UKC

Just received my renewal quote for house and contents insurance from Direct Line, they have recorded an enquiry about whether to claim for some graffiti on my house as an actual claim, (I did not claim) and then reduced my 9 years no claims to one year, only reinstating it after I noticed and complained. Apparently it is normal practice to record enquiries as a loss. This now shows to other companies and can not/will not be removed, and means many companies will not now quote, thus leaving me rather "held to ransom" by Direct Line. So, the lesson is, think twice before even asking about whether to claim. I also found out that 9 years no claims only makes about £20 difference in the premium...perhaps I should have made those smaller claims in the past rather than worry about what it would do to my premium!

It's shit but it is in your contract that all damages must be disclosed even if you don't want to claim on them.

My friend broke her laptop, phoned to enquire, didnt want to claim, premium was raised and it ended up costing more than the price of the laptop. Pish.

In reply to tmawer:

Its a bummer.

They have it both ways. Not telling them your house had been vandalised at all, then they found out when you made a claim for something else, they can Accuse you of failure to disclose Pertinent information and Nullify your policy and current claim.

In reply to tmawer:
Yes it is normal practice.No it is not shown to other companys unless you tell them.They did correct it after you told them,. I am not sure what your issue with them is.

In reply to tmawer:
This was on radio 4 (you & yours?) a month or so ago. The industry spokesman even sounded embarrassed (IIRC) about it.

It's either weselliy money-grubbing or poor decision making (not neccessarily just a software feature). I fail to see how they could possibly justify removing no-claims bonuses if no claim was made.

increased actual claims or damaging activity like thefts could put the risk up, but why a random bit of graffiti?

In reply to tmawer:
I used to work for a big insurance company and the way to get around it then (might have change now) was to ask a hypothetical question to the customer service dept, assuming they are different numbers. No loss was registered but you found out whether you were covered etc.

In reply to neilh:

"I am not sure what your issue with them is."

Perhaps your being a bit slow, or work in the insurance industry?

My issue is that they recorded this enquiry as a claim, which it wasn't, which now means I am struggling to get other companies to quote as it looks like I have claimed, which then means I am more likely to have to stay with them. This is pretty dubious practice whether "normal" in the industry or not.

In reply to tmawer:

They are barstewards, but if 9 years NCB gives you £20, why are you being held ransom? Surely there are lots of folks out there who will insure you on 1 years NCB for an additional £20?

The NCB protector on car insurance is also a scam. If you claim, your next premium will still rise regardless of the protector. I don't bother any more.

In reply to ByEek:

The "ransom" thing is that Swinton told me that they have tried to obtain prices but most companies will not even quote because it looks like there has been a claim. Direct Line explain that other companies are expected to phone up, on the same 0845 number, wait to go through the options and then have a chat about what really happened. I can't really see may people wasting a lot of time doing this...this is at best a poor system, and at worst corrupt practice making us pay more.

In reply to tmawer: You know they, and you, don't have to use the 0845 number? This site will give you normal landline numbers to use, it's great! http://www.saynoto0870.com/