Quinn Direct! Paid for insurance for 6 months and wasn't even insured!

stephenpalmer

Hello all,

I got insured about 6 months ago with Quinn Direct. Applied online, my car was out of service so I just got insured on my sisters car as she was living in Spain for the past 6 months.

She came back and saught out her own insurance and obviously took her car back.

Anyways I contacted Quinn straight away to "pause" my insurance for a month or two until I could get my own set of wheels again. They then informed me that I can't get insurance under someone else's car unless they are your parents or spouse. When I was doing my online form I accidently ticked that my sister was actually my spouse.

The lady then on the phone said I have basically been paying for nothing for the past 6months as you can't get insured unless you own the car. She said if there had of been a crash they wouldn't of payed out anything.

Luckily I had no accidents in this period.

My query is that if I technically wasn't insured for the 6 months then why should I have payed it???? I wasn't advised of this and if I had of made a mistake on the online form and not been insured as a result of this is that not their fault?

Does anyone have any idea if I have a case of if I have just wasted €500 in the last 6months for nothing?

Thanks

Paulw

stephenpalmer wrote: »

My query is that if I technically wasn't insured for the 6 months then why should I have payed it???? I wasn't advised of this and if I had of made a mistake on the online form and not been insured as a result of this is that not their fault?

How is it their fault that you ticked the box to say that the person named (your sister) was your spouse? How are they supposed to know who the named person is in relation to you, without you telling them? You ticked the box, so it's your fault, and only your fault.

Technically, you provided false information, and if there had have been an accident, and you made a claim, they could have come after you for insurance fraud, for providing false information.

stargazer 68

Let me get this straight
You made the mistake on the application and told them your sister was your wife? You paid the insurance premiums but weren't insured?

Well as far as I see it, and I could be wrong, its your fault. Why would they inform you of the error when they didnt see an error? You declared her as your wife and how would they know any different?

maxer68

you still would have been covered third party and even then, if it was a genuine error you could have gone to ombudsman for a fully comp claim and the chances are the ruling would have gone in your favour.

stephenpalmer

Dovies wrote: »

Let me get this straight
You made the mistake on the application and told them your sister was your wife? You paid the insurance premiums but weren't insured?

Well as far as I see it, and I could be wrong, its your fault. Why would they inform you of the error when they didnt see an error? You declared her as your wife and how would they know any different?

I obviously didn't purposly declare her as my wife, it was a miss click.
Well I was insured I suppose but they said it would be likely that I wouldn't have received any claims if there was a crash.

stephenpalmer

Paulw wrote: »

How is it their fault that you ticked the box to say that the person named (your sister) was your spouse? How are they supposed to know who the named person is in relation to you, without you telling them? You ticked the box, so it's your fault, and only your fault.

Technically, you provided false information, and if there had have been an accident, and you made a claim, they could have come after you for insurance fraud, for providing false information.

I didn't do it on purpose, I just filled in the form online. I must of clicked the box to say that she was my spouse. Rather than sister

seamus

stephenpalmer wrote: »

I didn't do it on purpose, I just filled in the form online. I must of clicked the box to say that she was my spouse. Rather than sister

I wasn't advised of this and if I had of made a mistake on the online form and not been insured as a result of this is that not their fault?

How could they advise you that you made a mistake on the online form when they wouldn't be aware that you did?

Paulw

stephenpalmer wrote: »

I didn't do it on purpose, I just filled in the form online. I must of clicked the box to say that she was my spouse. Rather than sister

I was never saying you did it on purpose, but they have no way of knowing what the relationship is with the owner of the vehicle. The form is the only info they have to go on. And they have no direct way of knowing if you ticked the box by mistake or intentionally.

Unfortunately, in this case, you made a mistake and that's that. You're just very lucky that you had no accidents during the period.

stephenpalmer

seamus wrote: »

How could they advise you that you made a mistake on the online form when they wouldn't be aware that you did?

true.. So I can't get my 6months back then?

seamus

stephenpalmer wrote: »

true.. So I can't get my 6months back then?

Not without a serious amount of pain.

You could strictly argue that since the particulars on your application were incorrect and you were technically uninsured, then no insurance was provided and therefore Quinn Direct are/were not due any money from you and must return it.

