Interesting Insurance Issue

Forums › Off topic › Interesting Insurance Issue

networkn

Networkn
32351 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#181109 2-Oct-2015 16:17

So I find myself in a curious situation where I called my insurance companies to change the account the automatic payments come out of.

I was told that one of the insurance payments for $60 a month is not actually life insurance as I thought it was, but rather contents insurance on items for a property I was only in for 5 months in 1998! When I left that place I notified the insurance company and my recollection was I was told
that either

1) It was an annual fee and the person had noted it would get automatically cancelled after the year was up.
or
2) It was a monthly fee and it would be cancelled at the end of the next month.

I assumed this was taken care of and moved on with my life.

It goes out with a BUNCH of other payments on or about the same time every month, including a group of other insurances.

I am confident I cancelled the policy by phone, but of course have no proof after 17 years!

I haven't lived there in 17 years and so I am wondering under what circumstances I would have rights to a refund.

No-one in 17 years has ever contacted me to check if the policy was still needed, or was sufficient and as it's a high transaction account, I didn't really join the dots to notice it was actually my cancelled contents insurance.

Needless to say I've never made a claim.

Insurer is investigating, but I get the impression they intend to put up a fight.

1 | 2

4629 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1398884 2-Oct-2015 16:22

No chance of refund.

It will be your responsibility as per their t&c.

Good luck though.

networkn

Networkn
32351 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1398885 2-Oct-2015 16:23

nakedmolerat: No chance of refund.

It will be your responsibility as per their t&c.

Good luck though.

Well if I cancelled via phone... Then I would imagine I have met my end of the requirements.

Rikkitic

Awrrr
18659 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1398922 2-Oct-2015 17:00

David vs 100 Goliaths. I hope you win.

Plesse igmore amd axxept applogies in adbance fir anu typos

networkn

Networkn
32351 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1398923 2-Oct-2015 17:02

Rikkitic: David vs 100 Goliaths. I hope you win.

I've not lost a fight yet :)

They have all sorts of protection for consumers re Insurance companies.

I hope I win as well.

In my wildest dreams they will do the reasonable thing.

Michaelfjs

70 posts

Master Geek

#1398927 2-Oct-2015 17:12

Did you have contents insurance with someone else since (at your new place)?

My parents and I had a similar issue. They were including my contents under their insurance when I was flatting. I however had since move to a new place and took out a new insurance policy with another company. My parents didn't notice the extra payments going out until two years later.

I had to provide evidence that I had another policy (i.e when it started), them my parents insurance company refunded them.

Have you received any statements from them in the last 17 years? I assumed they would still be going to your old place, surely if that's the case it would have been returned to sender and the insurance company should have got the idea that you don't live there anymore.

I think you have a pretty good case for a refund. You will need to provide evidence when you moved which should be easy enough.

jarledb

Webhead
3257 posts

Uber Geek

Moderator

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1398932 2-Oct-2015 17:16

To the sum of $12,240? That would highly surprise me. But do keep us updated.

Pretty sad to have wasted all that money though, I feel for you and hope you get some of that back. Might include talking to Fair Go as a part of it..

Jarle Dahl Bergersen | Referral Links: Want $50 off when you join Octopus Energy? Use this referral code
Are you happy with what you get from Geekzone? Please consider supporting us by making a donation or subscribing.

Rickles

2936 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1399443 3-Oct-2015 18:54

1: Put your concerns in writing to the insurance company concerned ... include all information as to what your beliefs where at that time, viz. number of policies, types of policies, apportion of premiums paid. Provide evidence that it would have been inconceivable and silly to have knowingly continued paying a premium for contents at an address from which you had moved, viz. evidence of where and when you moved to, and if you took out insurance to cover contents at subsequent lodgings etc.

2: Depending on their reply, place your concerns with the Insurance Ombudsman, as well as chatting to your local Citizens Advice.

3: An insurance lawyer may give you a free initial consultation to guide you.

4: Regardless, gathering as much evidence and information to show that it would have ridiculous to continue with their insurance over such a great length of time etc etc, take the matter to the Disputes Tribunal.

