An insurance scam could have left around twenty thousand motorists uninsured according to a report by the BBC. ‘Ghost brokers’ are targeting young drivers who are struggling to afford high insurance premiums, as well as communities where English is not the first language and where residents may not understand how the UK insurance system works. [...]
Homeserve revealed today that it expects to spend around £10 million on overhauling its sales practices following the recent mis-selling scandal. The decision by repair and insurance group Homeserve to suspend sales activity after problems with its selling practices came to light will also result in significant costs. The reduction in marketing is expected to [...]
Pet insurance fraud almost quadrupled last year according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI). In 2010 pet insurance fraud totalled £1.9 million, while in 2009 it was just £420,000 according to the ABI’s figures, although the true scale is believed to be even higher. Policy holders are trying to cheat the system in a [...]
Customers who were mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI) are liable for tax on the compensation they receive. The Financial Services Authority awarded compensation to PPI customers who had been mis-sold policies, plus 8 per cent interest on the money they originally spent on the policy. This interest is subject to tax it has been revealed, [...]
Homeserve, which provides emergency insurance and home repairs on boilers, plumbing and domestic appliances, has restarted its telesales operation. The company closed its call centre on 31 October following a review by Deloitte which highlighted problems with its sales processes. Homeserve initiated an immediate re-training programme for its call centre staff and has now started [...]
Motor insurance company Admiral has issued a profits warning causing its shares to plummet by a quarter, after being hit by an increase in personal injury claims. The company, which owns Elephant and Confused.com now expects 2011 profits to fall at the lower end of the range of analysts’ estimates. The number of personal injury [...]
With immediate effect, motorists will be forced to declare if their car is off the road if they want to avoid buying insurance. The measures are part of the Government’s efforts to clamp down on uninsured motorists. In the past, drivers had to be caught driving with no insurance to be charged and prosecuted. From [...]
When consumers shop around for the cheapest insurance, they are in danger of cutting corners and ending up with a policy that will not properly cover them. That’s according to research from Incahoot.com, who say there is little point someone paying cheap for insurance that doesn’t do what it needs to. The study for Incahoot [...]
The Lloyd’s of London insurance market today said natural disasters will cost it in the region of £2.4 billion ($3.8 billion). The recent catastrophes including the flooding in Australia, the New Zealand earthquake, the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, means insurance prices will soar as claims eat into the industry’s capital reserves. The company said the [...]
Lloyds Banking Group has been forced to set aside a huge sum of money to cover potential costs related to its mis-selling of payment protection insurance (PPI). The bank has made a provision of £3.2 billion for contacting its PPI customers and making recompense where necessary. As a result it posted a £3.47 billion loss [...]
UK banks are set to lose billions following a High Court ruling over Payment Protection Insurance (PPI). The controversial insurance has been a hot topic for sometime now and the Financial Services Authority introduced a review of the insurance after millions of policies were mis-sold and thousands of complaints were received. Under a PPI policy, [...]
British insurance giant Prudential has today announced profits grew 17% in the third quarter – driven by higher sales at its Asian and US markets. The results were better than expected and sent its shares up 0.6% in early morning trading. The insurer, which is Britain’s largest, said it has focused its attention on expanding [...]
As a woman gets older she can expect her car insurance premiums to rise significantly faster than single men. That’s according to a study by Which?, who used a price comparison site for car insurance to explore differences in pricing for men and women of different ages. Which? found that once a woman reached 60 [...]
The Lloyd’s of London insurance market today reported a massive fall in profits, due to a series of catastrophes, including the Chilean earthquake and BP’s oil spill. The market reported pre-tax profits of £628 million for the first six months of 2010, compared with £1.32 billion a year earlier – a significant fall of 50%. [...]
British insurance giant Prudential has said the cost of its failed bid for AIA, the Asian arm of US company American International Group (AIG), is £377 million before tax relief. However, it is less than originally thought. Following the collapse of the deal, Pru said it faced costs of £450 million relating to the withdrawal [...]
Over a third of fatal accidents on Britain’s roads are caused by road rage, according to new research. The study by AXA insurance found 800 lives are lost every year through road accidents caused by angry drivers. More than one in three (35%) serious road accidents involve at least one angry driver. AXA estimates the [...]
