LOYAL CUSTOMERS WHO WERE RIPPED OFF

MAIL readers have inundated the paper with stories of their insurance rip-offs. Here we reveal how they were hit with huge bills after loyally sticking with the same insurer.

‘THEY TAKE ADVANTAGE OF OLDER CUSTOMERS’

One reader discovered her father was paying more than six times the cheapest deal on the market. His latest home insurance renewal quote was for £907 with a specialist firm for older homeowners.

She said: ‘I have found a policy offering the same level of cover with a reputable insurer costing £140. I feel these companies are taking advantage of older customers like my dad who are not used to shopping around online. It’s almost criminal.’

‘I THOUGHT THEY’D BE FAIR, I HAVE WASTED A FORTUNE’

Another homeowner, 61, from Warrington, had been with the same insurer since she bought her three-bed semi in 1977. She said she was told her premium would rise from £93 to £101 a month before a friend told her she could save by shopping around. The retired bank service manager now pays £268 a year for a better policy.

She said: ‘I had given them years of business and I thought they would be fair. I wish I had looked into it sooner, I’ve wasted a fortune.’

‘I WAS RIPPED OFF BY A COMPANY I HAD FAITH IN’

An 85-year-old man paid £200 to £350 to the same car insurer over the last four years, but received a shock renewal quote for £980 this year. His car is only worth £1,000. He found a deal more than £300 cheaper at £614. He said: ‘I am annoyed to be ripped off by a company I had faith in. I hope the Daily Mail can do more to highlight these rip-off merchants.’

‘LOYALTY COUNTS FOR NOTHING, I’LL SHOP AROUND’

One 81-year- old, who had insured cars with the same firm since 1988, was asked to pay a £500 fee for mistakenly saying he drove a Renault Megane instead of an Insignia. He had already been asked to pay £1,245 to insure the car after having been quoted £779.66 the previous year.

He said: ‘I do feel I was ripped off and agree that loyalty counts for nothing. Next year, God willing, I shall shop around.’

‘WHY HAVE THEY IMPOSED PREPOSTEROUS INCREASE?’

Another pensioner said she received a car insurance renewal quote last week that was £160 more than the £330 she paid last year. She said: ‘There has been no change in my circumstances. I have done nothing wrong, not had an accident or committed any motoring offence – so why have they have imposed this preposterous increase on me?’

‘THEY ARE CLEARLY TRYING TO RIP ME AND OTHERS OFF’

One man said his insurance firm tried to charge him £1,794 before he kicked up a fuss. He said he had paid £1,299 the year before and the company only lowered his new quote to £1,360 when he complained.

He said: ‘I went through the same pantomime last year. They clearly are trying to rip me and others off.’