Hmm. Insurance Cost Reduced With A Bit Of Shopping Around

[derekyau]

Hi all,

Some of you may have read this thread.

I used the Tooting branch last year, who did me very well. This year, the renewal from Tooting branch was £555 (5 years protected NCB, 1 unresolved outstanding claim, CR post code, 26 years young).

Called Alistair from A-plan Newbury branch. Offered me £500.

So, shopping around a bit, the best handful were Adrian Flux £435, Confused (from Admiral) £437 and MoreThan £491.

Got a follow up call and I told them about my findings, so after a bit of quote dealing, ended up with £415.

Very helpful and polite on the phone.

Dealt with a chap called Grant Stevens, who was more than helpful in getting me quotes.

£140 savings than if I just went with my renewal.

Happy chappy :) :D :winky:

[Rsarin]

good job.Its good to hear when peeps save dosh on insurance.It frightens me to think the amount of people paying well over the odds.

[Bazza]

it annoys me that they offer you a higher premium

if you ring and say i will go elsewhere because they are cheaper, they then reduce the figure

you feel happy that you have got it cheaper !

yet in reality they have just tried to rip you off

tell them you are going to go elsewhere, because they are chancers, and maybe they should review there practices, there business is acting like an indian market stall seller

;)

[SteveL]

I've just insured my Evo through A-plan and i can confirm they are excellent. They were always helpful, and always happy to amend whatever details needed doing. And they were cheaper than anyone else. A lot of insurers i spoke to said A-plan were currently offering the best deals around. Always pays to shop around

[alastair chapman]

it annoys me that they offer you a higher premium

if you ring and say i will go elsewhere because they are cheaper, they then reduce the figure

you feel happy that you have got it cheaper !

yet in reality they have just tried to rip you off

tell them you are going to go elsewhere, because they are chancers, and maybe they should review there practices, there business is acting like an indian market stall seller

;)

Just to pick you up on that point, we are a broker and will always quote the best possible price we have been able to obtain when speaking directly to the underwriter.

Upon hearing that a cheaper quote had been made available to Mr Yau, we then spoke to the insurers and re negotiated the price on the basis that if they wanted the business they would have to improve on their price, which they did!

Don't try to shoot us down when we are trying to do people like you a favour!!!!

[GWilso]

it annoys me that they offer you a higher premium

if you ring and say i will go elsewhere because they are cheaper, they then reduce the figure

Sorry but im with Bazza on this I think insurance company's should be offering their best premium without any sort of haggling!!!

I don't mean to shoot anyone down (especially the brokers) but insurance company's are multi billion pound industries which I have no desir to support wallets, although I do completley understand there purpose,

I don't always agree with their policy's especially when they try to riggle out of any claims at the end of it all

you feel happy that you have got it cheaper !

yet in reality they have just tried to rip you off

tell them you are going to go elsewhere, because they are chancers, and maybe they should review there practices, there business is acting like an indian market stall seller

;)

Just to pick you up on that point, we are a broker and will always quote the best possible price we have been able to obtain when speaking directly to the underwriter.

Upon hearing that a cheaper quote had been made available to Mr Yau, we then spoke to the insurers and re negotiated the price on the basis that if they wanted the business they would have to improve on their price, which they did!

Don't try to shoot us down when we are trying to do people like you a favour!!!!

Sorry but im with Bazza on this I think insurance company's should be offering their best premium without any sort of haggling!!!

I don't mean to shoot anyone down (especially the brokers) but insurance company's are multi billion pound industries which I have no desir to support wallets, although I do completley understand there purpose,

I don't always agree with their policy's especially when they try to riggle out of any claims at the end of it all

[Bazza]

it annoys me that they offer you a higher premium

if you ring and say i will go elsewhere because they are cheaper, they then reduce the figure

you feel happy that you have got it cheaper !

yet in reality they have just tried to rip you off

tell them you are going to go elsewhere, because they are chancers, and maybe they should review there practices, there business is acting like an indian market stall seller

;)

Just to pick you up on that point, we are a broker and will always quote the best possible price we have been able to obtain when speaking directly to the underwriter.

Upon hearing that a cheaper quote had been made available to Mr Yau, we then spoke to the insurers and re negotiated the price on the basis that if they wanted the business they would have to improve on their price, which they did!

Don't try to shoot us down when we are trying to do people like you a favour!!!!

but why is there a need to re negoitiate, why cant your source give you the best price to start with

they obviously know there is a lower price, as i am sure you do, otherwise you wouldnt ring them

you as well as every customer would surely want a firm quote to start with rather than go through all the hassle of negoitiating, its seems just a case of getting the most out of the customer

question 1: would you bother to re negotiate if mr Yau hadnt found a cheaper price ?

question 2: do lower premiums not lower commission and monthly sales figures ?

being in a position where i have to insure 7 vehicles, i wish someone would do me a favour and quote me correctly without the need to re negotiate, every time, and everytime obtaining a lower quote

if you dont like taking the blame, then tell your sources what their customers want

[derekyau]

Woah woah woah.

chill out peeps

Thing is, it still is difficult to compare like-for-like if you look at all the silly things that effect the premium (which you all know I guess? e.g. lower premium, but higher excess, protected NCB but with 1 claim per year vs 2 per year, even legal protection, driving other people's cars, overseas driving and stuff).

