Choosing the Right Insurer
15 September 2017
Choosing the right insurer is a headline that has been used so many times in the past but it is always worth a reminder of the old adage that cheapest is not always best!
Premiums for your Motor Fleet, as you will probably know, depend massively on your claims experience and a poor claims record will invariably lead to a higher premium. What a poor claims record can also do, however, is isolate the better quality insurers who provide the best policy coverage, customer service and claims service, from quoting for your business.
So if your claims record declines, it is possible that your premium increases but also that you find yourself having to switch insurers to one offering a lesser quality product and attitude towards service. Of course, these insurers are needed for brokers like ourselves (and you as clients) but the way they are able to offer cheaper premiums is likely to be reflected in the quality of the insurance service they provide.
As an example, I recently dealt with an issue for a client where the insurer refused to provide a return premium for vehicles that were removed from the clients policy temporarily (and SORN for a period) but have no issue at all with charging when the client added a temporary vehicle. There was no small print within the policy to indicate this would happen and it obviously seems unfair on the client. The case was argued extensively with the insurer, however, ultimately, they insurer refused to change their stance and the premium lost by the client through would-be return premiums ended up being similar to the saving made by switching to the lesser quality insurer the previous year.
So the message is, it is always worth taking the time to look at the options and premium difference between what your broker deems a quality insurer and those offered by lesser, cheaper providers, including checking any ‘rigid’ rules they may have regarding changes you make to your policy.
If you feel like your insurance isn’t in the right place, or would like a review of your current insurance offering, please call us on 01905 611951 or email marketing@hazeltonmountford.co.uk
