Christmas is considered as the peak auto-renewal season, which means that it’s time for you to be alert. You should not stick to your existing supplier as there are many insurers that may offer reduced car insurance premiums. As a consumer, you should be aware about the traps of motor insurance providers that would not give you enough time to think before renewing your insurance. Due to this, an approximated figure of 6 million drivers would lose at least £113 a year as they stick to their existing insurer.
In fact, as per the latest reports, one out of every four drivers in the UK do not even shop around to check car insurance quotes offered by other providers when their policy was about to renew. This could be an unnerving thing for many as we cannot figure out the exact reason for the lethargic behaviour of motorists. Well, there are a couple of things which can be easily dealt with if one pays attention. First, let us check the common traps of the motor insurers.
Reasons why people do not shop around before the auto renewal of their car insurance:
The policy renews itself automatically: Paying through direct debit or credit cards can make you fall in the trap of further payment for year after year. You cannot opt out unless you pay attention on breaking the routine.
Renewal notes are difficult to understand: Most of the times, the renewal notes are quite confusing and do not include previous year’s premium detail, which makes it difficult to note that they are charging more in new year. Some of the insurance providers do this purposefully and keep the customers in the dark.
Confusing language used for renewal reminders: Insurers often use terms like ‘Anniversary time’ or ‘Quick insurance’ which does not give a clear impression that the renewal time is around the corner. Their aim behind using such language is to make you sit back so that they can charge higher premiums without making any big fuss.
Heavy cancellation fees: Some of the insurance providers charge a high cancellation fee so that the customers do not switch to another provider. Many a time, the cancellation fee is higher than the savings made by switching. Due to this reason, the policy holder does not switch to better insurance providers.
You can still come out of the auto-renewal trap frequently reading the small print and discussing doubts and issues with your car insurance provider. Just be a little more alert in this time of year and do not let your insurer take liberties.
Brijesh is a financial advisor at Freepricecompare.com and a passionate blogger. He writes on personal finance and money-saving tips. He suggests all UK motorists to compare car insurance quotes before accepting renewal quote with existing supplier. When he isn’t writing, he is spending time to find advance technique of farming and its way of applying. He also plays his guitar gifted by his father.