remember your renewal date !! a word of warning

[Meoncoast]

For the past 3 years I have insured via Caravan and Motor Home club. I had fist class support with on non-fault claim a year ago when rear-ended by a BMW.

My policy paid yearly and auto-renew payment set up.
Last week an e-mail came in the evening “We are sorry you have decided not renewed your insurance with us for another year - attached is a record of your NCB”.
Searching my Spam folders I found a renewal quote (which had over doubled to £600+) and my cover expired 24hours ago! A few online quotes including the CMHC and quotes around about the same as last year.

On the phone to the CMHC brokers am. It seems my credit card payment was declined so auto renewal failed.
Questions asked

• Why an email for renewal rather than a letter as well – could not answer now noted items by post preferred method. Seems electronic communications many firms are defaulting to e-mail as 1st line of working with customers.
• Why increase / double of cost, club has changed underwriters old policy with them underwriters of new policy with new underwriters.

So as happy with cover tried to take out new policy paid by credit card over phone. – Well tried too “card declined” paid on debit card – fine. I did think about going somewhere else but the accident claim support last September could not be faulted.

So after a sleepless night with the van un-insured that night with the keys on my person all covered.

Next morning HSBC fraud department on the phone “we think someone has tried to use your credit card twice”. NO that was me trying to pay my van insurance! Few questions later card reactivated.

Sure there is a moral of this tale. Having had car insurance since 1976 this is the 1st time I have not received notification prior to renewal in the post. Wonders of the digital age and progress – however renewal date written on paper in 2018 diary. Relaxing into campervan life too much may make you take your eye off the ball,
DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOU INSURANCE IS DUE off the top of your head,

 

[Moakesy]

There are obvious cost benefits to using email. I'm a project manager and did a project last year for a property company to deliver an E-billing solution.

As always, delivering such projects are never as simple as they seem, but the cost benefits to them are clear cut.

To send an item by post cost them on average £1.07 in black and white on headed paper, to send full colour via email cost £0.015. Annually, it would deliver a saving of over £1.5m. It cost around £1m to deliver the project, so payback was less than 1 year.

The main issue are what you describe though, emails going to junk folders or simply ignored as assumed to be marketing stuff rather than an invoice that needs to be paid.

Personaly, I prefer to have electronic communication anyway, but I appreciate not everyone does. If you'd already said you prefer post they should have sent you something in the post.

 

[Meoncoast]

think what caught me out was change of delivery method all my banking paper free which works

 

[Mr & Mrs B]

I had a similar problem with our house contents insurance - I forgot when it was due for renewal, no email notification and the letter didn't arrive. It was only when I was looking for something else I found that it had expired about three weeks earlier. The renewal date is now printed on our calendar!

 

[BerndRos]

Resolution is so easy these days...

If you have an iPhone or smartphone make a note of all important things on 'notes or reminders etc'

 

[Meoncoast]

The renewal date is now printed on our calendar!

agree best do it yourself

 

[Mr T]

I use the autotrader app and you can enter all key dates for your vehicle(s) and it will remind you a few weeks beforehand when things are due. (Tax, insurance, MOT)

 

[SimonB]

Most of ours automatically renew. At the moment they all are writing 2-3 weeks before renewal date and asking if I am staying with them. After a phone call, which in a couple of cases has halved the price they were going to charge the following year, it carries on. All the firms have reduced their quotation when spoken to in a phone call. I do my homework listing their price increases over the last few years and providing quotation from other firms as well.
I know they have to contact the customer each year in writing before auto renewing, does it have to be by post or will they all eventually use email?

 

[Meoncoast]

I know they have to contact the customer each year in writing before auto renewing, does it have to be by post or will they all eventually use email?

and that is how it has always been for me for as long as I can recall but not this time hence I thought it may be worth alerting others

 

[BikerGran]

DO YOU KNOW WHEN YOU INSURANCE IS DUE off the top of your head,

Yes it's simple - I bought the Cali at the end of May so my insurance is due at the end of May too.