Asta la vista Endsleigh!

After reading Olivia Buck’s blog entry about Endsleigh mis-selling her Payment Protection Insurance, and hearing that Churchill Insurance have had their knuckles rapped by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for misleading claims, I wonder how many other insurance companies are out to trick us into paying for services we don’t need, tempt us with enticing offers that don’t exist, or plain and simply, how many just don’t do what it says on their tins?

Churchill Insurance is the latest culprit to join a long list, with one of their ads actually being banned by the ASA after a customer complained that it was misleading.

The ad, which stars the infamous talking dog, asks game show contestants to challenge Churchill on his insurance claims, with one man asking “is it possible to make a claim without filling in any forms?”

“Ooooohhhhh yesssss,” came Churchill’s response. That notoriously annoying catchphrase mimicked by many a middle-aged man thinking he’s even slightly funny…

However, one viewer really did challenge Churchill, pointing out that the ad was misleading because a form was sent out after he’d made an insurance claim.

Defending itself, Churchill Insurance said it does try to sort claims over the telephone “wherever possible,” but added that a fifth of cases required a declaration form or statement to be completed by the claimant.

So, is it possible to make a claim without filling in any forms? “Ooooohhhhh nnoooooo” doesn’t quite have the same ring.

The company apologised and said the claim was used “in error” and that it wouldn’t be repeated in future TV ads.

This isn’t the first time Churchill’s dog has made headlines though. Earlier in the summer the company were criticised, when it was reported that their canine front-dog said a rather offensive swear word immediately after his catchphrase. Of course, a Churchill spokesman denied the swearing.

Churchill isn’t the only bad egg in a battery farm of insurance companies though. Staff at Carphone Warehouse were caught by undercover researchers from BBC One’s Watchdog last autumn, after misleading customers about insurance for the Apple iPhone. The BBC researchers found Carphone staff made false claims about what would happen if a phone was stolen and hadn’t been insured.  According to the BBC, these false claims were made in the hope that “customers would take out the store’s own insurance”.

And back in January last year, a number of firms were slammed by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for misleading customers, and told that they must stop using savings claims in their advertising that could be deemed misleading.

So are any other insurance companies misleading us? Is anyone safe? Have you fallen foul to a deceptive advertising claim or discovered that your insurance policy wasn’t all you thought it was? Have your say in our forum.

And the moral of the story: Don’t believe everything your told. Especially if it comes from the mouth of a talking dog…

 E.ON - Sly as a fox

Monday 1st September, 2008 - £7,977.79 in debt…

When I’ve finally paid off all my debts and I’m looking back at my “journey” (which is what I’d call it if I were an X Factor contestant), I’ll think of month 4 with great fondness. Not only was it the month in which I finally got below the £8k mark - it was the month in which these things happened:

Good times

1) This month’s biggest success story was being accepted for another home-based job, which can fill in the time when I’m not temping or freelancing: I’m going to be an internet researcher for AQA (Any Question Answered). I’ve now finished my training and will be starting the job properly once I’ve finished writing this blog post…

2) I collected a lovely range of loyalty cards: the Nectar Card, Tesco Clubcard, Boots Advantage Card and Co-op Membership Card. Aside from the Co-op one, these all enable me to collect points, which mean prizes. Hooray.

3) I used Money Saving Expert’s new credit scoring tool to find out whether there’s anything I should be doing to make sure my credit rating is as good as it can be by the time my debts are cleared. I learned that I should cancel each card as soon as I’ve paid it off, and that I shouldn’t move house. Fine by me.

4) Online shopping with Asda was an enormous success, but they’ve now stopped sending me ‘free delivery’ vouchers by email. I am shocked and appalled.

5) I’ve decided to go on a cheap holiday, probably in November. You might think this is a bad thing, considering my situation, but I’ve decided to put it in the ‘good times’ pile because it will improve my mental state, making me a happier and more efficient worker when I come back. Yes it will.

6) And I’ve signed up for free UK calls with 1899, a very cheap secondary phone supplier. I keep forgetting to dial the prefix number though - might have to have it tattooed on my hand, which will cost money.

Bad times

1) I went a bit crazy doing too much work. I would have had to stop myself if the work hadn’t dried up on its own.

