Insurance - 50% increase?!!

LongDarkTeatime · 2023-05-26T14:15:02+00:00

Just got our home and contents insurance renewal. Nearly soar my tea out when I read it - it’s increased 50 f***ing percent since last year. We have never made a claim, no changes to circumstances, no crime wave (small area, we’d have heard about burglaries). Did a search and most quotes were significantly higher than last year, but not as bad as 50% Dreading car insurance renewal now. What has happened? I’m mean … 50% 😲

doitwithlove · 26/05/2023 19:04

My car insurance renewal came through last week, it had increased from £387 (last years amount) to £815 for this year. I have had no claims in the year.

Went on the compare sites, paid £344. fully comp, will have a black box fitted to monitor my driving.

I have been driving 40 years this month 🤣

1offnamechange · 26/05/2023 18:48

I was expecting mine to be a lot more this year as I think MSE martin mentioned insurance going up recently (due to reasons explained by pp above) so was pleasantly shocked with I got my quote for this year as being a few quid cheaper. I usually compare and switch every year but won't bother with that.

MsWarrensProfession · 26/05/2023 18:39

DelurkingAJ · 26/05/2023 15:21

I work in insurance. I’m sure you’ll do better if you shop around but a year ago inflation was priced in at c3%. Which means insurance companies (who’ve then had to pay claims out with inflation on them) have had a torrid year. So you’ve got an uplift for last year’s inflation which wasn’t in last year’s premium plus an uplift for the inflation that now is expected this coming year. Which equals OUCH!

Exactly this. The insurance needs to be updated for all the 2022 inflation which wasn't fully priced for last year because our crystal balls were broken, and also for the 2023 expected inflation.

Sorry, feel free to blame Putin.

Somanysocks · 26/05/2023 18:38

There is apparently an optimum time to look for your renewal prices according to Martin Lewis, for car I think it's around 25 days before to get the cheapest deals. Not sure about other insurances though.

NowItsSpring · 26/05/2023 18:32

Shop around amd use on of the cashback sites - got £35 cashback on my car insurance renewal.

DitherDother · 26/05/2023 18:19

99victoria · 26/05/2023 17:50

I'm so sick of insurance companies doing this. When I get an increased renewal quote I go online and find a cheaper one and buy it. Then I call my 'old' insurance company and tell them I don't want to renew because I've found a cheaper option. They then offer to 'see if they can offer me a reduction' at which point I tell them it's too late because I've already bought from a new company and if they were able to offer me a cheaper price then they should have done so in the first place! I refuse to play their stupid game

They're not allowed to do that anymore. They can't charge new customers more than existing ones. I found that despite my renewal being a substantial increase, it was still as good a deal as I could get on comparison sites.

99victoria · 26/05/2023 17:50

I'm so sick of insurance companies doing this. When I get an increased renewal quote I go online and find a cheaper one and buy it. Then I call my 'old' insurance company and tell them I don't want to renew because I've found a cheaper option. They then offer to 'see if they can offer me a reduction' at which point I tell them it's too late because I've already bought from a new company and if they were able to offer me a cheaper price then they should have done so in the first place! I refuse to play their stupid game

AuntieDolly · 26/05/2023 17:15

My Admiral multicar policy went up from £1300 to £1700. Shopped around and got all the cars and house insured separately for £1200. So much for the multicar discount!

PerfectYear321 · 26/05/2023 17:13

Coronationstation · 26/05/2023 15:48

my car insurance renewal was like that this year too. no changes to circumstances, no claims, and it went up by nearly 50%. It's fairly low to start with and shopping around I brought it down a bit but it was still a considerable increase.

Strangely my car insurance renewal last month was cheaper than the year before. This has never happened before and I've been driving for 25+ years.

CKL987 · 26/05/2023 17:03

Don't forget to use a cashback site too.

EilonwyWithRedGoldHair · 26/05/2023 16:51

When we bought our first house after the first couple of years the buildings & contents went up by around 400%.

We decided they didn't want us as customers and found another insurer.

ActDottie · 26/05/2023 16:49

Ring them up and negotiate it down… that’s what I always do with renewal quotes they’re just hoping you accept it and don’t contact them.

Original poster

LongDarkTeatime · 26/05/2023 16:48

AnonyMenOhPee · 26/05/2023 16:40

Most customers used to cost insurance companies money in the first year what with all the discounts they used to give out to lure you in. That’s part of the reason why a new quote is also surprising people - you aren’t getting those discounts any more

We have been with same ‘big brand’ provider for a number of years due to not having the head-space to haggle, previously bereavement then Covid last year at renewal time. So if anything we were paying over the odds anyway prior to this 50% increase.

