Co-op Rip Off Insurers

[RogerS]

Renewal time and advised of change of address. Previous address - very rural Northumberland. New address - eqully very rural Somerset.

Original renewal £271. New renewal £318. So an extra £46 ! If I want to cancel, I have to pay 'another rip off arrangement fee' of £36.

Co-op can shove it next time

 

[fuse]

We had Major Problems with them as an energy provider.

A bit like Boots,even on a good day they dont seem to do anything different or better than anyone else.
Pointless existence.

I tour the comparison sites but often find smaller independent outfits can beat the big ones and you get to speak to humans who are actually grateful for the business.
My van,vintage vehicles and landlord policies are all via small brokers.

 

[Robert]

I've been getting quotes on new cars I'm considering. It's become clear that driver age is a factor (I'm 71). A clean record and years of experience don't count for much it seems.

I'm paying £350 in north east London for my Skoda superb 190 and have comparison site quotes for new group 32 cars ranging from £780 to £1300 and £1450+ for a group 40 car. Must be related to own vehicle value/damage cost given the difference.

 

[Spectric]

All insurance companies will try it on because so many do not querry the renewal and just pay it. Always phone and haggle as we have saved a lot over the years. Is this car or buildings ?

 

[RogerS]

All insurance companies will try it on because so many do not querry the renewal and just pay it. Always phone and haggle as we have saved a lot over the years. Is this car or buildings ?

Car

 

[Cabinetman]

Car

Yes they usually come down, probably in the £20 region.
Ian

 

[Lons]

Renewal time and advised of change of address. Previous address - very rural Northumberland. New address - eqully very rural Somerset.

Original renewal £271. New renewal £318. So an extra £46 ! If I want to cancel, I have to pay 'another rip off arrangement fee' of £36.

Co-op can shove it next time

I've never used Co-op insurance but the quotes are probably not like for like. Prices of all commodities have increased in the past year and repair costs and materials have rocketed in some cases, you're a year older, just behind me and I'm expecting an age related increase come renewal in June.

The fact that your new address is rural isn't just what they base it on as your new address could easily be in a post code area that happens to have a history of claims. As your other circumstances apart from age haven't changed that's the most likely reason. price is based on risk and it just takes a big claim or two in your area to increase the perceived risk for everyone, unfair but that's what happens.
It will be interesting to see what the other providers quote, I'm sure you'll find cheaper.

If it's renewal time then there can't be a cancelation fee as it will be the start of a new policy and you haven't taken it out yet.

That doesn't mean they're not trying it on of course. I'm as sceptical as most people and never renew without shopping around and changing if worth while. £318 for the Mazda doesn't seem that bad to me. My last renewal for the Merc was £374 and the Mini £233 and that include a multicar discount and maximum no claims.

 

[Spectric]

Prices of all commodities have increased in the past year and repair costs and materials have rocketed in some cases,

But this is because to many people now feed of the insurance system, the process is just ridiculous. We had a wing mirror damaged and claimed off the other driver. We could get a new mirror supplied and fitted whilst we waited by a local garage, no paint required as they come color matched for £340. The insurance company said it has to go through there approved repairers but we could have a lease car for the duration. I said is it really worth us having a lease car for a few hours whilst they fit the new mirror, but no they would collect the car and take it to the repair centre to get the job done and it should be back within a fortnight. How can it be cost effective to allow these added cost of collection and hire cars when the job is so simple. This is why insurance is so high, everyone jumps on the band wagon and offers services that are not required.

 

[Blackswanwood]

Since 2022 the practice of charging more for a renewal than is being charged to a new customer has been banned by the FCA. (It’s the same for home insurance).

Motor insurance is largely commoditised. The pricing models are based on statistical experience. The claims handling model is also designed to deal with the majority of claims in the most cost efficient way. Lifting an individual claim out and handling it differently in most cases means manual processing which quickly adds cost. Both pricing and claims handling can therefore look odd in individual cases.

Admin fees are a way of matching costs to where they emanate rather than spreading them over all customers. As long as they are disclosed at the outset they are imho fair.

 

[MartinF]

If you think your car insurance is expensive now, be prepared for a shock once you pass age 80. Last year, aged 81 with a wife aged 78, our car a 5 year old Citroen C3 with 20+ years NCD and living in a quiet suburb of North West Bristol, I was shocked when the renewal premium from John Lewis was for £856. I got a quote from Aviva, with whom we have our house insurance, and they wanted £1,508!!!! As a member of the AA I got a quote from them and they wanted £842. Some friends suggested that I try Saga but they wanted £975. A near neighbour, a retired GP, aged about 80 with a Peugeot 308 which, like us, she parks on her drive was quoted a renewal price of over £1,500 by John Lewis but got insurance for half that via a broker.

And, as for travel insurance, don’t ask. Even house insurance premiums go up once you hit 80. I mentioned this to our son who works on the IT systems for a large insurer who told me that, for house insurance, older people tend to be more forgetful when it comes to locking doors and windows and, for car insurance, they tend to have more accidents per mile driven than younger drivers. Added to all this is the fact that, as Bob says, prices of all commodities have increased in the past year and repair costs and materials have rocketed in some cases.