Endsleigh car insurance: how a false allegation can ruin you

[Whisper2016]

I have been insured by Endsleigh car insurance for many years. Never had any problems - but reality is that you only really get to know your insurer in times of trouble.

 

In October 2015, a false allegation was made against me by a third party. The third party claims that I have crushed into their vehicle and darted off without stopping. The third party claims that they have CCTV of me - and there is even a rumour that this CCTV was handed to the third party by the police themselves.

 

Very curious, because on the day of the alleged incident I was overseas on a business trip. One would think that I can easily prove my innocence, right?

 

I have a stamped passport showing I left the country before the incident and arrived after the incident; on the day of the incident I used my credit card in a foreign country; on the day of the incident I made and received calls on my mobile phone, clearly showing that my location was overseas; my vehicle was parked in the airport car parks before the incident and was collected after the incident; the car parks have written to confirm that in this type of car park you do not have to submit your car keys - therefore the only pair of keys was with me.

 

Despite all of the above, my insurer sent an engineer to assess my vehicle. The engineer could not find any damage consistent with the allegation.

 

Yet, several months on, as I write this on April 2016, I am still being treated by my insurer as though I am guilty of a crime. The case is ongoing, and my insurer has now written to me saying that I have lost my 8 years of no claims discounts - despite the fact that case is ongoing, and despite my overwhelming evidence.

 

The third party has been challenged to show us the CCTV. They can't, or they won't, and Endsleigh keep "reminding" this third party to give us the CCTV. Not once did they think that in the absence of the CCTV being sent to us they should close the case.

 

Most incredible of all is that when I made a complaint to Endsleigh, it took them half a day only - just HALF A DAY - to find against my complaint and to send me a leaflet with the Ombudsman details. Brilliant show Endsleigh - expert box ticking on your behalf. If only you were THAT quick with everything else that you do. Months and months have passed since you have found against my complaint, and you are still scratching your chins wondering what you can do next to prove me guilty. You have seen all my evidence - there is no chance in the world that I could have been, or my car could have been, involved in the alleged incident. How can you still have this as an ongoing case, and how in the world did you only need half a day to find against my complaint?

 

What's even more impressive is that when the allegation was first made against me, Endsleigh did not bother to tell me. They started working on a case against me, recording details that the third party sent to them, but they did not call me or message me to tell me. Two weeks after the allegation I found out when the third party sent me a letter to say they are making a claim through my insurance and there's nothing I can do about it - this is just for "information purposes". At that point I rang Endsleigh, they told me that they tried to contact me leaving "a voicemail and a message". I did not receive a missed call, a voice mail or a message. In any case, does it even matter that they tried to contact me, IF indeed they did? I was under the impression that their contractual obligation is to ACTUALLY contact me, not to try to (and fail) at contacting me. At least if you could prove that you have sent a message to me, or an email, I could put it down to just bad luck for not hearing from you. But this isn't the case at all is it?

 

Shame on you Endsleigh. You stole my no claims discount over nothing. I am dealing with an insurer who has no sense of urgency and no sense of justice. I will have a new born in 2 months and clearly I have better things to worry about - I guess I should just move on to another insurer, lose my discounts, and accept the fact that people in your line of business are the judge, jury and executioner of us poor motorists.

Edited April 16, 2016 by Whisper2016

[BankFodder]

If you want to deal with this, we can help you but you will have to be prepared to make trouble.

Read ICOBS and monitor this thread for a fuller response tomorrow

[Guest]

hi

welcome to cag.

was your complaint escalated higher up within endsleigh/zurich for resolution. to patrick Cohen/David Nichols (afaik?) perhaps..?

otherwise, take it to the ombudsman.

[Whisper2016]

Thank you.

 

My original complaint was pretty much quashed right away. I was sent the Ombudsman leaflet presumably because that's the only option I have. The case is still ongoing according to my insurer - they have not made a decision that I should pay anything, and they keep telling me over the telephone that they "believe" it wasn't me or my car. The trouble is that they are refusing to close the case because the third party cannot provide CCTV, and instead they are waiting forever for the images to arrive. It is now time for me to renew my insurance policy, but they won't give me a letter confirming that I have 8 years no claims. In fact they have already sent me a letter saying that I don't have the privilege - even though the case is ongoing.

 

In all honesty I had enough, I am moving houses at the minute and getting ready to welcome my first child to the world. I can't see how the way that Endsleigh is treating me can possibly be legal - are they really entitled to take away my no claims during an ongoing case? Can a random person really claim they have cctv footage against you and then never show the footage to you, keeping your insurer deadlocked for months and then forcing you out of your no claims? This makes me feel like the victim of an insurance [problem] to be honest.

[Whisper2016]

If you want to deal with this, we can help you but you will have to be prepared to make trouble.

Read ICOBS and monitor this thread for a fuller response tomorrow

 

I would really appreciate some help, I really don't know how to deal with these people any more. I can't imagine what it would be like if I was unfortunate enough not to have been out of the country on that day. The way they are handling this is shocking, I couldn't think of a worse way to do it if I tried.

