Author: Dot Piper

If you’re planning a pregnancy or are newly pregnant, may we congratulate you? Naturally, your mind may be filled with all manner of things, from your first scan-date to how to choose a suitable, up-to date name without upsetting the excited grandparents-to-be. Dare we ask, have you thought about insurance?

If you choose to take out life insurance, then without a doubt, the right time is before you become pregnant. Once into the pregnancy it may become very much more difficult to be accepted by insurers. Particularly with a first pregnancy, you never know what complications might arise. Whilst the vast majority of pregnancies proceed without any complications whatsoever, some conditions can crop up, such as gestational diabetes or high blood pressure, which insurers would consider as a greater risk. If cover is offered once one of these problems is diagnosed, the premium could be raised by up to 50%. If this happens it may be a good idea to accept the increased cost and change to a more economical policy when the baby is a few months old.

There are some cases where women have applied for cover after experiencing problems, only to be told that the will only be accepted after the child is born and everything is fine. One insurer told us that as lifestyles change and women are starting their families after they have reached their mid-thirties it is increasingly likely that they will delay cover until after the birth.

In the case of a single parent, you are going to have a tiny individual totally dependant on you. In the event of your death, it is doubly important that provision has been made for the care of that child, both personally and financially.

For two-parent families, whilst the pressure is less, it still makes sound sense to cover for the financial implications of bringing up a family single-handed. There is a case for arranging separate life cover and the cost of two single policies would be only minimally more expensive. As an example:

· Level term assurance, over 25 years, for a couple aged around 30, would cost around £16 per month for £150,000 worth of cover. The policy would pay out on the death of the first partner.
· The male partner taking out the policy over the same term would pay £10 per month and the female partner would pay £8.
· These figures assuming that both are non-smokers.

That’s a cost of £2 per month more, but both partners are covered. There’s also a lot more flexibility in arranging single life policies in that if one of the couple earns considerably more than the other they are able to arrange insurance for a higher sum, in order to maintain the standard of living of the family, should the worst happen.

It’s a sensible step to arrange your insurance prior to your first pregnancy for another reason too. Should you be diagnosed with a condition which would upset your insurers, you’d be covered for subsequent pregnancies as your insurance is for life.

So, log on to the internet and see what the brokers can offer you. You’ll only have one lot of form-filling to do and they’ll come up with a range of deals to suit your circumstances. The internet discount may come in useful too. Now, having got that out of the way, which website offers advice on naming the baby?

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Author: Emma Mayo

It might be predicted that it would be hard to get life or private medical insurance once diagnosed with cancer – but travel insurance? Well that is exactly what has been happening, as the charity Cancerbackup has revealed.

Its survey found that 9 out of 10 people suffering from cancer found it either difficult or impossible to get travel insurance, and 7 out of 10 people found the experience of trying to get travel insurance distressing. This didn’t just apply to people suffering from cancer at the time of application, but also people that had been diagnosed in the past and were now cancer-free.

7 out of the 10 people surveyed were completely fit to travel, but they were still quoted very high premiums if they were not rejected at the offset. As a consequence, one in 20 of the people surveyed decided to travel without getting insured first – not a recommended action. However, the other option is not ideal either, as one in 10 people cancelled a trip because they were not able to get travel insurance.

Some travel insurance companies will not even consider people that have suffered from cancer, basically putting a blanket ban on the whole matter. Other will insure, but at vastly inflated prices. Considering that travel insurance covers a whole host of potential situations such as lost or stolen items and flight cancellations, it seems very unfair to force cancer sufferers into this difficult position.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has pointed out that travel insurance is available for cancer sufferers, although perhaps not with the mainstream, cheaper companies. The Cancer Research website directs people towards insurers that specialise in these areas, companies like A and B. They may specialise, but they’re not cheap, as this example shows: a 48 year old woman who has suffered from breast cancer within the 5 years previous to making the application would be charged £248.70 with Company B for 17 days worldwide cover. Compare that to a woman of the same age with no medical issues and the premiums fall to just £20 for a cheap policy.

The cost of the travel insurance for the cancer sufferer could potentially be more than the cost of the flight – so of course anyone diagnosed with cancer has to wonder if it really is worth buying, and taking a gamble instead.

The ABI does not recommend this course of action, and suggests that people that have been diagnosed with cancer try out the specialist insurers. Company A agree – saying that in a time of difficulty when morale is low, a holiday is often just what is needed. As a spokesperson for the company said, “Being refused insurance can have a terrible impact on their morale.”

A spokesperson for a charity has also added to the discussion, pointing out that with over one million people that have been diagnosed with cancer at some point, the issue is only going to get worse. They also said: “The insurance industry needs to recognise that not all cancers are the same and treat people accordingly.”

The ABI has offered to discuss the issue with the charity. Perhaps they will look into the issue to see if cancer sufferers are being treated unfairly. They will also be wanting to make sure that cancer sufferers are not diverted from getting insured as a result of Cancerbackup’s survey results.

In the meantime, we advise cancer sufferers not to give up, and to look on the Internet for specialist companies that can help. The Cancerbackup website (www.cancerbackup.org.uk) and Cancer Research website (www.cancerresearchuk.org/) both contain lots of useful information.

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Author: Dot Piper

When it comes to home contents insurance, it’s so easy to get left behind in your valuations. It’s simple enough to go through the rooms, in your mind. Lounge – carpet, sofas, display cabinet and contents. Bedrooms, carpets again, beds, furniture ……. And so on. All things moveable in your home should be covered by your contents insurance. It’s also simple enough to overlook things. For example, don’t the above rooms also have curtains, framed pictures, the odd painting or two? The pictures may mean a lot to you but their frames will be very tempting to a thief. Then there are the garden and outbuildings contents. Garden furniture and tools, the children’s bicycles, outdoor toys and even the plants in the garden. All of these need to be taken into consideration.

The range of expensive electrical goods is even more tempting to the thief. Not easily identifiable and easily sold on in the case of theft, also expensive to replace in the case of accidental damage. Include all the television sets, CD and DVD recorders and players, computers (don’t forget the lap top/s), CD’s, DVD’s (Norwich Union tell us they allow £10 per CD, so your collection can easily add up to a fair sum.) Then there are the iPods, Game Boys, mobile phones and accessories. The average family home contents are typically valued at around £45,000.

If you’re under insured, any claim that you make on your policy will be down rated accordingly. Some insurers, Norwich Union Direct for example, will simply pay out up to the limit of the sum initially insured and then you have to make up the shortfall. Other companies will simply reduce the payment in proportion to the amount understated. If they consider your contents to be worth £30,000 and your cover stands at £20,000, then whatever your claim, it will be reduced by one third.