However, it gets messy because the insurance facility was available on a good faith basis, Quinn Direct didn't actively or purposely deny you insurance while charging you a premium.

You also face the problem that if you start making noise about this, you will be effectively declaring that you spent 6 months driving around uninsured. Since it is the driver's responsibility to ensure that they have insurance, you would potentially be liable to be charged with driving without insurance and subject to a fine and a disqualification.

That's a worst-caser though. You'd want to get on the very bad side of a Garda for them to go to that trouble.

My advice would be to chalk it down to experience. It's worth noting that the particulars of your insurance were contained on any documentation sent to you. Let this be a lesson in future to review all insurance documentation for accuracy and have it changed if you see anything wrong.

DVD-Lots

Did they not send out any documentation for you to sign once you agreed to the policy with all the details you selected online?

maxer68

stephenpalmer wrote: »

I didn't do it on purpose, I just filled in the form online. I must of clicked the box to say that she was my spouse. Rather than sister

I should hope so - the catholic church frown upon that type of thing :D:D. You'd end up in hell!:p

Yawns

He won't be entitled to anything back as they would have sent him documents to sign and declare that the above information is true. If he didn't bother to read and just signed then he made a false declaration unintentionally but still did so.

Just go get insured on your new car when you get one and this time read everything they send you. Never assume what an insurance company sends you is 100% in order. Always always read and then sign.

You're not alone in this. I know too many people that can't be bothered to read documents that require a signature at the end. How do people just go about signing anything all willy nilly and then claim they were wronged if something happens a few months down the line that could have been easily avoided by just checking the facts once.

dudara

Moved to Banking & Insurance & Pensions

dudara

NuMarvel

Could this get messy when the OP goes to arrange motor insurance in the future, and has to answer the question about no claims bonuses and previous insurers?

If the OP says they were with Quinn and Quinn says they weren't then it looks like the OP is being misleading. But if the OP doesn't mention it and the new insurer sees information that shows the OP was with Quinn, then could it look like the OP is trying to hide a claim?

Otis Driftwood

I would say you have a case to get your money back to be honest.

What it sounds like is that Quinn are going to/have cancelled your policy "ab initio" - basically means that the policy for all intents and purposes never existed and as such you would be entitled to a refund less a discretionary administration fee that can be applied by Quinn.

I wouldnt let it lie if I was you anyway.

Also,as someone rightly said above,you would have been covered for any third party claim had you made one however Quinn could have pursued you legally to claim the monies back from you.

Finally,its vitally important that people fill out and read online forms correctly.All too often people zip through them and dont have a breeze what they are selecting.

stephenpalmer

DVD-Lots wrote: »

Did they not send out any documentation for you to sign once you agreed to the policy with all the details you selected online?

Nope just got my disc in the post.

stephenpalmer

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

I would say you have a case to get your money back to be honest.

What it sounds like is that Quinn are going to/have cancelled your policy "ab initio" - basically means that the policy for all intents and purposes never existed and as such you would be entitled to a refund less a discretionary administration fee that can be applied by Quinn.

I wouldnt let it lie if I was you anyway.

Also,as someone rightly said above,you would have been covered for any third party claim had you made one however Quinn could have pursued you legally to claim the monies back from you.

Finally,its vitally important that people fill out and read online forms correctly.All too often people zip through them and dont have a breeze what they are selecting.

Really? What is the best way in going about doing this? If I even mentioned it to them on the phone they would probably dismiss it and say tuff luck?

Would writing an email be the best way to go about it?

stephenpalmer

NuMarvel wrote: »

Could this get messy when the OP goes to arrange motor insurance in the future, and has to answer the question about no claims bonuses and previous insurers?

If the OP says they were with Quinn and Quinn says they weren't then it looks like the OP is being misleading. But if the OP doesn't mention it and the new insurer sees information that shows the OP was with Quinn, then could it look like the OP is trying to hide a claim?

I still was registered and insured technically like I got the disc and all like. They just said that if I had of had an accident that I prob wouldn't of payed out anything.

matt70iu

stephenpalmer wrote: »

I still was registered and insured technically like I got the disc and all like. They just said that if I had of had an accident that I prob wouldn't of payed out anything.

It is a small little detail on the poilicy but with insurance, everything on your cert/online proposal has to be accurate.

