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Richard G.

Leicester

Contributor Level

Total Points
81

1 Review by Richard

  • Hastings Direct

12/17/21

Blackmailers!
My son is insured with Hastings "brickwall" direct.
He pays for car insurance by direct debit as young driver insurance is inexplicably high.
How does any insurance company know me or my driving history etc at first? But I'm 54 so my quote is £300 a year but my sons is £4100! Utterly ridiculous. Anyway...
He was involved in an accident that was not his fault. His car was smashed into by a big van and it rammed him into another car.
HD agreed completely that he was in the clear and he would receive a payout for the written off car.
He got the call this week assuring him that he would have the money Friday or following Monday with which he plans to buy the new car he is looking at today, Saturday.
HD then called to say, unless
He puts a new car on to his insurance, they will take the rest of the years monthly dd premiums from the total of his payout.
This works out at £2859. 45 and his payout is £3000. 00.
So, his custom to HD, his trust in them to look after him in the event of an accident, which as Ive said and HD agreed was not his fault,... has now ended up with him possibly getting the princely sum of £150!
We have both been on the phone with different people at HD who just don't even try to listen or help in any way whatsoever!
They say its purely because he has paid by dd. He is 20 yrs old which means, highly unfairly, that his insurance is extremely expensive. There is no way he can pay a year up front so he is immediately forced down the dd route.
I've tried to reason with them all but they just can't understand that it's a blackmail technique that they are using.
Do something or we take your money!
They say its in the t's & c's so that's it! Like I said, brickwall.
I asked all 3 I spoke to what their mobile phone contract says is the international call rate as that is in their t's and c's and guess what? None of them knew. As I said, no-one spends all day reading all the small print, especially younger people, and that is exactly where HD explain this little blackmail trap they foist on the young drivers.
I looked on their website at the faq section about making a claim. Guess what? No explanation of this blackmail trap anywhere! Well they wouldn't have customer if they did explain it!
No one at HD was even prepared to even try and sort out some kind of arrangement to help him out.
He needs the money from the payout to buy this new car which HD are insisting he has put on the insurance so that they dont take his money!?!?
I know, stupid isn't it?
Anyway, a complaint has been lodged which I already know will be ignored "because its in the t's & c's!"
My advice, don't use Hastings Direct for anything ever. They are not there to help you, they just take your money.
Awful company.
Look out for the HD reply to this as well because you will see no offer of resolution from HD.
This is going on to as many public forums as I can get it on to hopefully make others aware of young driver dd blackmail trap.
Well done Hastings Direct. A lot of possible customers now lost as I will be advising many family, friends etc to steer clear of you!

Edit... and as I said, look out for HD reply... well there it is in the picture!
Told you there wouldn't be a resolution!
My son, whilst being extremely stressed out, still injured, in severe pain, has had to find a car, beg and borrow £3000 to buy it, I've been driving around for him and with him most of the weekend and HD then glibly say "you've completed a change of vehicle so you'll get paid!"

Zero about the complaint about their blackmailing young drivers!

All they've said is "That's that, stuff you!"
How sad.

I urge all of you to tell all your family and friends not to buy any service whatsoever fro. Hastings direct.

Rant over, for now.

Tip for consumers:
Small print financial trap !!!

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