More Than are one of the companies using the second example shown above. Furthermore they have taken action to solve the problem and have recently decided to enforce increased cover for their clients, to the tune of 25% as their cover comes up for renewal. This will apply to all of their 470,000 clients.

You would be well advised to re-assess the value of your home’s contents. There’s a helpful website run by the Association of British Insurers. There you will find advice and a handy checklist to download and use. Their address is www.abi.org.uk

Our advice so far has referred to home contents insurance, but it may be as well to consider values on Buildings cover too. The sale value of your home can easily be calculated by whatever price similar properties in your area are achieving. The insurance value differs in that you don’t have to cover the value of the site. The cost of demolition, clearing of the site and rebuilding the property will be the key factors. The easiest way to find this out is to contact your insurer and ask them to recalculate the value of the property. The way they carry this out is to take the number of rooms and their use. They then come to a value, based on your post code. In this way they will arrive at the estimated rebuilding costs of your property.

So, it may be time to assess your home and contents insurance generally. Then relax and enjoy the benefits.

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Author: Dot Piper

Private medical insurance policies are becoming increasingly used tools. NHS waiting lists just don’t fit in with many people’s busy lifestyles and a convenient appointment and treatment may be top on your priority list, should you or your family fall ill.

As with all insurance products, private medical policies vary in their terms and are specific about what they do and don’t cover. For instance, one of the most well-known insurers, Bupa, will only cover you for “experimental” medical treatment where that procedure is part of a valid medical trial or study. Another well known insurer, Norwich Union Healthcare is only happy to cover treatment that is classed as standard practice in the UK.

It could be that your private care doctor feels that the best treatment for you would be one of the newer ones, as opposed to an older, standard, procedure. Obviously you’d probably be happy to accept the doctor’s recommendations. You could then be in the situation where your insurance company would not cover the cost of this treatment.

Where these problems have occurred, patients have submitted complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service, otherwise known as the FOS. As a result of this, the FOS has, in some cases, ruled against the insurers and it has been possible to include some of the newer treatments in practice. Laser treatment has replaced larynx surgery in some cases, and key-hole, rather than open-wound, bladder treatment can now also be covered.

Although used in the USA for five years as standard practice, there was a new form of varicose vein surgery which insurers in the UK were declining to pay out on, until the FOS decision was made to accept the treatment.

It appears that the FOS can only overturn the decision of the insurer regarding experimental treatments where such treatments are not specifically excluded in the policy. If the policy is specific about exclusion of these treatments, the ombudsman will not be able to help.

The FOS says “If the policyholder has been advised by his or her treating physician that, in their particular circumstances, they should have a newer treatment instead of an established procedure, our general view would be that it could be unfair for the firm to turn down the claim entirely.” However, they also point out that, by ruling against the insurers, it doesn’t follow that they endorse specific treatments.

The response of the insurers to these rulings seems to be that they may well be re-considering their position in regard to experimental treatments and how they deal with them. Norwich Union have stated that a review of their policies is in the pipeline in view of the rulings of the FOS. Bupa are concerned that their clients may be claiming for treatments not yet tested in the UK.

WPA, another medical insurance provider, have stated that if a doctor has recommended a specific course of experimental treatment, for which there are grounds to prove why that treatment is better than any other, then they will cover this.

It appears that things are falling into place and necessary changes are taking place regarding the experimental treatment scenario. If you’re about to take out this valuable insurance, it’s as well to keep all these issues in mind. By logging on to the internet and finding a broker who will compare what’s on offer from the many policies available in the medical insurance market, you’ll be able to find the right policy for you and your family. At the right price too.

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By: Catriona Singfield

Vets’ fees are set to rise, and over the next three years will increase by up to 20%. Given the expense as well as the stress and worry of an unwell pet, are pet owners underestimating the need for adequate pet cover?

When you keep an adult dog as a pet, you can expect to pay around 40% of your pet care budget on unexpected visits to the vet. Yet only about 12% of Britain’s 13 million dog owners take out specialised insurance.

Financial research company Defaqto know that choosing the right pet insurance can seem daunting. According to their research, pet owners are often confused as to what cover offers, and which policy is the right one for their needs. They may even be put off buying pet insurance altogether. Because some policies pay out on claims on a yearly basis, and others pay per condition, it can be hard to compare them for the best deal. In addition, some cover has built-in limits that place cut-off points on payouts when a claim is made.

High premiums can also put owners off. By way of example, a cat has a typical lifespan of 14 to 15 years, and can run up a total cost in medical care of up to £9,500 during that time. The family dog doesn’t do much better at an average yearly cost of £500 to £1,000 over a typical canine lifespan of 13 years. And a caring cat owner can pay up to £200 a year for insurance in London.

Pet insurance can help enormously towards costs if a pet should become ill, but what a policy covers can be very limited and it pays to check the details.

Good pet cover should include veterinary fees, long term treatment, money for rewards if a pet is lost or stolen, and dental care, as well as benefits if a pet should die of illness or as a result of an accident.

Many policies fall short of this, however. Some will not cover repeat claims for the same condition; some will allow this, but cap the amount you can claim per year. Yet others have a limit of £5,000 on any one claim.

As with all insurance cover, there are many variations. In the same way that car or contents insurance policies have an excess charge – the amount it will cost you before a claim pays out – pet insurance will also impose this fee. Defaqto warn that the cheapest cover can carry an excess of up to 35%, underlining the fact that the lowest premium may not represent the best value for money.

So what should you look for in a policy? Choose one that will last the whole lifetime of your pet. Make sure that it does not exclude any conditions already experienced – some will not pay out on any conditions dating from a year before the cover was taken. Others exclude older pets, or refuse to cover pets younger than six to eight weeks old.

However, there are benefits to having pet insurance that are often overlooked. For example, if a car driver should swerve into a wall while avoiding your dog, a good policy will cover you for damage to the car – and even the wall if necessary! You may not know it, but you are legally liable under the Dangerous Dogs Act for damage to people or property caused by your dog. If Fido goes for the postman, you may well be taken to court, but at least you can arrange cover for your legal fees.

If your pet is well but you have to go into hospital, some insurance will include a kennel stay. This might be especially useful for an elderly person, or someone living alone. Some plans also include cancellation fees if your holiday plans are upset by a sick or injured pet.

It is usual for a policy to cover costs for advertising if an animal goes missing, including a reward. Some will pay for a replacement pet should your own be stolen or even die. But because insurance is designed to cover unexpected problems, it won’t include vaccinations, booster shots, worming treatments, nail clipping, spaying or neutering.

