AA cancelled car ins due to arrears, there were no arrears! car impounded by police - help

[Viikkie]

Hi

needing a bit of advice

 

can the AA cancel a car insurance policy if there are no arrears???

 

I took out the policy

paid the deposit and received all documentation .

 

My first direct debit monthly payment is due on the 21st June 2016 .

I cancelled my direct debit with my bank for aa home services but I must have cancelled wrong mandate .

 

The first I knew about the cancellation was when I was stopped by police and was told my car unisured on the 15th June .

I asked if they could call the AA as i thought I was insured and they had made a mistake.

 

The officer spoke to the AA and was advised that they had cancelled the policy on the 9th of June

due to the mandate had been cancelled .

 

therefore I had my car impounded and was given fixed penalty, and left at side of the road

with my son who was extremely distressed as he is autistic.

 

I contacted the AA and they said I had been informed by writing but I have received no letters from them ,

I asked them why they had cancelled as no payment due till the 21st of June so no any overdue payments

all they could say was because no mandate in place

 

Surely I should have had the opportunity from them to set one back up

before they decided to cancel the insurance as no payment due .

 

I have today received a letter from the aa membership which was at a discounted rate with the car insurance

to advise that mandate had been cancelled and could I reset it back up , that's not been cancelled .

 

are they within their rights just to cancel when mandate cancelled, when I'm in no arrears, no payment yet due ,

 

I would not have know until the monthly payment wasn't taken from my account on the 21st June

if i had not been stopped by the police

 

I have now been left without a vehicle as cannot afford impound fees

and now facing 6 points and £ 300 fine .

 

No where in my policy book does it say they can cancel if direct debit mandate cancelled

only says they can cancel if sent a default for a overdue payment .

 

Please help any advice would be appreciated.

Edited June 20, 2016 by dx100uk
formatting

[dx100uk]

I cancelled my direct debit with my bank for aa home services but I must have cancelled wrong mandate .

 

 

you need to point this out to the AA.

[Viikkie]

I cancelled my direct debit with my bank for aa home services but I must have cancelled wrong mandate .

 

 

you need to point this out to the AA.

 

I did I said I was supposed to cancel home services mandate not car insurance mandate and they just said we'll it's canceled because no mandate in place

[unclebulgaria67]

Insurers don't mess around these days. They will cancel giving 7 days notice in writing, if payment is not made or a first payment is not going to be made, because the DD mandate was cancelled.

 

Because of the new law on compulsory insurance and the Motor Insurance Database which Police have access to, the Insurers must provide up to date information. They don't tend to put matters on hold while they check with a customer about payment.

 

Make a formal complaint to AA that the 7 day cancellation notice was not received when DD mandate cancelled in error and this caused you to be driving around uninsured, this complaint must be made in writing by recorded delivery to AA Insurance head of customer service.

 

What surprises me is that AA did not take a deposit premium from you to start the policy, before the DD mandate was set up.

[BankFodder]

The insurance companies have a statutory obligation to treat you fairly. This obligation has been laid down in the FCA Handbook regulations – ICOBS.

 

If your premium was paid up for the period during which they cancelled the policy then it seems to me that this is unfair treatment because basically they have your money and they should by providing the insurance for it. On that basis I think that they are in breach of their ICOBS obligations and I think that you have grounds for a complaint against them.

 

I'm also interested in the fact that you say that you didn't receive anything from them about this. This is a complaint which we commonly get from people and of course it is very difficult to prove that some kind of notification wasn't sent you – but I can perfectly believe that that is the case. The problem is finding evidence for it.

 

If I'm correct about their duty to keep your insurance in place at least during the period which was fully paid, then the question of whether or not they send you notification is not too important – but it would be helpful if you could show that they had failed there as well.

 

I understand that the insurance company has practiced defensively here but to put you at risk in the case of an accident and also at risk of a prosecution – as well as putting the interests of third parties who might be involved in an accident with you at risk, I think is unconscionable. It is something that is being reported to us quite often and frankly I think it needs to be dealt with.

 

I'm also interested in the fact that there are two direct debit mandates. I suppose that these offer separate products – but are these separate products linked with each other at all? Or are they really independent of each other?

 

The point raised by Uncle Bulgaria above relating to a deposit is also an important point. Did this not happen? If they did take a deposit then that deposit would be intended to protect precisely this kind of eventuality so that not only would you have been covered by the months payment which expired on 21 June, but also you would be protected by the advance deposit which the insurers already had in the bank.

 

Please let us have some info on this.

[BankFodder]

By the way, I don't think you should underestimate the effect that this peremptory cancellation will have on you.