So, unless everytime you are 100% sure you want certain "features", then it may not always be possible to compare/offer "best" price straight away.

I guess what I mean is the cheaper the preimium, may not be the "best" price.

So its still up to you to make your own informed decision

D.

P.S. "Mr Yau". I like it :)

Time for a forum name change methinks... :D

I don't always agree with their policy's especially when they try to riggle out of any claims at the end of it all

Another point to consider as well, as well as if they will let you take the car to a Lexus dealer for example.

[GWilso]

I here what your saying derek

but what we are getting at is the fact that you anounce your going elswere they can just bring down the premium to suite them.

Its clear that everone's circumstances are diffrent but with each of those circumstances they are normally always able to reduce the premiuim.

Woah woah woah.

chill out peeps

Thing is, it still is difficult to compare like-for-like if you look at all the silly things that effect the premium (which you all know I guess? e.g. lower premium, but higher excess, protected NCB but with 1 claim per year vs 2 per year, even legal protection, driving other people's cars, overseas driving and stuff).

So, unless everytime you are 100% sure you want certain "features", then it may not always be possible to compare/offer "best" price straight away.

I guess what I mean is the cheaper the preimium, may not be the "best" price.

So its still up to you to make your own informed decision

D.

P.S. "Mr Yau". I like it :)

Time for a forum name change methinks... :D

I don't always agree with their policy's especially when they try to riggle out of any claims at the end of it all

Another point to consider as well, as well as if they will let you take the car to a Lexus dealer for example.

[alastair chapman]

Bazza, I can understand you frustration and yes it is frustrating for us too when we have to negotiate twice, but that is part and parcel of our job.

I have been on here recommending my branch of A-Plan for some months now, so it is just as important for me to deal with all enquiries you have and not just "bury my head in the sand" when you question the way that we do things. So I will attempt to clarify things a little for you.

In answer to question one: When we gave Mr Yau the first quote we believed that this quote was extremely competitive, the reason being we have a panel of 40 contracts which we can quote 'screen rates' from, however it is very rare for us to use our screen rates to quote a policy, we simply use this to get an understanding of the market rate.

From this we then speak to the insurers on our panel who understand that we are trying to promote ourselves on this forum and through the dealer network to try and get a price lower than what the rest of the market would appear to be. Therefore we were satisfied that we had done our job properly at this point and found a good policy at the right price.

Because we do not deal with every insurer (and have no wish to due to how they deal with claims, policy cover etc..) we can not predict what every insurer will quote but getting an idea from our panel of 40 usually gives us a fair indication. Naturally there will be occasions where an insurer that we do not deal with is cheaper (there are a lot of insurers out there!), it is at that point we can advise our insurers of this rate to see if there is anything that can be done to assist you.

Not that it was the case on this occasion, but the insurers will notify us of new schemes/discounts/special offers each week, which means that sometimes we will be able to quote lower if a new scheme has been made available to us that wasn't made available to us before when a client originally called.

In answer to question 2: Yes A-Plan will earn commission from the insurer but none of my staff including me are paid via commission, this is intentional so that they do not go out and miss-sell, they are salary based and are simply there to try and negotiate the best deal for people like you. Therefore we have no interest in deliberately trying to sell a policy at a higher price.

Don't get me wrong Bazza, I know to most people insurance is just another bill to pay, we all want the cheapest price (without skimping too much on cover), it is the same when we book a holiday or even buy a car for that matter.

You are entitled to your opinion and I hope this helps you to understand where we are coming from as well. I know the industry has not always had a good reputation in the past but we are only trying to help, and if you have seven vehicles, why don't you put us to the test when your policies are due, maybe then you will have a different opinion of us?

[alastair chapman]

deleted

[Bazza]

thanks for taking the time to reply

was not intentionally a dig at you personally or indeed your company

but as a overall opinion of insurance companys as a whole

you seem to see where i am coming from, and you as a direct link to the insurers can voice your opinion to them, tell that you know of one customer who isnt happy

a system only works when it satisfies everyone, which i believe it doesnt at the present time

at the end of the day its the customers opinion that will bring business and repeat business

so its best to listen to the customers opinion .....occaisonly !

all the best

next time a policy is due, i will give you a ring :)

[dave1]

good job.Its good to hear when peeps save dosh on insurance.It frightens me to think the amount of people paying well over the odds.

Got renewal quote from Churchill Oct 05 for £375, checked on Churchill website, entered details..£301. Phoned and complained and renewed at £301. Always check price and shop around. Confused.com is also useful