It is common for dogs to cost more to insure than cats, with extra charges for pedigree breeds or big animals. There may even be an extra charge for the smaller, more delicate varieties of dog. Premiums may also be affected by the vets’ bills in the district where you live, being higher in cities, especially London.

As always, there are a wide range of insurance policies for pets just as there are for people. The best course of action is to decide what level of cover suits you best and shop around. Watch out for that excess though – it can be between £25 and £65. Be aware too that many companies set a maximum payment, either per year, or per illness or accident.

Look at your needs carefully, and make sure that what you require for your pet is actually covered by your policy. You may find a better combination online, so do your research and don’t neglect this resource – a good policy can save both your wallet and your peace of mind.

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Author: Catriona Singfield

25% of us have suffered theft from our gardens and outbuildings. That’s up to 5,000 people a day. And to make matters worse, this number is set to rise as the garden and landscape business takes off. As a nation of plant lovers, Britons spend nearly £4 billion annually on products for the garden, according to statistics gathered by the Horticultural Trades Association. It’s no wonder thieves see golden opportunities among the flowers!

And yet, according to a survey conducted by top insurers Churchill, 38% of us don’t take what’s on the outside of our homes into account. Garden security is not a priority, despite the high cost of the equipment we often leave outside – lawnmowers, patio heaters, gas barbecues – all rather obvious and tempting targets. But what of the plants themselves? Thieves have not been slow to take advantage, as Mrs J P from Glamorgan was shocked to find out. She glanced out of her window to see a man “dashing up the street clutching one of our plants”. Sadly this is not an isolated incident: 18,000 similar thefts were reported last year, with the most common item on the thieves’ list being the household favourite, the hanging basket.

The average shed contains £1,300 in tools, toys and sports gear, with only a padlock between it and the opportunist with a break-in on the mind. It isn’t much to guard all that gear – imagine leaving the TV or your DVD collection outside. Would you expect it to be there in the morning?

But you may think that you can relax; after all, your insurance covers your garden and shed – or does it? Not all policies include items left outside, and Home and Contents usually only includes things secured in a locked outbuilding or shed.

To illustrate this by example, consider the policy offered by Norwich Union Direct. They allow £250 worth of cover for objects left outside unsecured, and £1,500 for items under lock and key. Unfortunately if you have invested in a new patio heater and a stylish gas-powered barbecue for those heady summer evenings, this may not be enough. Other high street insurers such as the AA, the Prudential and Abbey provide up to £500 for items left in the open, and Lloyds TSB, Direct Line and Esure offer up to £1,000. More Than come out on top with the highest limit of £2,000.

This is fine for hard goods, but what about the growing plants that make up your garden? They are an increasingly popular target for theft, but only a few insurers provide cover for them. Skipton and Saga both offer special provision for plants, as well as the members’ insurance of up to £10,000 from the Royal Horticultural Society. So far, the idea of plant insurance just has not been taken up by most mainstream insurance providers.

So what can you do to protect yourself? In addition to making sure your garden is a thief-proof as it can be, try our tips below for security and peace of mind on the patio:

§ Lock up as much as possible. Make good use of a shed or garage for storage – out of sight is out of mind for many chance thefts. Buy the best quality padlock you can afford.
§ Include your shed or garage in your burglar alarm circuit. That way you will know instantly if anyone tries to break in.
§ Mark your expensive garden items as you would those from inside your home – you can use a special permanent marker that glows under UV light. Keep an account of your purchases, and how much they cost.
§ Secure any valuable pots or ornaments if you can.
§ If you have an entrance to the rear of the house, fit a gate and make sure you keep it locked.
§ Fit sensor lights for the outside of your home.
§ If you lay a gravel path, you will hear any intruders approaching, and the prospect of a noisy path will also put them off.
§ Plant a prickly hedge or other spiky plants to dissuade thieves.
§ Check the small print to make sure that your insurance covers the items you keep outside – as we’ve said here, they may not be included.

Check the Internet for Home and Contents Insurance policies – not only can you find the best deals, but most insurers offer discounts for buying

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Blogg entry Fri 14th July

Author: Emma Mayo

It looks like some life insurance policies are forever – because people have been forgetting to tell their next of kin just exactly what they did with their policy documents. It’s not that quite simple, there are many reasons why a life insurance policy may sit unclaimed – but as a result it is estimated that at least £2 billion in life insurance claims have been left unclaimed. Surely that’s more than careless!

There are a myriad of reasons why life insurance policies get forgotten:

People forget that they took them out in the first place.
People often don’t leave a Will; as a result relatives have no evidence to show there was a policy, unless they come across some paperwork.
One in 16 people move house and forget to inform financial companies that they have moved, and lose touch completely.

It can get even more complicated. There were a lot of life assurance policies sold in the later half of the 20th Century which doubled as savings vehicles, and were very popular at the time. As times have changed and companies have been bought by larger companies, they have disappeared off the radar, but the money will still be there – waiting to be claimed one day.

If you have a life policy and the company no longer exists, the Internet is the best place to look. Search on the company name in Google then you should be able to get some information relating to the company that now owns the policy. If that fails, then try the Association of Friendly Societies on 020 7216 7436 (www.afs.org.uk) - a trade body that has old records relating to friendlies and mutuals from the past.

If that doesn’t work – call the Mutual Societies Registration on 020 7066 4916. The old Register of Friendly Societies, they are a government body that has now been swallowed up by the Financial Services Authority, but they will be able to tell you what happened to the company that used to hold your policy, and who you should now contact.

If you don’t even have the name of the company, but you know that you have a life policy out there somewhere – then even then all is not lost. There is a service called the Unclaimed Assets Register (www.uar.co.uk, 0870 241 1713) that can help you. They have a huge database containing details of financial products across the board, from dividends and unit trusts to pensions and life policies. If it’s a basic enquiry, then the service may be free of charge; otherwise they charge a one-off, fixed charge of £18.50 to find an answer to your query. 10% of that fee goes to charity. You can make the enquiry either over the Internet or by post, and you will need to provide a certain amount of detail such as date of birth and previous addresses.

In making any of these enquiries incidentally, you must either be the policyholder or have power of attorney over another’s finances.

In an ideal world, everyone would keep all their financial documentation in one place. But the very nature of a life policy means that they sit around for years and often get forgotten. Our advice is, whether you are the policyholder or if you have power of attorney, find as much information as you can before starting your search. And don’t give up – the information is accessible, it may cost you just a bit of time and effort, and possibly £18.50, to find it.