2) After switching my gas and electricity to a capped tariff with E.ON, I discovered that either (a) the comparison service I used had provided me with the wrong information, or (b) E.ON had done something shifty and added a cancellation fee where there shouldn’t have been one.

3) I realised that Endsleigh have been taking me for a ride for the last 18 months or so, charging me for a Payment Protection Insurance policy I didn’t want. On the plus side, I complained to Endsleigh and they sorted it out straight away. I now have a cheque for £25 to play with.

So, with a grand total of six plus points and only three minuses, this has been one of my more successful months. I’ve also paid off £401.04 after interest - and that doesn’t include this month’s Barclaycard standing order, as my statement hasn’t arrived yet. I’m still perfectly on track for my goal of being debt free by the end of April 2010.

Now, how much quicker could I do this if I become the fastest researcher AQA has ever employed? There’s only one way to find out.

 Olivia celebrates (in the Hamptons)

Wednesday 20th August, 2008 - £8,078.83 in debt…

According to Rudyard Kipling, if I can “meet with triumph and disaster and treat those two impostors just the same”, among other things, mine will be the Earth and everything that’s in it. Well, that would be nice, but I’d rather approach disaster with a bottle of valium, and triumph with a party popper.

Today I have triumphed over Endsleigh insurance, after discovering yesterday that they have mis-sold me a PPI policy. Pop!

The email reply to my complaint apologises for the situation but does not take responsibility for mis-selling the policy. It does, however, assure me that the PPI charges I’ve paid so far will be refunded and that the policy itself will be cancelled.

I’ve also just had someone from Endsleigh on the phone, apologising again. According to her, Endsleigh didn’t have a call recording procedure in place when I first took out my policy, so they can’t check what I asked for and what I didn’t, but “it is our policy to never make you pay for anything you don’t want, and we would have asked you whether the insurance was something you’d be happy with”. In other words, “nothing to do with us - you must have asked for it.” I didn’t.

Anyway, there’s no use crying over disregarded FSA regulations - at least I get my money back. How many party poppers can I get with £25?

The Matiz post MOT

Tuesday 19th August, 2008 - £8,078.83 in debt…

I woke up today in what I can only describe as a chipper mood. The sun was shining, Rafael Nadal had claimed his place as tennis’s world number one, and I was looking forward to booking my holiday. I tra-la-la-ed my way to the front door, a skip in my step, picked up the post, and discovered that I’ve been mis-sold some Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) by Endsleigh. Hooray!

I have a car insurance policy with Endsleigh, and it’s not due for renewal until January, but I called them on Friday to add my boyfriend (who’s learning) to my policy. This went as well as could be expected, and will only cost me an extra £20 for the rest of the year. When my new credit agreement arrived this morning, it included an extra couple of quid per month for PPI, which I hadn’t asked for and hadn’t been asked about. 

“Oh, how charming!”, I thought. “How lovely of them to assume I’d benefit from PPI and add it to my policy without wasting my valuable time by asking me!”. Perhaps if I’d been in a worse frame of mind I might have marched down to Endsleigh’s Plymouth branch and fire-bombed it. Who knows?

Whenever I’ve been asked whether I want PPI, I’ve always said no. It’s a waste of money and, frankly, if I ever find I can’t afford £18 a month for my car insurance, I’d be better off selling my car. I’m 100 percent sure that I wasn’t consulted about this.

My first step was to become slightly enraged and then get over it. I checked the smallprint so that I could phone Endsleigh and bellow “how DARE you change my policy?” down the phone. But, as it turned out, they’ve been charging me for PPI since January! This is what happens when you don’t pay any attention to your finances for years.

So, I’ve tried phoning Endsleigh and emailed them when I couldn’t get through. I’ve explained what’s happened and asked to cancel my PPI. But can I reclaim what I’ve already paid?

Money Saving Expert says I can reclaim mis-sold PPI on loans, credit cards and store cards, but doesn’t mention dodgy insurance policies. What do I do next…?

Update!

I’ve emailed the Endsleigh complaints department, explained everything and asked for a refund of all the PPI charges I’ve paid so far. I’ve backed up my claim by referring to the FSA regulations Endsleigh is subject to. If you’re thinking of making a similar complaint, you can check whether the company in question is on the FSA register by going here.