Motor Insurance Companies

Don't rely too much on those comparison websites

Advantages: More competitive than comparison websites, staff at call centre when buying
Disadvantages: No courtesy car available with fully comprehensive package

...a recent TV ad for Direct Line that stated they don’t participate in comparison websites which is rather a brave commercial decision to make considering how popular these sites have become. I went on to Direct Line’s website & after punching in the same information as before in what looked like an identical application form / page I was given a quote for £268.00. The cover was slightly less than Virgin (no courtesy car available) & I could have ...
...to send the cover note direct to the garage where I had just purchased my car so they could tax it, the garage is 60 miles away from home. Their website doesn’t allow for these requests so I decided to contact Direct Line direct by phone. They make this easy by supplying all the necessary details on their web page with the quote & don’t punish you with a higher quote because you decide to use the phone rather than a website (Take note Easy Jet!). ...

ScottishWestie 09.06.2009 · Read Full Review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Direct Line Insurance plc

Tesco's Valueless Insurance

Advantages: None
Disadvantages: Appalling customer services,

Tesco claim to be the cheapest and the best. My experience is quite the contrary. As a 25 year old driving a high powered car, my policy with them cost in excess of £2,500 so for that I expected service. On having a taxi drive into the back of my car, with the driver fleeing the scene without exchanging details I would have expected Tesco to support me against this imbecile. Instead, they failed to contact witnesses, including the police, and accepted ...
...two sides to every story, Tesco didn't even consider to support the person paying them in a scenario where witnesses supported their insured party. I found this quite appalling. The other major problem with Tesco is that they are impossible to get hold of. Their telephone system keeps you on hold for far too long before you get through and unlike with other insurers, their is not an individual broker to deal with your case. Each time, therefore, ...

matthewsteeples 04.12.2007 · Read Full Review
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Review of Tesco Insurance

CIS - Motor Insurance

Advantages: cheap
Disadvantages: poor cust services lose your records

i have been with these for 3 years as a named driver on my mums policy and then started my own policy recently they gave me 3years no claims discount i was very happy until today when i recieved a letter asking for proof from my previous insurer which was them so they asked for my mums details and said i was only entitled to 1 years ncd as she had only been a policy holder with them for 1 year she has been with them for over 10 years had 2 acidents ...
...them guess what? they have no records of it .or of her money which she as been paying all these years then when you tell them all they say is no no no sorry no record computer says no was very happy with them now ill be going to somewhere else ...

jontiff 19.10.2007 · Read Full Review
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Review of CIS - Motor Insurance

Avoid NUD like the plague - 1 yr waiting for claim

Advantages: None
Disadvantages: Avoid payouts and don't give explanations

Absolutely useless! I've been chasing a claim on my brother's car insurance for nearly a year now. My brother has been seriously ill since January since when I have taken over his financial affairs. He began his claim on 1st November 2007 after his car was stolen on 31st October 2007 during the night and set on fire. He did not realize it was missing until the next morning when at which point he phoned the police to be told they were about to phone ...
...have tried phoning NUD over and over again and even been given a special contact number... but we only ever get the same response - that the loss adjuster (who has been to see the car a long time ago) hasn't filled in any details on the record and they will phone him and come back to us. Of course this never happens - either that or it is the longest phone call in history! We have now put this into the hands of a debt collector who also specializes ...

kathymoger 04.10.2008 · Read Full Review
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Review of Norwich Union Direct

Think Twice about using Elephant for insurance

Advantages: Cheap, quick to answer the phone
Disadvantages: Their breakdown company set my car on fire!

A warning to anyone considering buying from Elephant, especially with breakdown cover. I've used Elephant twice, the first time with no problems, and the second (and current) time with significant difficulty. First off, Elephant's prices are reasonable compared to other insurers on the market. The first time I used them I had no problems, but I think that was largely because I did not have to use them beyond organising cover. This time I again ...
...outsource breakdown cover to a third party - Call Assist, who in turn use local garages and recovery companies. One morning in August, my car (a Mercedes 190E in generally good condition, which are typically pretty much bullet proof) refused to start. I organised for a mechanic to come and take a look via Elephant, and was advised that the ignition coil, distributor cap and rotor arm all needed replacing. No problem - the mechanic (from Beeches ...

IrateElephantCustomer 23.10.2008 · Read Full Review
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Review of Elephant.co.uk