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Author: Bridget Carter

They are all the things that people enjoy using in their homes after hours or at the weekends – DVD players, computers, cameras and televisions with plasma screens.

But have you ever considered how much these items have pushed up the value of your home contents insurance?
It is these electronic luxuries which has made the cost of one’s contents insurance a third higher than it was ten years ago.

If you have small children, it is unlikely there is much of high value in their bedrooms. But several years on, your children’s rooms are likely to be littered with game boys, computers, expensive DVDs, sports gear and the list goes on. Even jewellery is something that often gets forgotten or over looked when it comes to contents insurance.

So having said this, perhaps it is worthwhile reassessing the value of your home contents. The reason why it is important to make this assessment is that if you are under-insured the firm with which you have taken out the insurance policy may not be prepared to pay out what is owed to you. These firms are legally within their rights to do this. Most of the time, however, the approach they will take is to just pay out less than your contents is worth.

The good news is that insurance companies are fiercely competitive when it comes to contents insurance and so many offer discounts for more than one policy. They also slash premiums just to secure extra clients. For example, the company Direct Line will discount your insurance if you buy with them on-line and also if you take out cover for both contents and buildings. Remember that things such as burglar alarms can drive down your premium costs.

The other thing that is useful to know is that if you have an item that is worth over £1500, you might have to insure that separately. Most of the time a typical house contents policy has a £75,000 limit. Some specialist insurers offer high net worth policies. These are policies where your possessions are covered but you do not need to state individually what they are. For those with an overseas house or belongings that they move between various properties, these sort of policies are idea.

It might be useful to know that Norwich Union, HSBC, Axa, Barclays, Chubb and Hiscox all include identity fraud in their insurance cover, but this is normally covered by your bank anyway. Also, Chubb and Zurich will cover the risk of attack in your own home.

If you are a first time home buyer, it can be the case that the company that offers you a mortgage also requires you to take out the lender’s in-house buildings and contents insurance, despite the fact that there are cheaper options elsewhere.
Regardless of where you take out your contents insurance or the deal you opt for, it is important you keep record of the true value of your goods in your home. If you are under insured, you might find it to be the case that you are not insured at all.

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Author: Emma Mayo

The costs of smoking are well documented. High blood pressure, heart attacks, lung cancer – smokers know why it’s such a bad habit. The facts are humbling. 80% of non-smokers can expect to live to over 70, only 50% of smokers can. Also, 50% of smokers will die from a smoking-related disease. These diseases are often long, drawn out and very painful.

At over £5 for a packet of 20 cigarettes, they are also aware of how much it’s costing them monetarily. But the financial implications stretch further, meaning that smokers have to pay hundreds more for their life insurance.

Insurance companies classify anyone has who used any tobacco products in the twelve months before making the insurance application as ‘a smoker’. Statistics show that people that smoke are more likely to make a claim, so naturally the premiums are higher for smokers – but the margin is surprisingly high. A male 35-year-old smoker will pay 78% more in life insurance premiums than his non-smoking counterpart. It’s not much better for women – a smoker of 35 will pay 72% more. For £100,000 worth of cover over 20 years, that’s a difference of over £1,500. Add that to the cost of all those cigarettes at a rate of 20 a day, and that’s another £36,400 smoked up the chimney! Smoking certainly is an expensive habit…

Despite the extra cost implications, don’t be tempted to save money on life insurance by pretending that you don’t smoke. If you do need to make a claim then the insurer will most likely discover that you were in fact a smoker, and would use that as grounds to reject the claim. It simply isn’t worth the risk.

Some insurers have developed methods to make sure applicants cannot lie in any case. There is a saliva test that can reveal whether you are a smoker or not – and some insurers ask potential customers to take the test before they will insure them.

For people that do manage to give up the demon weed – they’ll have to wait for twelve months before telling the insurer and hopefully benefit from lower premiums. However, they’ll almost certainly get a better deal by shopping around on the Internet. Without the added expense of smoking affecting the quotation, the best bargains will be there for the taking.

Here are the two main reasons why people should give up:

Health – smoking is a sure fire way to shorten life span, and make things like running and exercise a lot more difficult.

Money – this article has already spelled out just how much smoking costs, that money could be far better spent on holidays and other luxuries.

If they’re not enough, there’s plenty more – like keeping a seat in the pub for example! Many pubs have already banned smoking. By 2007 smokers will be well and truly out in the cold.

If this article has inspired you to take a serious step towards giving up smoking, also have a look at www.quit.org.uk, representing the charity dedicated to helping people to quit the habit. The website www.givingupsmoking.co.uk is also a helpful port of call, and you can ring the NHS smoking helpline on 0800 169 0 169.

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Author: Emma Mayo

Spring, summer and bank holiday weekends are the times that people decide to spruce up their homes. Whether it’s a lick of paint on the ceiling, or a full-blown overhaul of the house, there’s a lot of things that can go wrong. You could spill paint all over the carpet for example. Or what if you accidentally put a hole through the ceiling?

DIY disasters are not necessarily covered by a standard home and contents insurance policy. To get the right cover, you need ‘accidental damage insurance’ which may not be included automatically in the policy. If it isn’t, it will be an optional extra which you will need to pay for. Standard insurance policies cover a range of common incidents including fire. Water damage, subsidence and theft – DIY mistakes or general accidents in the home are not considered to be ‘standard’. However, some policies will automatically include damage to electrical items like the TV, DVD player and music equipment.

Some items in the house are automatically insured against accidental damage, like baths and sinks for example, however if the damage arose because of a DIY incident then you will probably need the extra accidental damage cover to make a claim.

If you do a lot of DIY, or a member of your household is particularly clumsy, then it’s always worth taking out accidental damage cover. It usually adds between £20 and £60 to the annual premium, a small price to pay compared to the cost of some DIY accidents. According to the insurer More Than, the accident that causes the most insurance claims is spilling paint on a carpet, a claim which typically costs around £1250. Knocking a nail through a pipe is also a common DIY accident, and the damage caused can add up to costs of around £2000 – not something you’d be too keen on paying for yourself!

If you’re a serious DIYer who takes on large and complicated jobs such as replacing the roof or building a new extension yourself, then accidental damage cover may not be enough. You’ll need to check with your insurer and possibly have to pay extra, as any damage caused could be extremely expensive to fix.

Home and contents insurance is one of the cheaper types of insurance, and although the accidental damage cover may make it more expensive that you would like, it’s still well worth getting, especially if you intend to do any DIY. All it takes is for one nail to go through a pipe and your insurance will instantly have paid for itself! There are excellent savings to be made by buying this type of insurance online. Norwich Union Direct offer a good deal which gives you 50% off your contents insurance if you buy buildings insurance with them. Many other insurers offer online discounts of 10-20%, and some also offer you a discount if you already insure your car with them. It will take less than 30 minutes to get a few quotes using the online forms.