OP posts:

AnonyMenOhPee · 26/05/2023 16:40

Most customers used to cost insurance companies money in the first year what with all the discounts they used to give out to lure you in. That’s part of the reason why a new quote is also surprising people - you aren’t getting those discounts any more

WonderingWanda · 26/05/2023 16:36

This always happens when they change underwriters. You just need to do compare the market or something.

jackstini · 26/05/2023 16:35

Always use comparison sites - but this year my car insurance has gone up by 20%, house by 15% and my landlord policy by 60!

Increased cost of building materials is a major factor

AnonyMenOhPee · 26/05/2023 16:35

Plasticplantpot · 26/05/2023 16:24

It’s all a scam. Got new quotes for house and car and saved £50-100 on each with equivalent or better cover. Tesco car insurance was good and we got breakdown cover (RAC) included. I did tell Admiral that their competitors were offering better deals, having been a customer for a few years, but they didn’t seem to care. Such an odd way to run things and I thought they weren’t supposed to penalize you for being a long-standing customer now!

They can’t offer Joe bloggs a more competitive price as a new customer than they do on his renewal. That just means they’ve bumped up new business prices. And no the person on the phone doesn’t care they hear it 20 times a day

Original poster

LongDarkTeatime · 26/05/2023 16:27

Some scary increases! These types of insurance are a should have or a legal requirement (car insurance).

Thank you for the explanations on rising costs for the companies.

To manage stretched resources public servants, NHS, teachers etc have all be told they have to manage on more years of real terms pay reductions (obvs MPs still vote in their pay increase). So was wondering… have the senior staff/CEOs pay and dividends of these companies been frozen/ dropped to help with the materials & cost increases?

OP posts:

SELondonLurker · 26/05/2023 16:25

Hi OP - we’re in the same boat. We have to go with the big home insurers due to some quirky household features, not really an issue though.

Last years premiums £650, this years £900!!!! No claims etc. We do have the highest level of cover with all the bells and whistles though.

I rang up another major provider to get a second quote (standard compare the market sites don’t really work for our house), and it came out about £850ish for their most basic package. No legal cover, extra items added on etc. They said no chance they could match the £900 from my original provider and sounded like I was getting a good deal. They told me the major price increase was driven by the Buildings Insurance and the rising cost of labour and materials.

Begrudgingly paid up and now just waiting for the car insurance renewal quote to knock me out …!

PainAuChocowhat · 26/05/2023 16:25

Our renewal, 2 weeks ago, was 64% higher than last year (£515 > £845). No change apart from the extra years no claims. I got a whole host of other quotes including the usual price comparison sites, and they were all in the same ballpark as the renewal premium - I think one might have been a tenner cheaper which just wasn’t worth the hassle of changing, perhaps we were just ‘lucky’ last year

Plasticplantpot · 26/05/2023 16:24

It’s all a scam. Got new quotes for house and car and saved £50-100 on each with equivalent or better cover. Tesco car insurance was good and we got breakdown cover (RAC) included. I did tell Admiral that their competitors were offering better deals, having been a customer for a few years, but they didn’t seem to care. Such an odd way to run things and I thought they weren’t supposed to penalize you for being a long-standing customer now!

LaraMargot · 26/05/2023 16:18

Tesco home insurance actually went down.
Hastings car wanted 37% increase, went elsewhere with price comparison website.

ShanghaiDiva · 26/05/2023 16:16

My renewal was 30% more, no claims. Found a comparable product from another leading insurer and asked my current provider to match it. They would not so I switched. They then sent me a survey asking why I cancelled…

Georgieporgie29 · 26/05/2023 16:13

Dh just currently sorting his car insurance. Up from £450 a year to £720 with his current provider. Cheapest on a comparison site is £710. No change in circumstances, it’s crazy how much it has gone up.

BarbaraofSeville · 26/05/2023 16:08

briansgardenshed · 26/05/2023 15:38

It's been difficult and expensive to get car components, building materials have been hard to get hold of and have risen significantly in price, labour costs are higher in most sectors - so everything they've had to pay out on has cost more.
And Covid cost them dearly.
I also think people are claiming more, switching more, complaining more - and that increases admin costs. So I'm not surprised at all.
(My house insurance went up in May by about 30%. Couldn't get cheaper)

This. The delays with car components means that insurance companies have had to pay for several week's worth of car hire for people who's car is off the road, which will further bump up the claim.

There was also a rule change last year which meant that new and existing customer prices had to be the same, which I'm sure they'll use as a reason to bump up premiums.