I am disgusted.

I just can't understand how they came up with the figure of £1794.49. As I pay £72 a month which I know a lot of you will think is fairly high anyway.

Would I have lost my no claims bonus? And if this is the price to pay for being involved in a accident, can you only imagine what it would have been if I made a claim!?

Can anyone shed any light on this before I call Admiral tomorrow and go ape?

 

[SC03OTT]

Served.

 

[JackJack]

Should of told them imo.

 

[172Ben]

You didn't tell them you had an accident, your fault or not you should really have told them.

Do another quote with them and include it see what you get.

Imo

 

[Chapster5]

As above unfortunately I cant see you having a leg to stand on. An accident is an Accident at the end of the day and the fact the other guys insurance was involved and admitted blame shows its on the MIB Database and thats what they check when they make sure your details are correct mate.

Never lie to insurance companies they find out eventually they have sources, and it's worse if they catch up with you for lying than telling them in the first place.

Nick

 

[pendulumx]

Shocked at the replies so far, he was in his house FFS!
I could understand a bill for £40 extra or so but a bill of that proportion is a joke.

 

[Will.]

LOL!

 

[Jackpilk]

They knew up until I sold my 172 in July 2011 about the incident, a few months later I got my new car In September and I did an online quote with Admiral and didn't even think to tick the box of being involved in an accident regardless of fault. So yes I can see why I've been hit with this I can understand but the price given is madness, but surely because they have known who I am etc as I've been insured with them pretty much since I've been driving you'd have thought they could of mentioned it? I will ring them tomorrow and see where I stand.

 

[Heez]

Just received a letter today from Admiral saying that I didn't mention the "accident" I had 2 years ago, as they have only just found out that the information differs to what was said in a phone call, as a result of this a change of balance of £1794.49 is due which has been distributed over the remainder of my monthly payments.

Yes you read right £1794.49.

The accident:

2 years ago I was parked outside my Granddads house and my car was left parked, in a parking space while I was in the house, and my Granddads next door neighbour drove into my car. After I head the noise I went outside and was confronted by the man asking for all my insurance details saying that it was my fault because I was parked in his usual space and he didn't see my car there.
I had to restrain myself from laughing in his face and just photo'd the hell out of the area before swapping insurance details.

A good month later this was all resolved in his insurance accepting all blame for the accident, the damage was minimal on my car so going through insurance would be costly and a waste of time so I just left it.

But now I have been hit with this letter from Admiral and I am disgusted.

I just can't understand how they came up with the figure of £1794.49. As I pay £72 a month which I know a lot of you will think is fairly high anyway.

Would I have lost my no claims bonus? And if this is the price to pay for being involved in a accident, can you only imagine what it would have been if I made a claim!?

Can anyone shed any light on this before I call Admiral tomorrow and go ape?

What did you tell them originally?

 

[Zorr]

Last November my car got scratched by the lorry on work car park. Everything was sorted through the lorries owner insurance. Do I need to notify my insurer about it ? I wouldn't even call it an accident.

 

[Goodj]

What's that? Involved in an accident that wasn't your fault?
Claimed on insurance?
Didn't mention it again?
Surprised when pulled up on it?

Shocking

EDIT: At Gordini owner, yep, anything involving insurance needs to be declared / informed, unfortunately...... unless you want to end up in a similar situation

 

[pendulumx]

Do a quote with the accident undeclared, and then the accident declared, and see what the difference is, that is roughly the maximum they should be charging, and it won't be anywhere near £1,700 I don't think! Attempted theft IMO, they think because you've entered in to a contract with them they can charge what they like but the charge must be fair.

 

[Goodj]

if OP is paying monthly, just cancel policy and go to someone less rapey, if possible.

 

[Jackpilk]

if OP is paying monthly, just cancel policy and go to someone less rapey, if possible.

Admiral have always been brilliant up until now, so if I can resolve it tomorrow then I will stay with them if not I'l look elsewhere.

Yes I pay monthly.

 

[Goodj]

Coolio,

well, if they dont swiftly readjust their position (presuming that you find a better price on confused.com or similar) then wave them goodbye.

I'm with Elephant, same company really, and they've never been a trouble so I know what you mean, they're alright when they aren't being silly.

