Car Insurance

[LIVERLIPS]

A colleague of mine went into the back of somebody last october, and at the time there was no damage that she could see to the persons car only her car due to the the tow bar. Her insurance is up for renewal and she phoned for insurance company who said that they paid out for a new bumper and tow bar and car hire which came to over 2732 euro. This is so obvious that it is a scam, if there was damage why did the driver not contact her, and why do garages just take a quote from one garage not more and investigate it to see is it a correct amount. As obviously these garages are contributing to fraud with false quotes which then drive the drivers insurance up. And surely insurance companies should let you know at the time of the settlement.

 

[Humpback]

Quinn Direct wasn't your friends insurance company by any chance? They did something similar to a colleague of mine.

 

[LIVERLIPS]

Good guess, so this is normal with them, could they be reported to the ombudsman about this and they could investigate what way they do business and treat their customers

 

[Humpback]

I think that you'll find that the Insurance Ombudsman is actually financed by the Insurance companies.

So, reporting to them isn't actually going to do any good.

My colleague made some calls in his situation, but ended up going around in circles.

I would suggest 2 things for your friend. Go through the terms and conditions of their insurance policy to ensure that what Quinn Direct actually did was allowable. They do to clear up issues swiftly in case of personal accident claims.

Second thing is to change insurance companies straight away. I will never ever use Quinn Direct, and know of 3 people who've changed once they've heard of this policy of theirs. Don't use them.

As an aside, I've been told that if you're ever hit by a car insured by Quinn Direct, you only need to mention the words soft tissue damage and they'll give you a cheque almost straight away for you to not proceed with any claims.

I have one friend who has his retirement plans set out on the basis of Quinn Directs willingness to pay out instantly - find a driver at a country pub, insured by Quinn Direct, and when the driver comes out (invariably with beer on) my friend will ease his car into position, get hit, and bingo, payout from Quinn Direct.

 

[Humpback]

Was thinking that the fact that the Insurance Ombudsman is funded by the insurance companies might actually take people by surprise.

From the Ombudsman site - [broken link removed]

The Insurance Ombudsman of Ireland Scheme was established in 1992 as a means of offering policy holders redress in cases of dispute with member insurance companies. It provides a fast track method of resolving disputes through adjudication or settlement negotiation. The Insurance Ombudsman of Ireland is a member of the British and Irish Ombudsman Association (BIOA). The BIOA website is at http://www.intervid.co.uk/bioa

While the Insurance Ombudsman of Ireland was established and funded by the industry, its role is independent and autonomous and the structure of the Office provides for its independence.

And, if you believe that the last sentence is going to be followed, then you really should be concerned at how gullible you must be.

 

[RainyDay]

While the Insurance Ombudsman of Ireland was established and funded by the industry, its role is independent and autonomous and the structure of the Office provides for its independence.

And, if you believe that the last sentence is going to be followed, then you really should be concerned at how gullible you must be.

Have you any actual evidence of bias or lack of independence by the Insurance ombudsman? Have you read the case studies in their annual reports?

I have one friend who has his retirement plans set out on the basis of Quinn Directs willingness to pay out instantly - find a driver at a country pub, insured by Quinn Direct, and when the driver comes out (invariably with beer on) my friend will ease his car into position, get hit, and bingo, payout from Quinn Direct.

I don't believe your friend is going to have much of a retirement. Insurance companies aren't dumb about paying out money, and if I recall correctly, Quinn have been pretty agressive around tracking down fraudsters. You can be sure that after a few claims, your friend will be flagged as a regular claimant and his claims will be given 'special attention'. Given that this kind of fraud is a criminal offence, your friend might well end up with a criminal conviction.

Liverlips - Your friend should confirm with her insurance company whether they did any inspection of the other car before paying out. She should then make a written, formal complaint to that insurance company and see how they respond. Other options would include the Insurance Fraud hotline and/or the Insurance Ombudsman and/or IFSRA.

 

[Humpback]

Have you any actual evidence of bias or lack of independence by the Insurance ombudsman? Have you read the case studies in their annual reports?

And I suppose that you also believe that the existing Garda complaints procedures are perfect and fair as well.

You cannot have an organisation regulating itself.

 

[RainyDay]

And I suppose that you also believe that the existing Garda complaints procedures are perfect and fair as well.

You cannot have an organisation regulating itself.

I'll take that as a 'No' in response to my two questions (Have you any actual evidence of bias or lack of independence by the Insurance ombudsman? Have you read the case studies in their annual reports?), shall I?

We do have an independent regulator - IFSRA - and I mentioned them as an option to the original poster.