So next time you do some DIY, check first that you are properly insured, as you could be just about to make an extremely costly mistake.

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Author: Emma Mayo

Have you taken the car across to France recently – perhaps you took the short journey from Dover to Calais to pick up some wine for Christmas? Did you think to check to see if you were insured before you left? One third of UK motorists do, the other two thirds don’t. And with an estimated 8 million UK holidaymakers, a figure that is growing rapidly, taking their car over the channel every year, that’s a staggering statistic.

It’s not that you won’t be insured at all if you go to Europe, but you can’t automatically expect the same level of cover that you receive in the UK. Your insurer is legally obliged to insure you either at the minimum requirement in the particular EU country, or at third party level – whichever offers the most cover. If you are fully comprehensive in the UK, you may well be third party only in the country you’re visiting. This means you’re not covered for fire or theft, and if your car is damaged in an accident and you’re the one at fault, you will have to pay for the repairs.

As Ian Crowder from AA Insurance has said: “Roughly a quarter of a million comprehensive policies do not automatically or freely extend comprehensive cover to foreign climes.” So in many cases you can have your cover extended to Europe for free, but you have to ring up and ask for it – it doesn’t happen automatically.

A number of insurers will extend your cover to the EU, but there will be an extra charge. This is something that you could choose as an optional extra when you first buy the policy, especially if you intend to drive abroad quite regularly.

If you’re insured with the AA, Axa, Budget, Churchill or Marks & Spencer then you’re in luck - they range from 60 days to 90 days included for no extra charge. Direct Line and Esure offer just 3 days included, and then charge thereafter. Tesco and More Than need a phone call to set up the extended cover, and charges vary.

You also need to think about where you will be travelling in Europe. Only EU countries are generally covered however Switzerland, Croatia, Gibraltar, Norway, Monaco, Iceland, San Marino and Liechtenstein are all allowed in on the deal. Countries further east like Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria may not be covered, so it’s essential to make a phone call before driving through.

You also need to consider getting breakdown cover, because you could find yourself in a sticky situation if you break down in a remote area, especially if you don’t know the language. Some car insurers like Direct Line can add it on to the insurance – they charge £50 for a 2-week holiday for a family of four in France. The AA’s charges start at £10.90 for a day, and with RAC prices start at £13.50 for two days on the other side of the channel.

Finally, a few words of advice on other precautions you need to take when driving abroad:

§ Have the paper and the card part of your driving licence, your insurance certificate, the vehicle registration document and your passport with you at all times when driving.
§ If your car doesn’t have a number plate with ‘GB’ on it, buy a GB sticker for the back of your car.
§ Check out the rules of the country on headlights. You will need to adjust your headlights so they don’t dazzle road users. Also, you have to drive with dipped headlights at all times in Scandinavia, Italy and Spain.
§ Some European countries demand you to carry some or all of the following: a spare set of light bulbs, high visibility jackets, a reflective warning triangle, a first aid kit.

So now you are prepared for driving on the continent, have a great holiday!

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Author: Dot Piper

How does 100% off the cost of next year’s health insurance premium sound?
This is on offer through the Prudential Insurance Company’s Pruehealth. They offer their Comprehensive Plan and here are the details, based on a 40 year old non smoker in good health: The monthly payment for a male would be £62.85 and for a female £66.43, there is an excess of £100. The premium is reduced if you gain “vitality” points and this is how it works:

At the end of the first year there is a discount of 25% and you earn further points and therefore further discounts, by improving your health. Measures such as reducing your blood pressure, taking fitness assessments and regularly visiting the gym are encouraged. Cheap gym membership is on offer. There is a website offering encouragement and handy tips about diet and exercise.

When checked with other medical insurance policies, the Pruehealth policy mentioned above came out more expensive than those of General Medical, Health-on-line and Axa PPP. General Medical, for example, offers their Foundation Plus First Choice policy. The premium again based on a 40 year old non-smoker, male or female, is £48.05. The excess is £100.

As the cost of insurance rises with age, inevitably the insurers are going to have to recoup their costs. Some work their premiums out based on age bands and the cost of insurance can jump sharply as you move up from 40 to 49, 50 to 59 and so on. Rather than sudden increases in the premium, many companies increase by a smaller amount, but apply this yearly.

At a time when private medical insurance seems to be roaring away and the very people that need it most are starting to cancel their policies, it’s clear that something needs to be done. Medical inflation accounts for an 8% rise in premiums per year, as new drugs and diagnostic equipment cost soar.

Consumers can feel reassured by some of the latest changes on offer in a bid to address the problem. One idea is suggested by Penny O’Nions, of the specialist broker Onions Group. They have a plan which covers inpatient care only. Any private outpatient care would have to come out of your own pocket and whilst most serious illnesses such as cancer would involve hospitalisation, increasingly these are treated in outpatient facilities and therefore wouldn’t be covered.

An excess on your policy (the part you pay yourself in the event of a claim) can gain large savings in your premium. By paying an excess of £100 you could save around 10% and if you’re prepared for an even bigger excess, say £2000, you could halve the amount you pay. This effectively puts a ceiling on the costs of illness.

No claims discounts usually apply to these types of policies and you should be able to transfer these if you decide to “jump ship”.

As you can see, there’s a vast range of options. Many people stick to the same old policies, feeling it’s just not worth the effort of transferring but in fact it couldn’t be easier. Just go to your favourite search engine, search for insurance brokers and find one which offers health insurance. They’ll take your circumstances into account and find the best deal for you. There’ll be the additional bonus of an on-line discount.

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Author: Dot Piper

Beware, we have modern-day “Dick Turpins’” at work on our roads. Not quite “Stand and deliver” at gun point, but there’s a striking similarity.

Innocent drivers are being targeted in this frightening new crime which appears to spreading across the country. Effectively, we have an ambush situation.

This is what can happen:

· You may be following a vehicle, generally an ageing car or van, onto a roundabout or slip road. This vehicle, which often has no brake lights, brakes hard and you cannot avoid slamming into it.
· There may be two cars involved. One is in front of you and another one may veer into its path, the car in front of you brakes hard and you crash into it.