Nearly half of car insurance providers do not provide a courtesy car as standard, research by Defaqto found. The study found 49% of car insurance policies would not provide a replacement car following an accident. A further 28% only offer a replacement car if it was selected as an optional extra when the insurance policy [...]
Only a quarter of travel insurance policies offer cover if the policy holder is stranded because their airline has gone bust, according to a new study. The research by Defaqto found 77% of travel insurance policies do not cover airline failure. Even insurers that cover airline failure may only offer a refund for the missed [...]
Brit Insurance has rejected a takeover bid of £10-a-share from US private equity firm, Apollo. Following the news, shares in Brit soared 20% after the company said the offer “significantly undervalues” the group. Brit, which became the England cricket team sponsor in January, saw its shares rise above the 900p mark on Friday, before falling [...]
British insurance giant Prudential has today said it has no plans for a renewed bid for AIA, the Asian arm of US company American International Group (AIG). The statement came after media reports today suggested that a fresh takeover deal was in the pipeline. Chad Tendler, Prudential’s Hong Kong-based spokesperson, told Reuters: “We remain highly [...]
M&S Money launches 3% cash ISA
M&S Money has launched an Advantage Cash ISA paying 3 per cent, and which allows transfers in from other ISAs. It can be opened with a minimum deposit of £100 lump sum followed by minimum monthly deposits of £25. The 3% rate is variable, but there is no short-term bonus so the return won’t plummet [...]
Google suspends UK Compare Mortgages site
Google has closed its UK mortgage comparison site which it launched in July last year, after it proved to be less popular than expected. Mortgage comparison sites are designed to allow visitors to compare mortgages quickly and easily without having to visit each lender’s individual site. Google was competing with several well-established comparison sites, including [...]
AA launches ‘black-box’ policy for young drivers
The AA is launching an innovative car insurance policy called Drivesafe which could help younger drivers save up to £850 a year. Younger drivers already pay substantially higher premiums than other motorists and these costs are increasing. A new study by Confused.com suggests insurance costs for younger driver have gone up by 5.7 per cent [...]
ATOL scheme updated to protect online bookers
ATOL, a financial protection scheme managed by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being extended to protect up to six million more holidays a year. The scheme ensures that holiday makers do not lose out financially if a travel company collapses, and that they are not stranded abroad. An increase in the number of holidays booked [...]
Home repossessions lowest for four years
The number of UK homes repossessed fell to 36,200 in 2011, significantly below the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ forecast of 40,000, and lower than 2010 when 37,100 homes were repossessed. With interest rates remaining low and lenders adopting a sympathetic attitude to customers in financial difficulty, repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007. However, [...]
Monthly pay lasting just 17 days
Workers are running out of money just 17 days after receiving their monthly pay, according to new research by the Halifax bank. This means that the average UK worker spends half the month worrying about money. The study, based on the responses of more than 2,000 adults, found that 10 per cent of workers start [...]
Women disadvantaged by auto-enrolment changes
Government proposals to increase the auto-enrolment threshold to £10,000 could put 1.8 million women at risk of missing out on a pension, the TUC has warned. Under the auto-enrolment scheme, which will be phased in from October, private sector employers will automatically enrol workers between the age of 22 years and the state pension age, [...]
Emergency household repairs company Homeserve is taking longer than expected to get back on track after its operations were suspended last October. The company expected customer numbers to fall by 5% this year but it has increased this estimate to 8% and announced the loss of 200 jobs. It estimates that renewal revenue in 2013 [...]
Sale rumoured for Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks
There is growing speculation that National Australia Bank (NAB) may sell Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank after the Australian parent company announced a strategic review of the two banks’ operations. The Australian economy is performing well and NAB reported strong profits for the final quarter of 2011 but with the UK economy at a virtual [...]
More women experiencing debt difficulties
Women in Debt, which offers female-focused debt advice, has warned that the number of UK women facing serious debt has grown significantly over recent years. The organisation believes that more women will need advice on solving debt problems in the future because they are building up an unsustainable level of indebtedness. Women in Debt’s director, [...]
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