Errors on price comparison sites risk invalidating home insurance

Customers buying home insurance through price comparison websites could have their claims rejected by insurers through no fault of their own. Firms such as Moneysupermarket and Confused.com use technology that pre-fills forms with information about consumers’ houses, including when a home was built, what type of property it is and how many rooms it has.

However, these websites’ attempts to speed up the buying process mean pre-populated information can be wrong. If a customer does not spot any errors before the comparison website sends the information to an insurer it can invalidate a claim, as it might look like the buyer lied.

Some price comparison websites make huge mistakes when judging how old or large a property is, casting doubt on their accuracy.

In tests run by Telegraph Money, Moneysupermarket decided that Buckingham Palace, built in 1703 with 775 rooms, was a bungalow built in 2000. Confused.com estimated that a 16th-century Kent manor house was built in the Seventies.

Registering an older property as a newer one might make an insurer think the owner is trying to fraudulently lower their premiums. Older houses cost more to insure than modern ones, so owners normally pay more for their cover.

The websites also make smaller errors that might be more difficult to spot. In a test, Confused.com determined that a London apartment block built in 2002 was actually constructed in 1990.

In a letter to the Government, the British Insurance Brokers’ Association (Biba) said the pre-population of data on comparison sites “can often be wrong and as a result, could invalidate any claim. We tested this out and found pre-population of the age of building to be incorrect.”

Price comparison firms can also wrongly estimate the value of contents in a home, how many smoke alarms it has and what materials were used in the construction of the property. Martyn James, of complaints handler Resolver, said: “There is an assumption that auto-fill is a miraculous thing, but it is really lowtech. If you don’t go back and triplecheck everything then you can easily invalidate your entire policy.” The insurance websites try to fill in customers’ details to save them time when buying cover, as the longer it takes to buy, the more likely it is the consumer will lose interest. Providers buy data from online estate agents and credit check firms, and use information from the internet. A spokesman for Confused. com said the company relied on information from Experian to work out the age of a property. “As with any pre-populated information, we make it clear that people should check it for any discrepancies and answer to the best of their knowledge before continuing,” the spokesman said. A Moneysupermarket spokesman said: “Anyone seeking a quote always has to confirm the pre-populated information is correct.”

Customer claims can be rejected because websites are using mistake-strewn pre-populated data, Sam Barker finds 297 Moneysupermarket was incorrect by this many years on the age it gave for one property