Mind, they always try it on at renewal time, got 30% slashed off my renewal just by doing a confused.com search, they then beat it!

 

[Jackpilk]

I've just done a comparison quote with the accident undeclared and accident declared and the difference is £110 annually, which yes is better than £1700+ but still it's a £110 for some bloke driving into my car that I practically watched from the house whilst having a cup of tea.

 

[172Ben]

Thing is, even though it was your fault, you need to declare it as an accident. They will do anything to pay out. Trust me!

Just ring them and see what they say

 

[Goodj]

Even if you parked in an underground bunker, with full security, if someone manages to hurt themselves or their property on it and claim about it, on their or your insurance, your premium WILL go up.

Fact of life, you've just got to suck it up and deal with it unfortunately.

Sorry, the world isn't a nice place

 

[Wick]

^ What he said.

Irrespective of fault, any claim will is likely to put it up.

We had a guy reverse into my mum whilst she was parked in a bay with the handbrake on. Claimed for the damage on his insurance and guess what, come renewal time her premium went up despite having no involvement. It's a cruel world and the insurance game is twisted.

 

[Adam.]

They knew up until I sold my 172 in July 2011 about the incident, a few months later I got my new car In September and I did an online quote with Admiral and didn't even think to tick the box of being involved in an accident regardless of fault. So yes I can see why I've been hit with this I can understand but the price given is madness, but surely because they have known who I am etc as I've been insured with them pretty much since I've been driving you'd have thought they could of mentioned it? I will ring them tomorrow and see where I stand.

Really?

REALLY?

 

[Martin_172]

i just phoned them and told them to cancel my policy with them for a similar problem this week, got a letter from them saying i owe them £120 for a claim i didnt declair, phoned them up and told them ive never once had an accident and neither has my mrs who is my only named driver, turns out its a windscreen claim in 2008!!!

1. im on the same policy ive always been on so surely when i claimed a windscreen with them in 2008 they would have just automatically added it onto my renewal and

2. i was always under the impression windscreen claims didnt need declaired and wouldnt make a difference anyway.


so anyway i told them ive spent over £6000 with admiral in the last 5 years and never had a claim other than that windscreen and wasnt happy at this bill being sprung on me, they said i had no option but to pay it as im 8 months into my 10 month policy and its backdated, i ended up having to pay a £50 cancelation fee to cancel my insurance + that bill + i would have had another yrs ncb in 2 months which ive now lost so im worse off than i would have been had i just paid the bill and stayed with them but out of principle i wasnt doing that, its a shame as ive never had any issues with them in the past but i wont use them again (there loss really as im low risk driving high insurance group cars, that must be their ideal customer!)

 

[Struggler]

define "involved in an accident"?? i was sat in my mates car when someone smashed into the side of him, am i therefore involved?? im technically had no part in the accident much like the OP, so surely im just as involved in his accident has the OP is in his?!

what if someone else who was insured on the policy went out to find the car rather than him?? would take make him less of a risk on the road?? their calculations of what a *risk* is based on what ever statistic they can exploit to justify charging you more!!

things like this make me hate insurance so much!!

when i took over my mums cars, i insured it in my own name for £1700,
i realised it was cheaper if i moved the car to my own name (harmlessly didnt bother to do it before) so filled out the paperwork and changed it over.

a few weeks later i got a letter pretty much saying because i filled out the quote with the "date of purchased the vehicle" being the date my mum bought the car, rather than when i transfered it over to my name, my premium had been recalculated to £2300!!

its always the way. once youve wasted the grace period when you can cancel the policy, theyll try and find any discrepancies on your form to hike your premium sky high!!

 

[pendulumx]

2. i was always under the impression windscreen claims didnt need declaired and wouldnt make a difference anyway.

I bet some of the posters who have been pretty harsh on this thread were as well.

 

[Steven103]

I fear this sort of thing, whilst the mistake is probably very common (especially the windscreen claim example), can only ever end badly. The insurance company will be keen to point out that:

1) it's in the policy booklet/terms & conditions
2) it's on the website (iirc it says 'have you had any accidents OR claims')
3) it explains it further if you click on the question mark icon
4) they're supposed to ask you over the phone when you confirm everything

Q: how many people read the full policy booklet/terms and conditions in it's entirety?

