Just a thought, would it not be possible to discuss with your main mortgage provider whether they would allow you to add this to your main mortgage ? That would get these lot off your backs and I would bet the payments would be cheaper

Thanks Advoc8, No I don't have any other accounts with them. The charges effectively made up the debt so my thinking is that A&L should write them off then the matter will be closed and account cleared. If the account was still open I would be doing the usual process to get the charges paid back into my account.

Sorry Buzby, don't agree that the incident should be reported to his motor insurers if there is no intent to claim from them. The obligation is only there should a third party be involved where there is a likleyhood of a claim. My background is underwriting however if there's a claims specialist here perhaps they can confirm either way.

Yes, add them onto your LBA.

The motor insurers do not need to be told of this unless a claim is to be made as no third party was involved. Even though the damage did not take place on the hotel property, the cause of the incident was a result of debris coming off the hotel therefore they should be deemed responsible

However they have not stated that so I am tempted to reply restating what I said in my initial letter to them restating the facts regarding penalty charges etc Do you agree, if so what's the best way to word it ?

Go for the full amount of each penalty charge. Don't forget that this applies to all penalty charges for Bounced cheques, paid referrals, unpaid DDs etc. If in doubt...shout !

Nattie, Can't write or ring Tessera as A&L have not provided address or telephone number.

Thanks for responses so far. Sent initial letter enclosing cheque 26/2. Reply received 7/3 but no mention of receipt of my cheque nor that they did not accept my "full and final settlement". Now receved letter this morning stating futyre corres to be with Tessera. My cheque was cashed after I received their reply of the 9th.

Could someone give me a bit advice please. Closed account with A&L which they advised I owed a sum of money. This was made up almost entirely of illegal charges... 3 in one day twice. After totting up the charges, I calculated I acually owed them less than £5. Sent letter stating loosley based on the LBA stating Consumer regs etc enclosing a cheque & stating " I calculate that £xx is owed to you and enclose a cheque to this value in full and final settlement." Reply received basically ignoring the content of my letter giving all sorts of blurb about keeping in credit & checking balance etc howver the account is closed !!!!! They then went on to say that they are unable to help further and cannot offer a refund. No mention of my cheque. This morning I get another letter frim their Debt Recovery Division referring to my payment received in respect of my former A&L account. They state that the account is being dealt with Tessera Credit Services and I should contact them to arrange future payments - No address or telephone number mind !!! As A&L have now cashed my cheque which I stated was in full & final settlement, do they have a case to persue. How should I phrase my reply ? Any assistance will be gratefully received Thanks Trojan

In my opinion this is definately an insured risk and Holiday Inns are liable. I agree with Wez that you should claim directly against them as your motor insurers would probably not persue recovery due to cost. Ring Holiday Inns and ask for the name and address of their brokers who will probably deal with claims on their behalf as I HI will have a significant retention under their property insurance of around $1m i.e. they will self insure claims below this level. I don't think they have their own insurance department so brokers will administer this on their behalf.

Agree with RedDeath. List all items stolen and obtain pro-forma invoices from retailers (or print off internet) and send to the claims manager of the insurer. Suggest you call them first and get the person's name then send recorded delivery stating you expect settlement within 7 days. I would state that you are happy for replacement so you give them every opportunity to settle in what ever way. From your post, I take it that the claim itself is not in dispute, just quantum so if you provide proof as above, there cannot be any dispute. Out of interest, who is the insurer so they can be named & shamed !!

I think it is definately worth persuing as the wording is ambiguous. What is secure ? Were there unmanned barriers at the car park, regular security patrols etc. Take it up first of all with Groupama then if no joy, the ombudsman.

Bruce, From what you are saying, it appears that you bumped into an immobile object. It does not matter where this occurred as it appears that you wish to claim for damage to your vehicle. This will be covered under the "Damage to your Own Vehicle" section of the policy providing that it is comprehensive. Any claim however will be subject to any excess clause & may affect the No Claim Bonus. In addition, the owners of the car park may claim against you for damage caused to their property.

No, they are separate agreements.

What has happened to common sense ? Obviously computer generated otherwise someone with an ounce of common sense would not make the charge. And it costs £12 to do that Words fail me................................

Buzby, Whilst I agree with insurers requesting a copy of your licence, it is a subjectivity and should have been pointed out prior to purchase. Are you dealing direct or via a broker ?

OK, Letter in post tomorrow morning. See what response we get !!! Cheers Tanz.

Thanks, that's ideal.

Send your DPA to the card issuer i.e MBNA, GM etc and follow the same course of action as the banks.

I can appreciate your concerns and hopefully I cam allay your fears. Firstly, the fact that the police may request a copy of your licence is nothing to do with the insurance policy. They have the right to request all relevent documentation i.e. the producer to ensure that you are legally entitled to drive in the UK and that you have the necessary insurance cover. Once that's done, that is generally the end of their interest - unless injury or an illegal act has occurred. Whether the vehicle is taxed or MOT'd is not an issue to the insurer unless a claim occurs and they may not pay the full amount that may be due to you. They are obliged however to deal with the Third Party under RTA rules & regs. The databases insurers have access to are the MID ( every insured vehicle registered and Insured in the UK is logged on this - or should be ) which is a safeguard against uninsured drivers. The police also have access to this. However the insurers will not have direct access to the DVLA database nor to a claims database. ( Can a personal lines UW advise me different ? ). Regarding scanning - Most organisations no longer retain paper files whether it be Insurance, banking or any other company as "files" are now stored electronically and access will be restricted to employees or authorised users only. Finally, your insurer is not starting a trend rather reinforcing past requirements. When I worked in personal lines insurance many moons ago, this was the norm for a lot of insurers - especially Lloyds Underwriters. If a company accepts you and you don't have a licence then yes they will repudiate your claim however should a third party be involved, they are obliged under the RTA to deal with this. As I said earlier, the request is fair and helps the insurer to keep costs down by targeting a specific audience i.e. those who the know have got claen and full UK licences. You'd be amazed how many drivers are on the roads with foreign invalid licences etc. And now my whinge - in general, most people complain about the cost of insuring vehicles and anything which helps reduce the cost gets my vote. Ultimately, that is what this company is doing - minimising their exposure. I hope that this goes someway to answering your concerns and I 'm sure some of the other respondents will endorse what I've said.

If it is a condition of the policy that a copy licence is supplied that you must do so. The insurer will be within their right to cancel the policy or refuse to pay any damage claim. This is a safeguard on their behalf to ensure that you have a valid UK licence. It is a fair request in view of the significant number of people driving without a valid licence never mind without insurance. Such risk management helps to reduce premiums and not for any "big brother" purpose. There is no need for you to be concerned. They will no doubt scan the copy then destroy it as I suspect all data will be held electronically.

I've now had a reply from Capital One giving the usual blurb about how they consider their charges fair. As a "gesture of goodwill" they have refunded £36 to my account. I intend to reply to this requesting the full amount before persuing via courts. Could someone suggest how I should phrase the reply please. many thanks

Lenny, That's absolute rubbish on their behalf. Ask for the name and direct telephone number of the head of either motor or personal lines underwriting. If that fails, I'll get it for you tomorrow & will PM it to you later in week.

This is another one of the stalling tricks. Send the standard DPA with a £10 cheque - or perferably hand it in to your bank. They then have 40 days to comply otherwise you can report them to the financial ombudsman.