Any one else experienced this...

[Twiggy]

My motor insurance is due for renewal early next month, and I`ve had all the shots through the post encouraging me to part with my money to all and sundry. Usually I just let my present insurer carry it on, but I was amazed when they sent me the renewal notice. £733.96 was the renewal premium which included £53 odd (!) for paying monthly. That was from Saga. Having become a little more familiar with my computer, and having changed the house insurance from Saga to Norwich Union for the same reason, I got a quote from N.U. for £396 for the same cover. I rang Saga and said that I was less than happy with their quote, and was there anything they could do about it please ? Oh, yes, came the reply, we can match the N.U. quote provided that it`s a like for like quote. So I asked why they`d quoted me such a ridiculous price in the first place if they could do it for just over half of what they`d quoted...silence...then some garbage about me being a valued customer and entitled to "we`ll match any other like for like genuine quote " Are these people completely stupid, or are they assuming that I`m so thick that if brains were taxable I`d get a rebate ? Any one else experienced the same idiotic thing ? Anyhow, out of pure cussedness now, I`ll change my insurer since I`m sooo p!ssed off with Saga.

[pogweasel]

Yup, Elephant wanted an extra £100 this year, premium over £500, then a charge for installments too. Direct line wanted less than £300 wit no extra costs. Elephant didn't even try to match it, so they can bugger off.

[retrogeezer]

I always tell my insurer I have a cheaper quote...usually after a quick comparison site search and get the present insurer to drop the price.It sucks but thousands of people just renew so they are quids in.

[RedSparrow]

I get a new quote every year, and often change company accordingly.What a lot of people don't realise is that insurers have different prices for new customers and for those renewing. You can in fact cancel a policy with a company and then start another identical one with the same company for a much lower price, as prices for new customers are always lower. Insurers make their money from the many people blindly renewing every year without shopping around!

[Dukestar25]

I always tell my insurer I have a cheaper quote...usually after a quick comparison site search and get the present insurer to drop the price.It sucks but thousands of people just renew so they are quids in.

I tried the 'Challenge Churchill' thing and they did beat my like-for-like renewal quote....By a quid!!!! The ones which really annoy are those who send me a renewal, I then go on the net to see if I can beat it and I find a quote £100 cheaper. From the same company! . I then ring them up asking for that quote instead and they come back with a load of bo***cks as to why I CAN'T have it at that price. Has this ever happened to anyone here??

[Ratdat]

I guess trade policies don't do this. I just renew mine each year with the same company. 13 years ago it cost me £330. This year it was £430 which seems like a pretty reasonable increase given the time period.Interestingly, I recently checked out quotes for fully comp on my Vel Satis. They ranged everywhere from £365 to £1800

[pompei]

How do you get a trade policy?

[Ratdat]

How do you get a trade policy?

Tell them you're a part time motor trader buying and selling a few cars in your spare time. I haven't met anyone yet who's been refused!

[reallyloud]

Exactly the same happened to me. I used 'More Than' for a few years, which was around the £500 mark fully comp - not unreasonable as I was working and using the car everyday, and more out of laziness renewed the cover without ringing/checking online for other quotes for about 3 years. When I discovered one of the price comparison websites I was astonished to discover that the same insurer (with the same NCB, excess, etc) offered less than half the amount. I called them to ask what was going on, and they simply dismissed it as 'online offer' which had nothing to do with them, which I thought was odd.

[nigel bickle]

Yup-Trade policies are great. Despite SWMBO claiming for the BMW she hit -whilst rolling the green Saab a couple of months back -premium went up £100.Can live with that.Its not just insurers. We hold seperate breakdwon cover- her RAC,me AA(well-you know....)Her RAC renewal came in at £165. Felt steep,so I went online- £105. She refused to believe it was the same cover -or that she was eligible-so we phoned..''Oh-you've been online? of course,£105 Madam''. Same cover,same Company.Me-not the slightest suprise.Her-a week on,still spitting feathers with anger

[Volksy]

Don't get me started... Oh go on then!Currently at war with Budget Insurance, I mentioned this in another thread a while back.Apparently due to my own stupidity and that i change my car quite a bit, budget said that my cost for insurance wouldn't change from a 2.0i Saab 9-3 to a 1.1 Fiat Seicento. "But its literally half the car" i said, "ah" they said,"take out a new policy for 12 months and we'll do it at half the price, with no cancelation fees for you old one either!"Done this a few times over the past couple of years..What they didnt say was that i wouldn't gain any no claims despite having insurance with 'Budget' for more than 2 years, different underwriter you see.... C@NTS

[Pillock]

They annoy the heck out of me doing this!I used to be with Elephant. £540 which wasn't bad for a 20 year old, group 14 Polo G40, living in not-a-nice-place. Year after, £680 renewal. So I went online, got a bunch of quotes some of which were cheaper. Decided to ring Elephant to get them to price-match.Me: "Hello, I thought my renewal was a bit steep so I've had some other quotes. Can you match them?"Elephant: "Well, we can try. What's the best one?"Me: "four hundred and twenty five quid"Elephant: "OK, well, is it like-for-like? Everything is the same?"Me: "I would imagine, yes"Elephant: "And which insurer was this with?"Me: "Elephant"Elephant: But that's us, we can't match that.At this point I had to listen to her spout on about how if I have insurance with them, it's against their terms and conditions of the website to pretend I haven't in order to get a fresh quote (since it means you have to fudge your name, or postcode), and she refused to continue. Told me notes would be put onto my record that I've attempted to defraud them and it may harm my chances of getting insurance! In the end I went with HIC, who although being £20 more expensive, actually saved me money by getting cheaper breakdown cover. I've never been back to Elephant again.Oh, and mobile phone carriers do it to. I wanted to upgrade my handset to a Orange M2000. Quite a tasty handset in its day, free on a new contract but I wanted to keep my number. Waited till the 12 months was up, rang for an upgrade. £225. WHAT? Told them to issue me a PAC code instead as I was going to leave the network, they put me through to the 'customer retention department' where my £225 handset was suddenly free, delivered next day.

[CortinaDave]

as has been said before, elephant are the worst for this. Every year my renewal comes through at a stupidly inflated price, every year i cancel and re take out the policy online for literally hundreds less.When you phone up to cancel, its always hilarious when they start the whole "why are you cancelling" bit, and i say im taking out the same policy via your website due to the stupid way your company operates.The guy told me that basically they have targets for new business every year, but none for retentions, so basically if you cancel and re take it suits them as well. Madness.Every year they also write to me threatening to cancel as i have not sent them my proof of no claims, and every year i send them the same sarcastic reply that the reason i havent sent it is they havent sent it to me so i can send it back to them I bloody hate elephant, utterly useless company but for me by far the cheapest so i put up with them.

[ayd]

[quote name="Dukestar25

The ones which really annoy are those who send me a renewal' date=' I then go on the net to see if I can beat it and I find a quote £100 cheaper. From the same company!