Though legally ok it does seem unfair and ambiguous. The only way things will seem fairer is if the insurance company's do more to ensure the customer gives them the exact depth of info they require.

 

[montana]

Insurance companies annoy me, they have you every which way.

The fact you didn't declare it to your insurance is probably the same decision that the majority of people in the same situation would do as you were not driving at the time and the guy claimed on his own insurance ...

 

[Martin_172]

define "involved in an accident"?? i was sat in my mates car when someone smashed into the side of him, am i therefore involved?? im technically had no part in the accident much like the OP, so surely im just as involved in his accident has the OP is in his?!

i think its if an accedent was recorded on a car where your the main policy holder.

i cant put my mum on my insurance anymore as it puts it up due to someone running into the back of her company car driving school car while it was out on a driving test and she was sat on her arse back at the test centre!!! (was a non fault claim too!)

 

[Goodj]

define "involved in an accident"??

Anything that either party goes and tells either parties insurance about.

Irrespective of fault
regardless of cost

It's not rocket science.

Oh, and LOLZ at "I've spent thousands with you over the years!", that never gets old.
As if it matters, all you need to do is y0! your way through someone's loiunge after a "black ice"/"diesel" incident and that £6k will look like great value.

We get insurance becuase not only does the law dictate we must, but also because few people can afford to pickup the bill for the damage they can cause.

 

[seltking]

admiral are s h i t lets face it they trow ridiculas charges on. i left them half way through my policy as they kept trying to take my payments early without me knowing so i was getting bank charges then admiral was asking for the rest of the money on my policy in a one off payment so i told them to do 1. now they want 320 quid for my canceling the policy and threatening to take me to court lol my solicitor has now told them to basicaly meet me in court as they wont get a penny lol

 

[Silent_Scone]

From the company that brought you Bell.

 

[Bren Rogers]

I had a similar problem a few years ago with Direct Line.

Had an accident 'non fault' in my car, and the car was written off. 6 months later when my renewal comes around I tell them I'm not renewing because I'm going iwht someone else. 10 minutes later I get a call saying that when they inspected my car after the crash the wheels were not standard. (they were cheap replacements after a pothol bending two). They said because I didn't declare this I owed them an extra £400. This was after the policy had expired.

I was a bit worried, but uite frankly told them they were replacements due to maintenance, and I wasn't going to pay it. The lady who called said she had to speak to her supervisor, called me back 5 mibutes later and said it was ok, and there would be no charge.

Bit worrying, but I think they have a fair point in your case, although the premium is inflated hugely.

 

[M@tt_182]

They'll do anything to try and bump up your premium so don't give them the option to do it! Any accident must be declared even if it wasn't your fault, that's just how it works.

I'm currently 6 months into my Admiral policy and fingers crossed I've not had any issues with them.

 

[Steven103]

Clearly there is a huge moral difference between straight up not declaring something and it just not occuring to tell them/forgetting (e.g. windscreen replacements xx years ago).


I don't know about anyone else but when I'm paying so much money to insure my car I f****** want to get it right and make sure I am covered properly and that there is no way they wriggle out of anything. I really don't see why people just cba to read to the small print when they spend this much money!

* How many people on here or joe bloggs had a proper read of the T&Cs?
* How many people on here declared their optional extras (e.g. satnav, aircon, cup packs. It all puts your premium up and, if you read the T&Cs or note the exact wording of the people on the phone, you DO have to declare it)
* How many people have declared their mods with admiral but don't even know that "declared" does NOT automatically mean "covered" unless you take out a seperate product "modifications cover?" (hopefully they've changed this since I started with them!)
* How many people actually notify insurance of accidents within 48 hours even if they have no intention of claiming? (an accident w/o claim put my renewal up £350, a claim put it up another £350)
* And this is before all of the white lies about a car being garaged, limited mileage, using it for commuting when you're only covered for social domestic & pleasure...

 

[Jackpilk]

Spoke to Admiral today, when I say Admiral I mean every person on every department as I don't think know one wanted to deal with me.

I basically said that the £1794.49 was an absolute joke and why is it only now you hit me with this? After explaining my case (Which yes it wasn't a strong one as I didn't declare the "incident") they settled with me paying an additional £12.30 a month instead of £299.08 for the remainder of my 6 months.