 

You are now in a situation where you're going to have to declare to any future insurance companies that you have got a conviction for driving without insurance. You're also going to have to declare that you have had an insurance policy cancelled.

 

This is going to have a very serious effect on the level of your premiums over the next few years.

[sameagle]

Be very careful in your dealings with the AA, I had occasion to obtain an SAR from them, and I expected it to be full of lies, but to my surprise it wasn't.

 

However, they had managed to "massage" the truth, by omitting parts of telephone conversations, and in the case of one conversation, missed it out altogether - they are as artful as a cartload of monkeys!

 

Don't trust them.

 

Sam

[Conniff]

Does it say anywhere on the documentation or on their site that insurance cover is dependent on having a direct debit in place ??

[D.H AA Rep]

Hi

needing a bit of advice

 

can the AA cancel a car insurance policy if there are no arrears???

 

I took out the policy

paid the deposit and received all documentation .

 

My first direct debit monthly payment is due on the 21st June 2016 .

I cancelled my direct debit with my bank for aa home services but I must have cancelled wrong mandate .

 

The first I knew about the cancellation was when I was stopped by police and was told my car unisured on the 15th June .

I asked if they could call the AA as i thought I was insured and they had made a mistake.

 

The officer spoke to the AA and was advised that they had cancelled the policy on the 9th of June

due to the mandate had been cancelled .

 

therefore I had my car impounded and was given fixed penalty, and left at side of the road

with my son who was extremely distressed as he is autistic.

 

I contacted the AA and they said I had been informed by writing but I have received no letters from them ,

I asked them why they had cancelled as no payment due till the 21st of June so no any overdue payments

all they could say was because no mandate in place

 

Surely I should have had the opportunity from them to set one back up

before they decided to cancel the insurance as no payment due .

 

I have today received a letter from the aa membership which was at a discounted rate with the car insurance

to advise that mandate had been cancelled and could I reset it back up , that's not been cancelled .

 

are they within their rights just to cancel when mandate cancelled, when I'm in no arrears, no payment yet due ,

 

I would not have know until the monthly payment wasn't taken from my account on the 21st June

if i had not been stopped by the police

 

I have now been left without a vehicle as cannot afford impound fees

and now facing 6 points and £ 300 fine .

 

No where in my policy book does it say they can cancel if direct debit mandate cancelled

only says they can cancel if sent a default for a overdue payment .

 

Please help any advice would be appreciated.

 

Hi Viikkie, we'd really like to address this for you. If you haven't already spoken with our customer service team, please feel free to email your policy details, full name and contact number to [email protected] Reference FOR176717. Kind Regards

[BankFodder]

If you do take his offer up, then please do keep us informed as to what happens.

 

There are extremely important issues here which concern a lot of people. Peremptory cancellation of somebody's insurance policy for some purely technical reason when their account is in credit is manifestly unfair and is very clearly a breach of FCA ICOBS regulations.

 

To leave you without insurance and therefore endangering yourself, third parties, maybe your own family who are travelling in your vehicle and also to put you in a position where you are apparently committing a criminal offence and you have incurred a criminal penalty when all that has happened is that a direct debit has been cancelled but the account is not gone into arrears is completely disgraceful.

 

If we have all the facts correctly here then the AA has behaved arbitrarily and like martinets.

 

Would you like to talk to the media about this? There is some press interest.

[dacouc]

Hi Viikkie, we'd really like to address this for you. If you haven't already spoken with our customer service team, please feel free to email your policy details, full name and contact number to [email protected] Reference FOR176717. Kind Regards

 

Call it a lucky guess, but I would lay very big money that the OP has spoken to your customer services at the very least once about this matter...

[BankFodder]

The AA used to be a worthwhile organisation which was really interested in helping motorists and representing the rights of motorists. Now they've deteriorated into an organisation with principally commercial interests and instead of adopting practices which show a healthy customer facing attitude to drivers insurance problems, they prefer to get on the bandwagon along with all the other insurers.

 

Spot the difference. None.

[Old Cogger]

so true

[Viikkie]

Hi yes they did take a deposit from me at the start of the policy my first installment wasn't due till the 21st of June my insurance was cancelled on the 9th according to police

[BankFodder]

Hi, I'm glad you've come back.

 

You've received a message from the AA – as you have seen above. I suggest that you do contact them and see what they have to say. However, if you contact them on the phone I suggest that you record the calls. Read our customer services guide. The AA will also record the call, but do not imagine that they will be very happy to provide you with a copy of the recording – even if you supply them with an SAR.

 

I suggest also that you keep us in the loop on everything that happens. If you don't have us behind you, they are likely to bamboozle you and the best that might happen is that they might offer you some gesture of goodwill.

