Insurance Company Scams!.

Hi Axel,
I couldn't imagine your frustration ATM, They always seam to find a way around paying these days.
Unfortunately they are a necessary evil and they know it.
On Monday I will ask mine.
Cheers for the heads up

I reckon they should just pay the agreed value, as they bought it of you as soon as they accepted the claim. I know it seems harsh as you just regoed it and fixed a couple of things. Would you feel just as bad if it went missing with 4 bald tyres, hole in the exhaust and a days rego left? They would still pay the same price

Its just life mate :)......I know I have been subject to it with my sons revolving door policy with cars. I am on first name basis with most of the claims dept :)

Cheers Stefan

Axel,

Never accept what the insurance company says they will give you. I always treat it as an ambit claim. Write them a letter stating your grievances. You may get nothing extra but I have found that they sometimes allow things in your favour. At the worst you have wasted a few minutes and a stamp. It shouldn't be like that but I think they like to see what they can get away with. There is probably an award at the office christmas party.

Regards,
Bob

What does you policy say? If it is there, you agreed to this when you took out the policy. If it is not in the policy - you need to bring it to their attention. If no luck - off to the insurance ombudsman you go.

Garry

Hi Axle, I have just copied your complaint to a mate of mine. He had his written off last week by some one running up his rear. He was paying his insurance by the month and had just started again for the next 12 months and they deducted the full amount owing from what they owed him. This part he doesnt think is fair but I tryed to explain to him that this is what they do, they are just being nice and letting him pay by the month so really no difference had he had to pay the 12 months up front (not related to your problem) . The rego part of it he was in the same position as you, and they were going to take a few more $$$ from it. He has since rang the RTA and explained the situation and he went in yesterday and signed all the appropriate paperwork to say the vehicle had been written off and the vehicle has since been sold (auction, by the insurance company) and plates were still attached to the vehicle. He then went to the same insurance company who he had the vehicle insured with plus green slip and got a part refund for the greenslip as well. BUT he is now in the s h i t with them as they said he shouldnt have got a refund on the RTA part of it as the vehicle is not now owned by him anymore. He told them to jam it as he was the one who payed for the green slip and rego in the first place not them. Will see what happens over the next week. They have deducted the amount of the RTA charge from his payout cheque. Sounds like their all there to do their best at getting every red cent from us. Im waiting to see wether my policy increases this year as I claimed for a new windscreen this week BUT I pay extra in my policy to have it (any glass breakage) but will wait and see when the policy is due next !!! WHG

Just received my renewal for insurance from AAMI. An attachment to the renewal lays out the 'new' conditions of the insurance cover. One of the conditions is that on the instance of a 'writeoff' the vehicle and any remaining rego/insurance belongs to AAMI on the payout. It also states that if I was paying via installments the remaining amounts for the years cover would be deducted from the payout first. It's all in the fine print - well actually the same size print as the rest of the policy but most of us don't read the full conditions. Heads up everybody and know what your cover actually is.

I don't believe it is a 'scam'

As the registered owner you are the only person able to get therefund, for the insurance to obtain the refund you have to transfer the vehicle to them, which may involve stamp duty etc.

Geez Axle....I don't want your life....you really stress too much about everything. So what the rego worth? Go claim it back from the RTA. Most likely the rego was worth more than the car and thats why yer gone screaming mad.........take a deep breath....inhale, exhale and again...there now...feel better?.......lol



Cheers

Hi Axle

Glad you got the claim through.

I once had an insurance company 'furious' when they discovered i had beaten them to taking off the plates and getting the refund - almost full year of licence paid. It seems that they quietly claimed refunds, leaving the owner unaware he was entitled to any licence refund. Not fair that they get it as the premium and pay out has no relationship to due date of licence.

Motherhen

Some years ago I wrote off my car and subsequently received the insurance payout offer in the mail. It wasnt nearly enough. So I rang them up and explained this to them and that this car would easily fetch more on the market. Straight away the claims person on the other end asked what amount I thought it was worth, to which I (stupidly, and irrationally) responded with $8500 to $9000.

"Ok, $8500 it is then" was his reply.

Whilst I was happy to get a much better result I kicked myself for not just simply saying $9000 at the outset!

Contact APRA.

Even better, if you feel your insurance company is taking you for a ride, just get on the phone and calmly say that unless they negotiate a reasonable outcome then you'll be contacting the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority to follow up. Most IC's will quickly back down unless they are really on solid ground.

Good luck.

Hi Axle,
I've been caught on this one too.

The policy will state something like "we will deduct the rego amount from the pay out only in states that will allow it"

So in NSW they deduct the rego amount because our wonderful state government has given them the premission to do it.

In other states they do what Motherhen has said, grab the plates and go for the refund unless you beat them to it.

At the time I did ask who paid and owned the rego? They seamed to think I did. I also asked if the vehicle got any speed camera fines who was responsible for them? Why the registered owner of course!