These “set up” crashes commonly occur at really busy roundabouts or motorway slip roads. The instigators of these incidents are skilled at pinning the blame on the innocent motorist. These modern day highwaymen work in teams, owning and managing repair garages and car hire companies. These firms present falsely inflated invoices for work carried out, hire of a car whilst the car is off the road and so on. They then make a bogus claim on the blameless motorist’s insurers, often inflating it for maximum pay-out and claiming for compensation for so-called injuries to the driver and passengers. Often the vehicle which they use is an old banger, which will probably contain the maximum number of passengers, all claiming to have been injured in some way and seeking compensation for this and probably loss of earning too. In this way a minor accident claim can escalate into a claim of £20,000 or more.

Insurers are quite rightly extremely concerned about the scale of these so called “accidents” and believe there could be as many as 10,000 of them occurring per year. A single insurance company may not easily pick up on the organised fraud but working with other insurers will give benefits. With this in mind the Association of British Insurers have created an Insurance Fraud Bureau. They will monitor details of suspect claims and scrutinize millions of them to find patterns or links. It is intended that the bureau will liaise with police and hopefully will take civil prosecutions against these fraudsters to recover money which has already been paid out.

There was a case of insurers linking 400 “staged accidents” to one particular gang, involving other crimes in addition to the insurance fraud, where the police would only get involved if the investigation was funded by the insurers. Insurance fraud may be low on the priorities list as far as the police are concerned but in view of the danger to drivers as a result of these unpleasant incidents their reluctance to get involved will have to change.

A Home Office fraud review is due out in the summer of 2006 and hopefully the Association of British Insurers concerns will be addressed in this.

In the meantime, some advice from Norwich Union’s head of fraud, Chris Hill, who says “Keep your distance from the car in front at roundabouts and slip roads and cut your speed. Keep an eye on the vehicle in front. The occupants may turn to look at you or may even make a gesture just before the trap is sprung.”

If a crash does happen, remember to get as much information as you can. Note how many occupants were in the other car, their sex and as much detail as you can about how they were dressed. Make a note of these details and make sure your insurer is aware of them.

These gangs are putting innocent drivers and their passengers at risk. It is vitally important that insurers and drivers work together in a concerted effort to stop this crime.

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Author: Tom Warden

Have you injured yourself at work or on the roads? Had an accident that wasn’t your fault? Then why not claim the compensation you deserve? Well, there may be plenty of reasons to keep away from claims companies, beside the fact that they are likely to hit you with hidden costs and represent you poorly. Their get rich quick options have led to a lawsuit society, much like in the USA when, as soon as somebody has an accident, whether it be their fault or not, their first though is likely to be ‘can I claim?’

You might think that, as long as you steer clear of accidents with people, you don’t have to worry about what these companies are doing, but their effects stretch wider than just the careless and unfortunate, they will have an effect on even the most careful drivers. The cost of accidental damage has risen by 5% per year in the last few years, and claims for personal injury have also increased, with the cost of them being settled rising by a massive 12%. These factors mean that insurance companies, or at least most high street ones, are raising the price of their premiums, some by up to 10% per year. Most customers accept these rises, despite the fact that they have come though no fault of their own. Neither do they question why most new, money saving offers are only offered to new customers and are not even made available to existing ones.

So is there any way of avoiding the price rises? Thankfully, yes. Online insurance companies tend to offer deals which are a lot more flexible and some offer multi car and pay as you go policies.

The advent of the internet as a selling tool has meant that many more new insurance companies are cropping up as well as the more established ones. This has brought about a healthy competition in the market which was much needed, and competition has kept rises to a minimum.

So if you find yourself as an indirect victim of the ‘where there’s a blame, there’s a claim’ society, don’t lie down and take it on the chin - turn on you computer and buy online!

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Author: Emma Mayo

Never mind getting on the property ladder – two in five 18-25-year-olds haven’t got a driving licence, in many cases because they can’t afford to even get onto the car owning ladder.

There are many costs related to running a car, and it’s all too expensive for many young people. To get a driving licence, they have to take driving lessons, which now cost around £15 per hour. Although some drivers pick it up quickly and pass first time, many go on to take a second test, and maybe a third, and so on.

Once you have your licence, you need to buy a car. Cars aren’t cheap, and even second-hand cars mean expense as they are more likely to need to be repaired and fixed regularly. Then there’s the road tax, and car insurance always costs more for young drivers. The average cost for buying a car and running it in the first year is a whopping £5,700 – that could be a sizeable proportion of a young person’s yearly wages.

A quarter of young people with a driving licence don’t have their own vehicle – so it’s clear that there’s a serious problem with young people getting their own wheels.

It’s understandable that so many young people are choosing to go with public transport for the time being. Statistics like this one from Pass Plus, which offers training schemes for drivers, say that in the first year of driving one driver in five is involved in an accident – so that’s even more potential expense, especially as many young drivers can only afford third party insurance.

There are other forces at work too. The general cost of being a young person such as university costs and a lack of income, debts, and low wages – all combine to make it almost impossible to afford buying a car.

So what are young people doing about it? A survey from Direct Line has shown that many rely on borrowing their parents’ cars. Others are thinking about sharing a car with friends, so the costs are easier to deal with.

There are also other implications, namely on road safety. A spokeswoman from Direct Line said: “With fewer first-time drivers owning their own car there can be increased pressure on those with one to drive all their friends around”. The survey showed that 17% of young drivers feel pressurised by their friends to do the driving, 18% feel pressurised into taking more people into the car than it can legally hold, and 41% find it hard to concentrate on driving with passengers distracting them.

The car insurance industry has a few tricks up its sleeve to help young drivers get on the road. For example, Norwich Union has come up with a new scheme which allows young people to use a pay-as-you-drive scheme, see www.norwichunion.com/pay-as-you-drive for more information.

Insurance companies also offer incentives of up to 35% off for new drivers who have taken Pass Plus lessons, or who have taken a driving course with the Institute of Advanced Motorists. Lessons cost between £15 and £30 per hour but could save you hundreds on your car insurance.

For the cheapest car insurance deals, search on the Internet – car insurance is invariably cheaper and many of the mainstream insurers offer online discounts – making it a little bit easier to get on the road!

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In this day and age, it’s hard to live cheaply, but if you really try, then two people can live side by side for the cost of one person. So it comes as a surprise that with car insurance, it’s possible for two people to be cheaper than just one person.

Insurance companies all have their criteria based on where you live, how long you’ve been driving, your gender, and how many accidents you’ve had. Every insurer is different and that’s why, when you get a quote, the premiums can vary wildly.

Some car insurers put safety first, and the insurer ‘Privilege’ is one of them. They have an ‘insured and partner policy’ which rewards safer drivers in long-term relationships with lower premiums. Managing Director of Privilege, Ian Parker, describes the ethos behind it, saying: “The responsibility of being in a long-term relationship translates into safer driving”.

