Posts Tagged ‘Car Insurance Policies’
The credit crunch has increased the amount of false claims made on car insurance policies, many of them car related. Industry insiders estimate that the total amount of bogus claims totals £1.6 billion a year which goes on to directly affect honest policy holders.
False car crash claims have soared over the past year with Norwich Union estimating the total cost to above board motorists at £60 extra for their premiums.
Britons have been found to have a tendency to tell the odd fib when taking out car insurance policy, risking invalidating their whole cover according a UK trade body has revealed. The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has revealed that they are discovering an increasing amount of fraud within the insurance industry, many car related, all in an attempt to keep premiums low.
Common practices amongst fraudsters include failure to disclose driving convictions and fronting, a practice where parents add their offspring to their motor insurance cover as an occasional driver, even though they are the main driver.
Truth
Nick Starling, the ABI\’s director of general insurance, said: \”Honesty is the only policy. Cheating to get cheaper insurance puts your cover in jeopardy, with potentially disastrous consequences.
\”Being truthful and shopping around will mean that your insurance delivers when you need it and that you get the best possible deal,\” he added.
Spokesman Malcolm Tarling also stated, \”We\’ve detected more fraud than ever before. Claims have increased by up to 40 per cent in five months – but many of them turn out to be dubious.\”
Fined
Only last month a driver with Norwich Union urged the company to cut his premiums due to him not having claimed for eight years, which they agreed to do. However, after the reduction had taken place and once he had an accident the firm found out he had lied throughout. The fraudster was left with a £50,000 bill after a court process.
This has led to an improved investigation team hired by insurance companies, intent on discovering if a claim is actually valid or not.
More than a third of claims for car insurance are rejected or withdrawn as a result of an extensive investigation made by the insurers, according to Innovation Group.
Investigation
Out all the claims referred to the Innovation group over a six month period, 41% failed to meet the relevant criteria and thus were halted after an investigation. According to their findings, the most common reason for a claim to not be successful was the consumer buckling under the intense psychological interviewing techniques, designed to ascertain if they are being truthful or not.
Nikki Grieve-Top, head of intelligent research and development at Innovation Group, said: \”Throughout the interview process claimants are given various \’opt-out\’ points where they can walk away from a claim if it is suspicious. This often happens after one of our investigators cross examines the claim for any inconsistencies, or the claimant simply becomes impossible to contact.\”
Darren
http://www.articlesbase.com/insurance-articles/false-claims-on-car-insurance-policies-on-the-rise-778902.html
It is not surprising that statistics show that most Britons simply do not shop around to get the best deal on their car insurance. The choice of motor insurance policies, and insurance companies, is almost bewildering.
However, if you do accept the first quote you are given, whether you are an experienced driver or not, you are simply giving away your hard earned cash to your motor insurance company far too readily.
There are a huge amount of car insurance policies advertised online, in your local press, and a myriad of deals available from the larger retail supermarkets. Yes you want to save time and money, but if you target your requests for quotes properly, you could save hundreds in less than an hour online.
Many car insurance companies claim to offer policies for all types of drivers. Simply asking just any random insurance company for a quote, isn’t going to save you money. If you are a new driver, a learner, a student, or a motorist with little driving history, you need to get a specialist number quotes.
So where do you find these companies?
You could start by using a search engine, asking a friend for a recommendation or phoning a company up for a quote, but before you do anything else -
Stop!
Decide what you want to achieve before you take any action.
Do you want a fancy car insurance policy with lots of extras? Policy add-ons that could cost you more are:
- Having a replacement courtesy car
- Insisting on a protected no claims bonus
- Extra Legal protection
- Taking fully comprehensive insurance if you don’t need it
There are other services on offer from insurance companies, but if you do not really need it, why bother.
So do you want a really cheap price in the least amount of time instead?
Yes, if you simply want a really cheap price, you’re in good company because that’s what over eighty seven per cent of people said in a recent survey.
Follow this simple three step plan to reduce your car insurance premiums online:
1. Set aside just one hour to request your motor insurance quotes online.
2. Get four car insurance quotes (use three price comparison sites and one specialist insurer).
3. After you have received your quotations, telephone the insurance company with the cheapest quote and ask them to beat your best online quote (you don’t need to tell them where you obtained the quote).
The above three steps sound almost too easy, but using price comparison sites really is the most efficient way to begin your search for low prices.
There are a number of price crunching web sites online. To provide you with a rate, they will ask you some basic information about yourself, what level of cover you need, and then request quotes from up to 300 different car insurance companies in a single search.
With car insurance premiums climbing higher each year, particularly for learner drivers, students and young drivers, make the insurers work for your business.
If you are in a statistically higher risk driver group, for motor insurance, the more money you will save. If you follow the above simple three step guide – you will save time and money in your search for car insurance cover.
Adrian Kelly
http://www.articlesbase.com/insurance-articles/compare-car-insurance-quotes-online-you-can-save-money-83583.html