I had a similar experience with AXA a couple of years back. Changed to a completely different line of work. They had my occupation down as retail management as that's what I was doing at time of inception.

I rang them come my renewal cuse I thought it was a rip off. Told them I had changed Jobs a few months ago and the guy on the phone says I should have told them as I would have been in trouble in the event of a claim.

Moved to Quinn in the end cuse they were cheaper and made sure they had my correct occupation. So technically speaking I was uninsured with Axa for lord knows how long.

Was my mistake without a doubt!!

Otis Driftwood

stephenpalmer wrote: »

Really? What is the best way in going about doing this? If I even mentioned it to them on the phone they would probably dismiss it and say tuff luck?

Would writing an email be the best way to go about it?

First of all ring them and find out exactly what the status of the policy is,that should be your first port of call.Dont let them fob you off either.

matt70iu wrote: »

It is a small little detail on the poilicy but with insurance, everything on your cert/online proposal has to be accurate.

I had a similar experience with AXA a couple of years back. Changed to a completely different line of work. They had my occupation down as retail management as that's what I was doing at time of inception.

I rang them come my renewal cuse I thought it was a rip off. Told them I had changed Jobs a few months ago and the guy on the phone says I should have told them as I would have been in trouble in the event of a claim.

Moved to Quinn in the end cuse they were cheaper and made sure they had my correct occupation. So technically speaking I was uninsured with Axa for lord knows how long.

Was my mistake without a doubt!!

Rubbish.

The only possible way it could have effected you would have been if you were using the vehicle for work purposes,say doing deliveries,carrying stock,repping etc and didnt inform them,otherwise the occupation doesnt matter.

Tayla

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

The only possible way it could have effected you would have been if you were using the vehicle for work purposes,say doing deliveries,carrying stock,repping etc and didnt inform them,otherwise the occupation doesnt matter.

Sometimes people who work in the motor trade find it very difficult to get a reasonable quote ( and by reasonable I mean in comparison to another person of the same age and same driving experience) because the insurance companies presume that you might start using your policy to drive customer cars etc so they don't tell the truth about their occupation.

Off topic :When we first bought a house and set up the house insurance, we didn't realise it wasn't being paid, received a letter about 11 months later saying that the money wasn't paid but they admitted it was their fault as they hadn't been collecting the money from the account, they said that we had been covered for the full amount of time and said they wouldn't request the first 6 months payment but could be please forward the last 5 months payment to them to continue to policy...............we said no of course and just moved to another insurance company. I mean, they said we were covered but would we really have been?

In this case OP, it was your fault because you told them the wrong information, now I know it was a genuine mistake but if people could give insurance companies the wrong info, just small mistakes, mistakes that would probably entitle you to still avail of claiming from your insurance but mistakes that would also entitle you to then claim back all their money saying they weren't insured then what would stop people from taking that chance and deliberately giving them the wrong info.


If I were you I would worry that maybe it would open a whole can of worms in the future going for insurance, if it showed up as a cancelled policy or something like that.

As another poster said i'd count myself lucky that I wasn't involved in any crashes in the past 6 months but good luck if you do try to get your money back and keep us posted on the outcome:)

matt70iu

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

First of all ring them and find out exactly what the status of the policy is,that should be your first port of call.Dont let them fob you off either.



Rubbish.

The only possible way it could have effected you would have been if you were using the vehicle for work purposes,say doing deliveries,carrying stock,repping etc and didnt inform them,otherwise the occupation doesnt matter.

Well under the 5 principals of insurance falling under utmost good faith, the details on your poilicy must be accurate. So I think they do have a point. Companies also tend to double check details in the event of a claim, so you're better off not giving them any excuse to refuse to pay out on a claim.

davo10

OP, I think this is one of those silly mistakes you should have kept to yourself. You ticked the wrong box, your mistake, it could be argued that you fraudulently obtained an insurance disc on someone elses car to avoid prosecution if stopped by the gardai while driving it.

Otis Driftwood

matt70iu wrote: »

Well under the 5 principals of insurance falling under utmost good faith, the details on your poilicy must be accurate. So I think they do have a point. Companies also tend to double check details in the event of a claim, so you're better off not giving them any excuse to refuse to pay out on a claim.