These examples illustrate the savings to be made from having your partner on the policy:

Example 1 - A 38-year-old living in London SW2 with 5 years no claims looking for fully comprehensive cover on a 2001 Citroen Picasso would pay a yearly figure of £531.30. With his 37-year-old partner on the policy, the premium drops by £47.25 to £484.05.

Example 2 – A 37-year-old with the same car and other details but living in Tonbridge, Kent would be offered a premium of £270.90 for the year. With the addition of a 38-year-old man on the policy, the premiums falls by £21 to £249.90.

It’s not just Privilege that offers this policy, many of the big name insurers do – although they don’t publicise it that well.

So what do you need to do to qualify for an insured and partner policy?

§ You both need to live at the same address. And there’s no use pretending, the insurer will check the electoral register.
§ You need to live together as if you were married. It can be an opposite or same sex relationship. It’s not necessary to be in a civil partnership or married. You can’t do it with someone who’s related, for example your mother or sister, even if you do live with them.
§ You must both be aged over 25, and have good driving records. The best prices are reserved for couples that are of a similar age, and have a similar number of years driving without having made a claim.

Incidentally, it doesn’t matter how many miles you drive, that won’t make a difference to the premiums.

The policy will benefit both drivers when it comes to no claims – as you will both build up your no claims further while on an insured and partner policy. So if you do split up or one of you becomes unable to drive, you don’t need to worry about losing any of your no claims.

If you live with your partner and fit the criteria discussed in this article, then try getting quotes for an insured and partner policy next time. You could save considerably compared on two separate policies, or one as a named driver. With the extra benefits relating to the no claims discount, it really is worth looking into.

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We heard recently of an unusual and little known type of dormouse. They are to be found within a 25 mile radius of Tring, in Hertfordshire. It appears that Lord Rothschild had a fascination for wildlife and in 1902 he introduced these little creatures to his estate. They are actually an edible dormouse, otherwise known as “glis glis”.

In ancient Roman times, these 6” long dormice were fattened up to be consumed at banquets but they have turned the tables and now causing all manner of problems by eating their way through homes in the area. Cables and insulation seem to be their favourite diet. They are a protected species so can’t be eradicated by normal pest control methods; instead they need to be trapped professionally.

Vermin are causing havoc in the rest of the UK and ICM have done some research which reveals that one in ten households have had a problem with some type of pest within the past year. Some have been faced with hefty bills in an effort to rid themselves of the pests. There is help from the local council but as these pest infestations tend to be seasonal, there can be long waiting times. Private pest control contractors vary in efficiency and cost. It’s a case of “beware of the cowboy”, although it has to be said there are some excellent and experienced firms out there – the problem is that the industry is unregulated, so there is no standard to use as a comparison when considering the choice of a contractor.

When it comes to insurance, it’s unusual for household policies to cover damage from vermin. It’s usually excluded via an accidental damage clause. You may find that consequential damage would be covered, i.e.: if vermin chewed through an electrical wire and consequently caused a fire, most insurers would cover this.

The most common pests are grey squirrels, rats, mice, wasps and hornets. Esure offer an add -on to its home insurance cover. For an additional £21.99 per year they will offer a vermin control service covering problems with the above five pests. Even the cost of removing a hornet’s nest could be as much as £100 so this extra is certainly worth considering.

Squirrels can cause the greatest problems. Should they gain access to your home, normally through the loft space, then they can cause absolute mayhem. Broken ornaments, chewed valuables and furniture often result. The cover provided by Saga is unusual in that all its household policies include cover for damage caused by these creatures. It’s Cover Plus policy provides cover for damage caused by all pests, with the exception of damage done to pedal cycles!

It would be unwise to underestimate the damage which could occur should rats and mice gnaw through cables. Fires can be cause in this way and rats can even gnaw through pipes, causing flooding. There is a case of the whole upper floor of a house collapsing because of the wooden joists had been chewed through by rats.

Some sensible precautions should be taken to avoid problems. Outside the house, make sure that bags containing rubbish are put into lidded dustbins. Clear up around bird tables and feeders. Don’t put cooked food onto compost heaps. Drains and covers should be checked for damage and general clutter should be tidied. Inside the house, vermin is attracted to pipe work and this is how they move around. Seal up holes using steel wool or plaster. Check around the hot water tank, under the sink and in the loft. Avoid storing packing tissue, cardboard boxes and things like cuddly toys and unwanted clothes up there – they make a perfect ready made nest for vermin.

So there’s a lot you can do to avoid problems. However, should they occur, you’ll need your insurance cover. An on line insurance broker will be able to sort out what’s available and will find you with the best way to get some insurance against these pests.

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Brace yourself for the surge of new-style car insurance policies about to hit the high street. Leading the charge is supermarket giant Tesco, with its new low-cost “no frills” option. And where one company leads, you can be sure the others will rush to follow with their own “bargain basement” policies.

So how do other insurers rate the new policy? According to Norwich Union, Tesco have found a gap in the market for simple, nuts-and-bolts cover with no added extras. Applying the results of their own two-year study of 5000 motorists, they are hoping that their new policies are just what car drivers are looking for. The AA are less enthusiastic about the new version: shop around, they say, and the traditional fully comprehensive can be found for same price, but without the high excess.

With both insurers keen to gain new clients and keep their places at the top of the “Best Buy” league, the resulting competition will be one to watch.

So, how do these policies compare to traditional insurance?

Tesco have brought out a “hybrid” insurance giving more cover than a basic third party policy, but less than the more common fully comprehensive. Let’s take a closer look: no courtesy car if your own is off the road, young drivers are not eligible, and the excess is a whopping £475. There is no protection for your no-claims discount, and any repairs your car might need have to be carried out at designated garages only. Unlike the normal three year guarantee, there’s a limit of only 12 months on any work they carry out. Cover can only be bought online. But, if you don’t mind the restrictions on the pared-down policy, it comes in at 12% less than Tesco’s standard cover.

Spotting a gap in the market, Norwich Union are offering a policy specifically designed for young drivers. Existing customers’ driving patterns are monitored and charges scaled to fit. Each time a client drives between 11pm and 6am, they incur a £1 charge – research shows that young drivers are more likely to be involved in an accident at night. At present, the policy cannot be provided for new customers.

Keen not to be left behind, Direct Line are bringing out their own low-cost range, and It will only be a matter of time before all the major companies follow the trend.

