10 month bonus accelerator... Aaargh

[Koa]

This thread is to help those that are thinking of using the 10 month bonus accelerator to get their No claims bonus earlier.

I used it last year but have come to find out now that it's NOT accepted by other insurance companies unless directly linked to the insurers you use. i.e elephant and Norwich union.

I phoned Adrian Flux today and they informed me i would have to start again with them so my quote has gone from £650 for a modded Abarth up to £1623 just because of 1 years NCB :bang: Looks like i will have to stick with elephant or switch to the slightly more expensive Norwich but my mods and optional extras aren't replaced by either company if i make a claim

 

[The Negotiator]

Oh gosh! I have stated to this people before and often been ignored (not saying you're guilty of this) - some people just go to their next insurer and claim they have 1 years NCB, which you don't obviously have, if you do that you're driving uninsured.

That's a trick used by insurance companies, I was warned by a company when they quoted me on a bonus accelerator that it 'could' be the case, which obviously I took as being the case and therefore had nothing to do with it. I knew the year after things would probably be different so couldn't commit myself.

Nice little trick hey?

Sorry Koa.

 

[Koa]

Oh gosh! I have stated to this people before and often been ignored (not saying you're guilty of this) - some people just go to their next insurer and claim they have 1 years NCB, which you don't obviously have, if you do that you're driving uninsured.

That's a trick used by insurance companies, I was warned by a company when they quoted me on a bonus accelerator that it 'could' be the case, which obviously I took as being the case and therefore had nothing to do with it. I knew the year after things would probably be different so couldn't commit myself.

Nice little trick hey?

Sorry Koa.

Yep. shame i didn't have the knowledge at the time i had taken out the policy

Tell me, if you know this. If i was to take out a new policy with elephant and stayed with them for just 2 months, would that then give me a full year that I could use somewhere else, or am i gonna have to do what I suspect, which is stay with them for another 10 months just to get my 1 year NCB ?

 

[GhettoMoose]

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR COCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm using this at the moment with elephant which they failed to tell me anything of the sort ( no doubt they will say read the book )

Gutted,

Guess ive just lost 1 years no claims then

No way am I sticking with them, wonder if I can cancel it ?

As ive only been into it a month

Can I do this ?

 

[The Negotiator]

I actually don't know, best to ask them, you would hope the simple one in that you would be covered for a year so have 1 years NCB, but I suspect since the policy has been cancelled, it means it didn't exist.

If neither of you were informed you may want to contact the insurance ombudsman.

Ghetto, you should be able to cancel at any time, there may be an early cancelation fee (NU charge £30).

Edit: i wrote contract instead of cancel....duh.

 

[GhettoMoose]

Thats great thanks,

I am trying actually going round in circles with elephant at the moment, they are awful at customer service.

I will double check with them when I speak to a human if its true and to get written confirmation of this.

If not ill cancel and pay the fee, Least i can quit while ive not lost to much time.

Cheers mate, ill let you know

 

[Koa]

Yeah you can deffinately cancel early because i was gonna do just that when i discovered that the mods and options aren't replaced but they offered me a new policy that was £100 cheeper so i took that option as i know I am a safe driver and the car is well protected from theft. I just don't like the fact that I was not informed about the 10 month NCD problem

I'll look through all the relevant paperwork and see if there's any mention of it and if not I may do as you suggest Paul

I took out the policy over the phone and they record all of the conversations, and I know for a fact that they never mentioned it to me, it's just whether or not it's written anywhere now .

 

[GhettoMoose]

I am just shuffeling through my paper work now, Yeah i know they record every call, so I can request a copy of that to.

I'm just waiting to get through to them to ask them about it. If not im cancelling, and using a site ive found thats £300 cheaper with 1 yrs NCB :-o

Watch thios space

 

[The Negotiator]

Whether or not it's in the paper work, it's a significant factor that should have been made very clear to you at the time of the quote.

IIRC, there's quite an argument building against these policies, firstly since you're only given 9 or 10 months cover, often it can work out cheaper to go for a full year policy, which they don't tell you about. It goes against the idea of having a yearly NCB system giving you the ability to buy yourself out of it, finally, since the NCB only applies to the single insurance company, it inhibits competition.