Frankly, albeit your error to not make and get it all in writing, as you say the insurance company must also act in a reasonable manner ... e.g. were they aware of your change/s of address/es for service etc that may have caused them to wonder why contents at a 17-year old address was still active?

After all such avenues explored and exhausted, I'd agree that Fair Go might take up the cudgel.

Good luck.

AliExpress

Shop now on AliExpress (affiliate link).

sidders80

755 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#1399453 3-Oct-2015 19:37

Does this company only sell general insurances or life insurance too? You mentioned that according to you it was a life insurance premium so do you still have active policies with this company that you are aware of? If so are you getting any statements from them.

Also $60 a month would be more like a monthly premium from what you have told so if you cancelled you should have seen one less payment on your bank statement from the following month. Insurance company could take a stand that if there you are responsible for the payments going out of your account and if you feel something isn't right you need to contact that particular company ASAP to bring it to their attention.

Anyways good luck with it and I hope the result goes in your favour.

Sid

Brumfondl

1187 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#1399456 3-Oct-2015 20:04

This actually surprises me a lot. I get yearly letters of renewal of contents insurance and the premium is never the same from one year to the next so how the hell could you go 17 years straight paying the exact same amount AND not getting any paperwork about it the entire time?

Only ways I can think of are:
a) the policy was cancelled by the insurer but they didn't process it properly and so the money kept coming out of your account, in which case they owe you the money no question.
b) you really haven't been paying attention to your paperwork all these years :)

I am guessing it is A and really hope it isn't B :)

mattwnz

20149 posts

Uber Geek

#1399504 3-Oct-2015 23:15

networkn:
nakedmolerat: No chance of refund.

It will be your responsibility as per their t&c.

Good luck though.

Well if I cancelled via phone... Then I would imagine I have met my end of the requirements.

From what you have said, these would be payments you are making yourself from your bank account, as they are automatic payments. They wouldn't be direct debits that the insurance company is taking from your account. So the insurance company wouldn't have anyway to actually stop the payments going into their account. They may have tried to contact you about them, if you did indeed cancel the policy, but if you moved out, then the letters may have not gone anywhere. As you canceled and didn't have a service, then you could claim a refund IMO, but it sounds like your insurance company are denying that you canceled it, and maybe full cancellation doesn't occur until you stop paying them. But as others have said, the amount you would be paying should have changed over all this time, so aren't they sayin gyou owe more than your have paid to make up for the shortfall?

Batman

Mad Scientist
29762 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1399544 4-Oct-2015 07:03

Sounds like the classic your words against theirs.

Will they give you free money?

tdgeek

29746 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1399548 4-Oct-2015 07:25

Tough one. Especially that even if there was proof, in phone records, document records, all those records are likely gone, there is a legal requirement to hold financial records for 7 years.
Be detailed, reasonable, but very firm. The argument is that you had adequate notice to become aware of your payments. Goodwill gesture, hopefully. Ombudsman is a key word to use, that will show intent to pursue the matter. While real proof is probably not possible, information that can imply cancellation can add up to be compelling, thats where "reasonable" from the insurance company comes into play. Its a bit like Tort law, actions and performance ("part performance") can show intent, or a reasonable assumption that you indeed cancelled scenario.

networkn

Networkn
32351 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1450845 15-Dec-2015 14:56

After much backing and forwards between the two insurance companies, the company has agreed to refund 100% of 8 years of insurance. Legally they are only strictly speaking required to refund 5, so that's a little win for us, though it's well short of the 17 years we paid.

All in all, we did a little better than I'd expected, but not quite as well as I'd hoped.

MikeB4

18435 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

#1450848 15-Dec-2015 14:59

Ever see the movie 'The Man who sued God' it illustrates well the world of Insurance Company fighting

networkn

Networkn
32351 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Trusted

Lifetime subscriber

#1450851 15-Dec-2015 15:02

MikeB4: Ever see the movie 'The Man who sued God' it illustrates well the world of Insurance Company fighting

No I haven't. Interestingly, there are actual documents covering my exact scenario by insurance companies who want to be included in the Insurance Council blah blah thing.

I'd have to say that NZI were good enough in the end to go a little beyond their absolute requirements to make it right.

It feels pretty poor that in 17 years they didn't think to contact me via phone to check in etc.

1 | 2