Confusing? Consider what the new policies don’t cover, as well as the lower prices. Simply put, you can have cheaper fully comprehensive cover, if you don’t mind losing some of the added benefits of traditional policies such as a lower excess. Look around online, and it’s easy to find a car insurance broker who will be able to offer a tailor-made policy suited to exactly what you require. If you know what you want, finding a bargain is easy, and the company will even research the cheapest deal for you free of charge.

Older drivers are still at a disadvantage when it comes to insurance costs. With Government plans to introduce regular eye tests, along with other medical checks to be carried out three-yearly, driving in your older years could become prohibitively expensive. Charity Age Concern wants tests of driving fitness to be based on ability, not age, but the Association of British Insurers want mandatory tests based on a set period. Old age, they say, can slow the reflexes and eyesight can deteriorate, meaning that elderly drivers are at higher risk of accidents. According to the Association, the rate of serious or fatal accidents rises after middle age, with more accidents of all kinds per mile driven. Passengers and other road users are also all at higher risk.

After the age of 60, car insurance premiums start to get higher again as underwriters become wary of taking on new clients. Here’s a typical scenario from the AA: a 21 year old woman, paying £326 as a new driver, will qualify for a much reduced cost of £197at 60. Should she choose to drive at 80, however, the premium will have risen sharply to a sky-high £460.

But all is not lost; there are specific policies tailored for the older driver. With the retirement age set to rise and people expecting to enjoy a more active old age, there is clearly a need for better insurance for the elderly. Age Concern, Saga and Help the Aged all offer their own specially designed policies. In fact, there are more options every day – contact an online broker and they should be able to give you all the most up-to-date information you need.

It’s your policy – shop around, and make sure it’s giving you what you want as well as what you pay for!

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Cover for your children is the most undervalued aspect of critical illness insurance. But as most policies automatically provide the cover as a free extra, we suspect that some policyholders don’t even know they’ve got it!

Most policies automatically insure your children albeit at a lower level of benefits than the main policyholders cover. But this cover is invaluable, especially if your child becomes critically ill and you need to take time off work to provide care.

Critical Illness insurance pays out a tax free capital sum if the policyholder, or one of their children, suffers one of the very serious illnesses scheduled on their policy. The only rider is that the claimant must survive at least 28 days after the diagnosis.

Scottish Provident, one of the UK’s largest critical illness insurers has announced that claims for children is now its fourth-largest cause for a claim. Says Nick Kirwan, their Protection Marketing Director, “Work takes a back seat when your child becomes ill. You may need to cut your working hours or even stop working altogether”.

If your critical illness policy does insure your children, then a payout from the policy gives you the financial flexibility to do just that. So how much will they pay out?

Most insurers will pay a proportion of total insured value if a child becomes critically ill. For example, Norwich Union will pay out 50% of the insured sum or £10,000 whichever is the lower – and this cover includes adopted children and step children. Standard Life and Legal & General also pay up to 50% with Standard setting the maximum payout at £25,000 and in L&G’s case it’s £15,000.

Cover never starts as soon as the child is born. With some policies cover starts up at 3 months but others wait as long as three years. Ideally, you want cover to start as early as possible.

Another other point to understand is that if the main policyholder has a claim, then the policy pays out and terminates – they can’t claim more than once. But if there is a claim for a child, the policy does not terminate – the cover for the policyholders continues unaffected. And if you start or add to your family after you’ve started the policy there’s no need to inform the insurer as the cover automatically covers all your children.

But not all insurers will insure your children. Neither the Halifax, National Westminster nor Nationwide Life include any cover for children. So if you have or intend to have a family, it’s vital that you tell your adviser and then he or she will ensure your policy includes the necessary cover.

And that brings us to the topic of professional advice. You can buy Critical Illness insurance online all by yourself but honestly it isn’t worth the risk. In our experience over 50 % of DIY buyers don’t get it exactly right. There is little standardisation within critical illness insurance so you’re unlikely to get your ideal policy if you buy on price alone. It’s one of those situations where a low price can turn out to be a costly mistake!

In order to get the ideal policy your adviser need to understand how much you can afford and what aspects of cover are most important to you. It’s then a matter of using experience and product knowledge to find the best options. If this sounds like a receipt of throwing your discounts down the drain, it isn’t.

Very few high street brokers will give you any discount but shop online with one of the specialist critical illness brokers and you’ll get full service and a discount. How do you find them? Well actually, you don’t need to look any further. This web site works with a specialist critical illness broker called ClickLife.

Why not get a quote now?

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Would you buy the first car you saw in the first showroom you stumbled upon? No, most of us look at car magazines, compare prices at dealerships, car supermarkets and even the Internet! We only pause to buy when we’re sure we’ve found the best car for the lowest possible price package.

But when it comes to car insurance, all that inbred nous flies out the door. It seems that many simply hate haggling for car insurance! Research shows that 23% of us just sit with our feet up and automatically stay with our previous insurer.

The cost of failing to engage our money saving instincts costs us dear. If the renewal premium comes in at 5% or even10% higher than last year, many just accept it. Bad move! By shopping around the average motorist would save £55 – and that’s without the additional online discount!

Insurance companies frequently offer their less competitive pricing to existing clients. Awful isn’t it? They’re relying on your apathy to improve their profit margins.

There are now around 100 car insurers in the UK all eager for your business. Competition is so strong that for the last 2 or 3 years premiums have been static. That very much falls into line with the boom in car insurance on the Internet. Over 2.25 million motorists buy their car insurance online and that too has hotted up the competitive fervour in the marketplace.

Internet sales are growing rapidly, reports this week suggest 10% of retail sales - and it’s not surprising. In fact it’s share of the insurance market will be even bigger. That’s because the Net’s quick and generally easy to use. Surfers can check out specific insurers or go to comparison web sites or use web sites, like ours, that recommend specific insurers for specific categories of driver. It doesn’t half beat a morning down the high street or trolling through yellow pages. And it’s certainly better than fending off Indian call centres!

New insurance products such as pay-as-you-go, a multi-car policy and the appearance of new niche market insurers such as Sheila’s Wheels all point to a further stiffening up of competition within the market. And this indicates that now’s a good time to go car insurance shopping.

But there are warning clouds for consumers. Pips are beginning to squeak at the insurers as a result of accelerating claims, placing doubts over their ability continue to hold down prices much longer. The cost of settling personal injury claims is rocketing at 12% per year whilst accident damage is costing around 5% more per year. The increase in the average cost of repair has far outstripped the savings from decreases in the number of accidents.

Says Ian Crowder of the AA, “If we don’t start to see modest price increases, then there could well be an unpleasant and sudden price hike. That will not be good for the industry’s reputation or for customers”.

We say, let’s take our chance. We’ll continue buying online!

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