huckster:

If you no longer had the vehicle and they would not automatically switch the Insurance to another vehicle, without you telling them, on what basis was the Insurance continuing ?

My question precisely. What would they have said if I'd bought another vehicle without telling them and knocked somebody down with it? Certainly sir, of course you're covered?

Yeah right.

They seem to want it both ways.

huckster:The Insurers could argue that if the vehicle had not been recovered at the time of the renewal, that they still held the third party liability risk and that because you did not cancel the auto renewal, they had no choice but to continue the policy. Often the claims departments of Insurance companies, have very little contact with the staff that deal with the policy servicing. You were not to be aware of this, so might have assumed that the claims staff would have passed on information to the staff dealing with the policy.

Perhaps not. But how is that when an auto-renewal tries to go through on a vehicle that's been reported stolen, a big red computer flag doesn't start waving? I'm cynical enough to believe these 'terms and conditions' are designed purely to allow them to keep taking money under false pretences.

Worse, when I phoned the bank to ask them to cancel the direct debit, they said they couldn't, and that the insurance company were effectively allowed to take any amount from my account they wanted, whenever they wanted.

Hmmm...

If you no longer had the vehicle and they would not automatically switch the Insurance to another vehicle, without you telling them, on what basis was the Insurance continuing ? Were the Insurers wanting you to continue paying at renewal to Insure the thieves/joyriders when they were driving it ? The Insurers could argue that if the vehicle had not been recovered at the time of the renewal, that they still held the third party liability risk and that because you did not cancel the auto renewal, they had no choice but to continue the policy. Often the claims departments of Insurance companies, have very little contact with the staff that deal with the policy servicing. You were not to be aware of this, so might have assumed that the claims staff would have passed on information to the staff dealing with the policy.

Make the complaint and see what happens.

Thanks for the reassuring reply. I'll wait and see what kind of damage they try to inflict, then take it through their complaints procedure as you suggest. I like your conviction that they will see sense and behave reasonably. I didn't get that impression on the phone yesterday, but you have to stay optimistic.

One thing that occurred to me last night: if called them and tried to buy insurance without a vehicle they wouldn't, I'm sure, sell it to me... would they? And if they did, how would they work out the premium?

Madness...

Thanks again.

Yes make a complaint to the company concerned using their complaint procedure and tell them that you will take it to the FOS if they can't resolve. If you could not resolve with the company, after 8 weeks you could ask the FOS to review. This would cost the company a £500 case fee and you nothing.

The point you should make, is that if the certificate of Insurance related to a specific vehicle and this was subject to a total loss claim, the Insurers should not have automatically continued the policy. I think in fairness to the Insurers I looks like the claim was submitted when the auto renewal was already in process and the claim did not stop it. You really should have phoned asking to cancel from renewal. But they should deal with the situation as it is and offer to backdate cancellation refund.

Hi,

My van was stolen last November, just before my policy renewal was due. Obviously I reported it stolen straight away, and as far as I was concerned, that was the end of it. How can there be a policy with no vehicle to insure, right?

Now it turns out the insurance company rolled on the renewal anyway for another year, have been continuing to take direct debits from my account for two months, and are threatening to insist on a full years premium to 'cancel the policy early'.

When I pointed out that there was no vehicle to insure and that I had assumed the policy had expired with the report of the theft, they said 'that's not how insurance works', and that it would be 'unreasonable' of them to assume I didn't need the policy or that I didn't have another vehicle - even though I had never mentioned any such thing to them. They tell me it's there in the terms and conditions, and I should have 'read my documents more carefully'. Unfortunately I can't read them now, as I burned them all after receiving the final payment in settlement for the theft.

So who is in the right here? Can they insure me with no vehicle, and then insist I pay the premium even when there's nothing to insure? Or did I effectively cancel the policy when I reported the van stolen to them?

And do I have any hope at all of reclaiming the £160 they took from my bank when, as far as I was concerned, there was no agreement between us?

And finally, is there anything to gain from going to the FOS with this?

Thanks for any help anyone can offer on this. I think I'm going mad.

B