I will be cancelling my insurance in september since I can't afford the car at uni after the summer and will be paying NU £30 for the privilage to cancel and despite being insured for 7 months, will have no extra NCB to show for it which kinda sucks!

 

[Koa]

I am just shuffeling through my paper work now, Yeah i know they record every call, so I can request a copy of that to.

I'm just waiting to get through to them to ask them about it. If not im cancelling, and using a site ive found thats £300 cheaper with 1 yrs NCB :-o

Watch thios space

What site is that then GM ?

 

[Alex]

sorry to hear that mate. I've always been sceptical about those schemes, some of them were actually more expensive per month when I was looking for insurance. If they didn't tell you that was the case maybe you can get an extra discount with a new policy, or negotiate a modification replecement policy.

 

[Koa]

Yeah it's a real bummer. It did work out a lot cheeper than the 12 month policy though, so at least i don't have that problem.
My main problem is the amount of mods that they allow... 6 maximum.

1: Leather interior ( yes elephant class this as a non standard mod and will not replace it if there's a claim)

2: Sky window ( yep you guessed it)

3: Alloys (none standard)

4: Lowering up to 5cm

5: Exhaust

6: Body part extras which are classed as seperate mods for each part you put on, although if you have a reciept for a bodykit which could include rear spoiler, bumper, front splitter and skirts, then this would be classed as one Mod. Providing you have bought it as a Kit.


So it looks like i'm gonna be going the whole hog with the kit then

 

[Alex]

Surely they can't class factory fit options as non-standard... although what would happen if somebody stole your sky window??? Will they really buy you some duct tape to cover the hole?

 

[custard]

now i got a quote for someone the other day from hefalump and was offered the 10 month policy.now they stated after the 10month you would be given a written proof of NCB for 1 year.
i exlicitly asked if i would have to stay with them to get the 1 year NCB and they said no i could use it with any insurer. of course it depends if they state its one ywars NCB on an accelerator policy or not

 

[Stu DemonD]

How about phoning up Bell Direct or Admiral Direct - all part of the same company, so they may accept it?

 

[Koa]

now i got a quote for someone the other day from hefalump and was offered the 10 month policy.now they stated after the 10month you would be given a written proof of NCB for 1 year.
i exlicitly asked if i would have to stay with them to get the 1 year NCB and they said no i could use it with any insurer. of course it depends if they state its one ywars NCB on an accelerator policy or not

thats really interesting mate i'll really have to look into this further. Thanks.

 

[Stu DemonD]

Just read this on Elephant FAQs:

Q: What is the difference between a 10 month bonus accelerator and an annual policy?
A: The difference between our bonus accelerator and annual policies is the length of time you are on cover. We recommend if you have under four years No Claims Bonus entitlement, you should opt for our bonus accelerator policy. This runs for 10 months. Our bonus accelerator gives you one full year's no claims bonus after just 10 months, so you can build up your no claims bonus faster (as long as you don't make a claim). This is ideal for people who are taking out insurance for the first time, or who have recently lost their no claims bonus.

 

[Koa]

How about phoning up Bell Direct or Admiral Direct - all part of the same company, so they may accept it?

Yeah thats an option but IIRC they are less mod friendly than elephant
I went to the Norwich union website after Adrian Flux told me they accept the 10 month accelerator as 1 year NCB but one of the criteria for applying was that the car was standard and not modified at all so i couldn't get a quote even though Adrian Flux said NU were mod friendly.

 

[Stu DemonD]

I am with Admiral [with both cars], having been with Bell Direct the previous year - I just swap between the two, and get introductory discounts that are cheaper than if I just renew

 

[Koa]

Surely they can't class factory fit options as non-standard... although what would happen if somebody stole your sky window??? Will they really buy you some duct tape to cover the hole?

LMAO, thats pretty much what i said to them when i discovered it
Apparently if the car was stolen, they would replace it with the standard model if the car was less than 1 year old or the equivalent in money to a standard model if over 1 year old ... absolute boll*x considering i have declared everything and I am paying the cost for the extras on the policy ..