 

Thank you. I look forward to your reply.

[Guest]

My original complaint was pretty much quashed right away. I was sent the Ombudsman leaflet presumably because that's the only option I have

sometimes an initial response re a complaint is reviewable (ie it gets escalated to someone higher up than the initial responder), and then a final response if no resolution. then off to an ombudsman/regulator. but, sometimes writing to those even higher up can produce positive results before having to go to an ombudsman or the like. hence my thoughts there.

anyway, wait see bankfodder's reply.

[unclebulgaria67]

I suspect that the third party has got the wrong car registration and have found your Insurance details in error.

 

If you have the third parties details, there is nothing stopping you sending them a letter highlighting that they have made a mistake identifying the wrong vehicle, as you were abroad at the time of this alleged accident, with your car in an airport compound, with no keys available to the parking company, Ask them to provide the CCTV and/or full details of the car make/model/colour and description of the driver.

 

Endsleigh are being a bit silly with this, if the situation is as you have described. You could send Endsleigh a Data Protection Subject Access Request for a copy of your claim file.

 

A question you could ask Endsleigh is whether the third party has provided details of your car make/model/colour and does this match your car.

[Whisper2016]

I suspect that the third party has got the wrong car registration and have found your Insurance details in error.

 

If you have the third parties details, there is nothing stopping you sending them a letter highlighting that they have made a mistake identifying the wrong vehicle, as you were abroad at the time of this alleged accident, with your car in an airport compound, with no keys available to the parking company, Ask them to provide the CCTV and/or full details of the car make/model/colour and description of the driver.

 

Endsleigh are being a bit silly with this, if the situation is as you have described. You could send Endsleigh a Data Protection Subject Access Request for a copy of your claim file.

 

A question you could ask Endsleigh is whether the third party has provided details of your car make/model/colour and does this match your car.

 

 

Indeed - we suspected that the third party had incorrect details read off the CCTV imaging. However, the third party has initiated this claim through a legal service (FMG). FMG were only in touch once, telling me that they are making this claim - and that their letter is only for "information purposes". I have tried to contact them by telephone and by email to explain, but none of my messages have been responded to; they only communicate with my insurer.

 

Endsleigh have requested the CCTV imaging, time and time and time again. The third party is not providing it, or cannot provide it, and so Endsleigh keep requesting. I have been kept in the dark with regard to what information has been supplied. Endsleigh do not appear to have been given anything by the third party other than the day and time, a vehicle registration number, and nothing else. I have been told by the handler at Endsleigh that they would like to see "whether the vehicle on the CCTV is [insert my vehicle brand and colour]", which surely means that the third party has not supplied this information.

 

How is it that the third party's blackout, refusing to supply further information, can prolong this matter for so long that Endsleigh can just send me a letter (dated 13 April 2016) to say that I no longer have a no claims discount? The case is ongoing, but in my opinion it's only ongoing because Endsleigh have not handled it in an appropriate manner. I have supplied overwhelming evidence that I was outside the country, nevermind their own engineer who can't find any damage to my vehicle. The amount of money and time I have spent on this already is shocking - and now I can't even insure my car unless I concede defeat and proceed with another insurer without my no claims discount.

 

Honestly, this is the sort of nonsense I have only ever read about and never experienced. I'm not used to being treated guilty and having to run around like a headless chicken to prove my innocence - and fail at it purely because my accuser doesn't reply to our requests to supply further accusations.

[Guest]

see also what bankfodder says.

maybe time to write to those endsleigh guys, or the like, i mentioned.

maybe also consider a complaint to fmg, ceo mark chessman according to their site.

otherwise, ombuds

[king12345]

Start writing.

Endsleigh ceo first of all, then the third party (the actual driver being hit) and fmg ceo.

Explain in no uncertain terms that if they do not stop pursuing this non-existent claim you will have to report driver and fmg to the police for insurance fraud within 7 days.

Not that you'll have an easy run with the police that nowadays claim that anything but murder is a civil dispute, but that should at least get a response.

[BankFodder]

they keep telling me over the telephone that they "believe" it wasn't me or my car.

 

And I suppose that you have got no evidence to prove that they have been saying this.

 

Please read our customer services guide. Implement the advice there. Call them again and manoeuvre them into the same conversation and try to get them to make the same admission that this time of course you will be recording the call.

 

This is an extremely important piece of information. Like most other people, you get involved in telephone conversations with companies and yet you never make any record of what has been said.

 

You need to change this approach.

 

Calling them again and getting this admission is extremely important. Do it straightaway.

 

Did you Read up about ICOBS?

[geoff1248]

At the moment you have not suffered any financial loss. However, once your insurance renewal is due you will have lost your NCB and this has a value. If you can prove all you have stated here then why not issue a small claim against the third party in respect of the value of your lost NCB. This will force him to either put up or shut up. His main piece of evidence is the CCTV which he will have to produce.

However I am not sure if you will be able to identify the name and contact address for the third party.

[Conniff]

Thread moved into the Motor Insurance section.