 

In the meantime, please keep visiting the site to update us and also to get further advice from us.

 

I think the first thing you should do is to calculate and to let us know here exactly what was paid – including the deposit, and what was the cost of the policy.

 

At the time they cancelled the policy, by how much were you in credit – and this includes the deposit which you paid because I have the impression that you haven't taken that into consideration at all.

 

It seems to me that the AA are grievously responsible for giving you a criminal record and also for putting you in a position where your insurance will be far more expensive in the future.

 

This all needs to be addressed and it needs to be addressed very fast.

 

The AA will be unwilling to put anything in writing because as with most commercial organisations that make these stupid judgements, they are defensive and they are unwilling to put their hands up.

 

I think that if you brought a County Court action under ICOBS, that your chances of success would be better than 95%.

 

I think ultimately what you're going to be looking for is for an admission from the AA that they were wrong to have cancelled your insurance and that you were in fact in credit.

 

You will also need an affidavit from the AA in which they will swear they made an error and that if there had been any question, they would have insured you. I think that the AA will also have to use their lawyers to make an application to the court to have the case reviewed and to have the conviction quashed and that your record should be cleansed. Finally they should come up with a very sensible proposal for compensation.

 

If they will not do this voluntarily, then I'm quite sure that you can get the courts to force them. As I have said, I think that there is some press interest in this. Would you be prepared to talk to the media?

 

Peremptory cancellation of insurance policies in this kind of circumstances is not uncommon. We get lots of complaints about it on this forum and people generally speaking manage to do very little about it. I think that you're in a strong position if you are prepared to assert yourself.

 

The AA will be monitoring the thread now and so hopefully they realise that this is not some little secret that they can cover up very easily.

[BankFodder]

Hi Viikkie, we'd really like to address this for you. If you haven't already spoken with our customer service team, please feel free to email your policy details, full name and contact number to [email protected] Reference FOR176717. Kind Regards

 

As for the AA rep, well were pleased to see that you are bothering to take an interest. As you can see, if this is not sorted out properly then we will help Vicky to escalate this in a very serious way very quickly. I have to ask myself how many other people have you done this to?

[Viikkie]

Does it say anywhere on the documentation or on their site that insurance cover is dependent on having a direct debit in place ??

 

not that i can find any were i have read the terms and conditions , searched the website and all i can find is that a £12 administration fee will be charged if i fail to maintain a direct debit instruction .,

[Viikkie]

deposit was payed at the start of the policy 22.04 .16 my first installment was not due till the 21st june ,

[BankFodder]

While we're at it, I'm also interested to know whether they offered to return any of your money? Or did they imagine that they would stop insuring you and you keep the money that you paid in advance.

[BankFodder]

Thank you. So does this mean that it was only the deposit which was covering the insurance cover until 21st June?

 

What was the annual cost and how much was the deposit. How many installments over the year?

Thanks

[Viikkie]

hi

my agreement attached by link what and when i paid ,

 

 

i have emailed the complaints department of the AA regarding this as advised to by citizens advice

before the AA commented on this post ,

 

 

i am awaiting their response. as said above with the AA cancelling the insurance on the 9th of June .

i had been putting my daughter and my son and myself and other road users at risk daily

as my daughters school is 10 miles from our house ,

from the 9th of June until i was stopped by the police on the 15th June completely unaware i wasn't insured .

 

 

if i had of received a letter from the AA saying they was cancelling because mandate wasn't in place

it would of been dealt with straight away and sorted ,

 

 

im not fond of traumatizing my 8 year old child who is autistic who had no understanding of why we wasn't allowed to take our car home and was left with the belongings i could carry out of the car at side of the road .

 

 

he has now become very scared of police and panic's if he sees a police car

saying there going to take our new car away as with his condition its very hard to explain

to him for him to have an understanding . and i wouldn't risk also loosing a car ,

receiving a fine and a CRIMINAL RECORD .

 

i will wait for the response from the AA customer service department and post their response on here ,

if someone could advise if they are in breach of FCA ICOBS regulations.

with the attached credit agreement this would be really appreciated .

 

 

i am also very grateful for all your advise as i have not got a clue what to do about the matter at all

and totally feel let down by the AA

 

i would be interested in talking to the media if i didn't get any satisfactory outcome

as i think others should be aware of the risks .

[dx100uk]

you need to upload

the agreement as a PDF please

[Viikkie]

no money returned no offer from them at all

[Viikkie]

..

img001.pdf

[dx100uk]

wow their loans to pay for insurance are a rip off at 26%

 

 

most only charge 10% or there abouts.