Next question, So in the event of a write off do you suddenly become the registered owner? Well no, we can't take something in your name.

It ended up becoming a circular argument, the bottom line is they do it because the relevant state legislation says they can.

Maybe add that to the list of Premier Garbo's to do's.

Geoff

here is a similar kind of story -- some years i Had a Road/ trail bike -- I just re registered it ( with 12 months ) - 3 days later the bike was stolen

these kind of bikes never turn up again ( and it didn't ) so i went to the RTA to get my rego $$ back

I was informed that i would have to hand in the number plate before i could get a refund .... I informed the girl that the bike had been stolen WITH the number plate attached

Im sorry sir , you need to hand in the number plate before you can get a refund , she repeats.

I start to get Narky at this stage and sarcastic , so what your telling me is that i should find the guy that stole my bike , go remove the number plate so i can then get a refund ( she missed the irony of this comment- could almost hear crickets in the back ground and the sound of grinding gears )

she returned with a blank look and said there is nothing i can do without you returning the number plate - asked to speek to the supervisor , got the same story

clearly common sence was not at the RTA that day - i gave up and just left....

Boc

Since when was rego and ctp ever covered by insurence ? They've actually done you a favour by drawing your attention to the fact that you could obtain a refund from MRD (or whoever) for unused rego etc. You could have cancelled rego when you reported vehice stolen and received a refund.

I'm covered by Police and Nurses insurance (WA) who are underwritten by CUNA Mutual.

When my car was written off in SA (not at fault accident), they sent me a letter to give to the licensing department to prove the car was written off, allowing me to get a refund on my rego.

But now they can't find the address of the other driver (german tourist) so they won't refund my excess and the accident is on record as my fault. In the PDS apparantly. Bugger. Hasn't affected the insurance on my new truck, same premium and NCB as before...

obvioslya new thing in 96 I wrote a car off and claimed the remaining rego - insurance company never mentioned it

While on the topic of of insurance, I know it's not car insurance, but
House insurance, Guys, just check to see if you are covered for Site Clean Up. Some insurance companies do not cover this in the event that your house burns down or is demolished from a storm. It can run into the tens of thousands of dollars that come out of you pocket before they start to rebuild your house.
Hmm they're cunning buggers.

I am a scrooge I bought and MU the Insurance company would not insure it as an Import under $1200 per annum..
I bought a second one uncomplied for $3000 wreck value only grey import.
I then Insured the first one 3rd Party Property which covers me if I hit someone so if someone hits me insured Im covered by them and if they are not insured I am covered for $3000.
If im hit and not covered I use the second car which is on blocks as my Insurance and put my car back on the road.

I have done this for 5 years now so 5 years at $1200 is $6000
and I used the wheels and tyres off the wreck which were brand new so that is worth $1000.

The Insurance is $134 per annum so five years is worth $720.

We have a second registered MU for 2 years which is also covered 3rd Party so add $268.
So currently my total cost is $3988 less $1000 for the Tyres so $2988 against $6000= Money saved $3012 and I still have a spare car on blocks from which I have now pinched the motor to rebuild and instal in my 2002 Jackaroo that I bought on ebay for $4500.

Thank you Mr Insurer meet Mr Jew nose and please keep working for me but dont rip off fair dinkum people like axle to make up for it.
Ian

I feel your pain Axle, and i am on your side. but..... to be the devils advocate for a second.
1. you crashed a registered vehicle.
2. they agreed to pay you out (BUY IT OFF YOU)
3. you cancel the rego and pocket it, before they pay you out/take it
4. its now an UN-REGISTERED vehicle...........insurance doesn't cover an un-registered vehicle. just be happy that they dont pull this on you!

if you cancel rego before they take it, its un-registered and un-insurable, if you cancel it after they take it, its theft as its not your vehicle anymore.

just a thought. can anyone else see my point?
(im not saying it doesn't hurt, but its fair)

After reading this I checked my comprehensive policy with NRMA. I expect that other insurers will have the same conditions. In part, the terms and conditions say;

Write-Off (of vehicle purchased new and less than 24 months old)

If purchased new and within the first 24 months it is written off, the insurer will replace the vehicle and pay the first 12 months registration and CTP insurance, if applicable. In return, I am required to pay any excess, outstanding premium’s, including the balance of all monthly instalments and the refund I receive from the registration and CTP insurance on the written off vehicle.

Write-Off (if older than 24 months or not purchased new)

The insurer will pay the agreed value after deducting, any unpaid premium, any applicable excess and the unused portions of the registration and CTP insurance that I am entitled to and the vehicle becomes the insurer’s property.

So it isn’t all a one-way street, they will pay for 12 months registration if the vehicle written off was purchased new and less than 24 months old. Older than 24 months or not purchased new; I guess they argue that they insure the car for an agreed value and if written off they get the remains including any refunds due.

Mind you for every scam we the insured can come up with I reckon the insurance companies probably have a list twice as long of scams they put up with….that is why we all pay for the roof for insurance…