Understanding GAP Insurance??

[Clippy]

I've no experience of the US, but I consider the UK insurance companies to be thieves.

Take car insurance. If you don't change insurers regularly you get stiffed by ever rising premiums. How else do you explain the amount of advertising they do?

You simply don't get that amount of advertising for car insurance sur le continent. Case rests, M'Lud.

Don't I know it.

Been with my insurer for 5 years with no claims in that period, 15 years NCD and doing very low mileage.

Last year, got my premium down to a very low £180. This year, they decided to double it. Tossers!

[norrahe]

Sounds like you've been done. Ombudsman time.

WHS

They are trying it on with you. They are ignoring the T&C's of their policy and are just trying to fleece you. I'm lukcy enough to have worked on the underwriting side for a while so when it has been tried on me in the past and I used to be able to quote rules and regs verbatim, so had less of a problem.

Get a quote from glass on line (£3.50), contact your local ombudsman and speak to the customer advice bureau.

[SueEllen]

Sounds like you've been done. Ombudsman time.

WHS

Just make sure you have got everything in writing before the referral i.e. quotes from the BMW dealer.

[Sysman]

I think the insurance companies here are a bit okay but in the US they are utter thieves.

I've no experience of the US, but I consider the UK insurance companies to be thieves.

Take car insurance. If you don't change insurers regularly you get stiffed by ever rising premiums. How else do you explain the amount of advertising they do?

You simply don't get that amount of advertising for car insurance sur le continent. Case rests, M'Lud.

[fullyautomatix]

Most Insurance business is working out how NOT to pay people........

This is outrageous, unfair and (debateably) downright dishonest....... but True!

If insurance companies had to pay for every insurer ( hypothetically) they woudl go bankrupt within a minute. It is in their interest to try and not pay. I think the insurance companies here are a bit okay but in the US they are utter thieves. What I hate is that they provide you with an insurance and take your premium and then try and find holes when it comes to payout time. Why cant they dig the holes before the cover and prevent all this ?

[doodab]

Sounds like you've been done. Ombudsman time.

[kermitt]

I purchased the car for £11495 from a BMW franchise.

Insurance Co initial offer was £9500 and managed to get £10k out of them commensurate with like for like with what I was seeing on Autotrader etc.

The GAP Co are saying the current market value is £12095 which is BS because having used Parker's guide and adjusted for the correct mileage for the same car to be sold now from a franchise the price would be £11065 which reduces as you go down the scale of independant dealer, private P/X etc.

Have phoned the dealer where I purchased the car and they are checking their system and Glass's Guide as well. Hopefully I will have more ammo to kick some butt with the GAP Co.

[doodab]

Gap = Guaranteed Anti Payment

How much do you think they should have paid?

[MaryPoppins]

That depends upon the policy mine is an RTI which is supposed to cover the difference between the insurance payout and the priginal purchase price.

Ah, I see. Have you researched the current market value?

[kermitt]

That depends upon the policy mine is an RTI which is supposed to cover the difference between the insurance payout and the priginal purchase price.

[MaryPoppins]

Gap insurance is a load of balls, as I understand it.

I thought gap insurance was about paying the shortfall between the insurance payout and the amount due to the finance company in settlement?

[threaded]

I purchased a car about 12 months ago and was recently involved in an accident which the insurance company have now decided to write off the car.

Got my settlement through but am trying to sort out the GAP insurance which is return to invoice policy.
As far as I was aware this policy refunds the difference between the settlement figure or current market (depending on which is higher) and the original invoice price.

However I just got a letter from the Gap Co stating that because the vehicle I purchased was at the time £500 less than what is stated as the current market value there is nothing for them to pay and have reimbursed my policy instead WTF.

How can a car bought from a main BMW dealer be worth more now than it was 12 months ago and have an extra 20k miles on it that is just ludicrous!

There you go. You can't say that you weren't warned about BMW, their dealers, etc., on this very forum no less.

[Drewster]

I purchased a car about 12 months ago and was recently involved in an accident which the insurance company have now decided to write off the car.

Got my settlement through but am trying to sort out the GAP insurance which is return to invoice policy.
As far as I was aware this policy refunds the difference between the settlement figure or current market (depending on which is higher) and the original invoice price.

However I just got a letter from the Gap Co stating that because the vehicle I purchased was at the time £500 less than what is stated as the current market value there is nothing for them to pay and have reimbursed my policy instead WTF.

How can a car bought from a main BMW dealer be worth more now than it was 12 months ago and have an extra 20k miles on it that is just ludicrous!

Most Insurance business is working out how NOT to pay people........

This is outrageous, unfair and (debateably) downright dishonest....... but True!

[kermitt]

I purchased a car about 12 months ago and was recently involved in an accident which the insurance company have now decided to write off the car.

Got my settlement through but am trying to sort out the GAP insurance which is return to invoice policy.
As far as I was aware this policy refunds the difference between the settlement figure or current market (depending on which is higher) and the original invoice price.

However I just got a letter from the Gap Co stating that because the vehicle I purchased was at the time £500 less than what is stated as the current market value there is nothing for them to pay and have reimbursed my policy instead WTF.

How can a car bought from a main BMW dealer be worth more now than it was 12 months ago and have an extra 20k miles on it that is just ludicrous!