Lesson learnt.

 

[Zorr]

I am going to call my insurance tomorrow to notify them of the "accident" had no idea I am obliged to do that.

 

[Jackpilk]

Do it Zorr, because if you do claim and it shows up you didn't declare that incident you wont get a payout.

 

[pendulumx]

I am going to call my insurance tomorrow to notify them of the "accident" had no idea I am obliged to do that.

Might be worth £10 and a data access request to CUE to see what incidents have been recorded (if any) and when

http://www.insurancedatabases.co.uk/default.aspx

 

[wezzel98765]

I had a letter through similar to the £1000 premium increase because Admiral didn't copy my policy details over properly (yes I should've checked anyways!) two years back!

My mum is on my policy and did a speed awareness course in 2009.

Now I told them straight away, but when I renewed in 2010 they didn't include it, they didn't include when I renewed in 2011 either.

Now, they want the £1,000 increase as BACK PAYMENT for previous years!

But if I get a quote online for a speed awareness course happening last week, it puts my policy up by £20... so their £1000 is EXTORTION!

So, I spoke to the ombudsman and they've written to them on my behalf.


There is no way that they can increase my premiums by £1000 just because a SAC wasn't declared (by their fault anyway) ... when in actual fact it only effects the policy by £20 a year

 

[Gally]

Do it Zorr, because if you do claim and it shows up you didn't declare that incident you wont get a payout.

Well that's not technically true. Nothing like throwing around opinion like fact.

Anyway guys from my pov it's fair and square. If your vehicle is involved in an accident/incident of any kind you are "statistically" more like to have an accident/claim.

This is fact and this is how insurance companies work. Risk.

It's not dishonest to expect the owner of the car to declare any incidents they are involved in. Don't blame them when they come looking for additional premiums because you didn't declare something.

Car owners seem to forever think insurance is a right or something. These guys are running a business at the end of the day.

 

[Stefan.]

i just phoned them and told them to cancel my policy with them for a similar problem this week, got a letter from them saying i owe them £120 for a claim i didnt declair, phoned them up and told them ive never once had an accident and neither has my mrs who is my only named driver, turns out its a windscreen claim in 2008!!!

1. im on the same policy ive always been on so surely when i claimed a windscreen with them in 2008 they would have just automatically added it onto my renewal and

2. i was always under the impression windscreen claims didnt need declaired and wouldnt make a difference anyway.


so anyway i told them ive spent over £6000 with admiral in the last 5 years and never had a claim other than that windscreen and wasnt happy at this bill being sprung on me, they said i had no option but to pay it as im 8 months into my 10 month policy and its backdated, i ended up having to pay a £50 cancelation fee to cancel my insurance + that bill + i would have had another yrs ncb in 2 months which ive now lost so im worse off than i would have been had i just paid the bill and stayed with them but out of principle i wasnt doing that, its a shame as ive never had any issues with them in the past but i wont use them again (there loss really as im low risk driving high insurance group cars, that must be their ideal customer!)

i dont get why you paid to cancel and paid the bill and lost a years no claims which you were 2 motnhs away from. i would of just paid the bill then got my extra years no claims then stuck two fingers up at them at renewal time and gone with someone else.

 

[fordee]

I had a letter through similar to the £1000 premium increase because Admiral didn't copy my policy details over properly (yes I should've checked anyways!) two years back!

My mum is on my policy and did a speed awareness course in 2009.

Now I told them straight away, but when I renewed in 2010 they didn't include it, they didn't include when I renewed in 2011 either.

Now, they want the £1,000 increase as BACK PAYMENT for previous years!

But if I get a quote online for a speed awareness course happening last week, it puts my policy up by £20... so their £1000 is EXTORTION!

So, I spoke to the ombudsman and they've written to them on my behalf.


There is no way that they can increase my premiums by £1000 just because a SAC wasn't declared (by their fault anyway) ... when in actual fact it only effects the policy by £20 a year

Hi wezzel98765,

I'm a researcher, looking into the issue of SAC and how they impact on insurance premiums and was hoping to try and talk to you about your experience? Is there a way I can contact you other than on the forum please to discuss further?

Many thanks