Oh Im very familiar with the rule of utmost good faith.What it really boils down to is the class of use of the vehicle.If it was still been used for the same purpose as it was originally intended ie social,domestic and the commute to work then the insurer couldnt negate a claim just because you had changed your job and didnt tell them,if they tried the Insurance Ombudsman would nail them to the wall.

oldyouth

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

I would say you have a case to get your money back to be honest.

What it sounds like is that Quinn are going to/have cancelled your policy "ab initio" - basically means that the policy for all intents and purposes never existed and as such you would be entitled to a refund less a discretionary administration fee that can be applied by Quinn.

You're perfectly correct in that being the established method on how you would get your cash back. However, that brings its own problems in that it is a forced cancellation by insurers, which has to be declared to every potential insurer going forward. Fail to declare it and you are back in bother

stephenpalmer

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

Oh Im very familiar with the rule of utmost good faith.What it really boils down to is the class of use of the vehicle.If it was still been used for the same purpose as it was originally intended ie social,domestic and the commute to work then the insurer couldnt negate a claim just because you had changed your job and didnt tell them,if they tried the Insurance Ombudsman would nail them to the wall.

Serious, so you think its worth persuing? Or should I just leave it?

stephenpalmer

I am going to contact Quinn either 2moro or Monday, and discuss the matter. Would it be worth seeking a solicitor? Its not a huge amount of money but still imagine if I had of crashed into a 100k car.

For the moment the last thing they said to me was that they will "Pause" my insurance and cancel the insurance on my sisters car. I left it at that.

davo10

stephenpalmer wrote: »

I am going to contact Quinn either 2moro or Monday, and discuss the matter. Would it be worth seeking a solicitor? Its not a huge amount of money but still imagine if I had of crashed into a 100k car.

:

You want to get a solicitor to threaten Quinn with court action during which you would be stating that you falsely obtained insurance on a car you didnt own and drove illegally without a valid insurance disc for six months, good luck with that.

If you crashed into a €100k car I think you should be more concerned about the injuries you may cause the other driver and passengers. Quinn quite rightly would not cover you as you did not accurately and truthfully (whether accidently or not) fill out the online form and you would be in trouble.

Why are you making an issue of this and trying to get money out of Quinn, as far as they knew they were providing cover for you for the 6 months in good faith and would have paid out if you had an accident as per your online form. This was your mistake, I don't think many readers would fill out the forms incurrectly then near the end of the policy term ring their insurers and say they've made a mistake which nullified their policy and want their money back, it would be a scam.

Otis Driftwood

oldyouth wrote: »

You're perfectly correct in that being the established method on how you would get your cash back. However, that brings its own problems in that it is a forced cancellation by insurers, which has to be declared to every potential insurer going forward. Fail to declare it and you are back in bother

He is going to have to declare it anyway so he may as well pursue the money he has paid.

stephenpalmer wrote: »

Serious, so you think its worth persuing? Or should I just leave it?

As I said above,ring Quinn and find out exactly what the status of the policy is.That will give a better indicator of how you should move forward.

davo10 wrote: »

You want to get a solicitor to threaten Quinn with court action during which you would be stating that you falsely obtained insurance on a car you didnt own and drove illegally without a valid insurance disc for six months, good luck with that.

If you crashed into a €100k car I think you should be more concerned about the injuries you may cause the other driver and passengers. Quinn quite rightly would not cover you as you did not accurately and truthfully (whether accidently or not) fill out the online form and you would be in trouble.

Why are you making an issue of this and trying to get money out of Quinn, as far as they knew they were providing cover for you for the 6 months in good faith and would have paid out if you had an accident as per your online form. This was your mistake, I don't think many readers would fill out the forms incurrectly then near the end of the policy term ring their insurers and say they've made a mistake which nullified their policy and want their money back, it would be a scam.

They would.By law,if a car is insured,even if the policy was gotten using incorrect or false information either by design or by accident,the insurer has to cover any third party damage.Its a bit of a screwy system but thats the law.

davo10

Otis Driftwood wrote: »

By law,if a car is insured,even if the policy was gotten using incorrect or false information either by design or by accident,the insurer has to cover any third party damage.Its a bit of a screwy system but thats the law.

This makes it all the more rediculous that OP seems to be blaming the insurer for the situation and believes he is entitled to a refund, that's the screwy bit in my view.