A frugal life is an easy life!

Churchill car insurance take a bow, you are the latest company to fail when trying to sort out a customer account. To put it bluntly, you just don't get it!

Simple issue, car insurance renewal, big increase (to be expected from all companies), on the new schedule, it has included "Guaranteed car hire" - instead of the "Legal protection" that should have been on there, both last year and for the next year.
A quick call to sort out I thought.

I rang Churchill's customer service department for their car insurance renewals.
The legal cover I wanted adds just £6.20 extra to the policy.
The lady stated that it was ok, the new monthly premium would be just £3.20 a month more than the one proposed.
12 times £3.20 = £38.40 minus the £6.20 difference between hire car cover and legal cover, leaves a total extra of £32.20 that has magically appeared via my new monthly premiums!

When I questioned why I would be £32 out of pocket for a £6.20 change in policy for churchill's mistake, I got a variety of excuses;
- You have to add on 10% tax for anything added to your policy - but it was churchill's mistake?
- You have not been charged extra for it - add up the monthly premiums and I am paying £32 more
- I'll just speak to a manager - came back ten minutes later, repeating the 10% tax excuse
- The guaranteed hire car was free last year - what's that got to do with charging me £32 extra this year?
- The "system" will let me take off the guaranteed hire car but won't issue a refund at the moment, it will be corrected when you receive your new policy document
The lady just didn't seem to get it at all, I got the clear impression that her department did not want to issue a refund on any policy. I was just fobbed off.

The new schedule arrived and sure enough my impression was correct, the policy had been changed to legal cover from guaranteed hire car, but the monthly payments had not.
It remained an extra £32 cost to myself for a change that should have cost me an extra £6.20

Back on to the phone I went.
The customer service department person agreed with me completely, except that they were "not authorised to issue refunds on an account" - so that's a fob off so your department's figures don't look bad again.
I got through to yet another customer service department, who were exactly the same as the department I'd just been talking to. One good thing, the advisor had placed on the notes that a refund should be issued so that I was only left with the actual extra £6.20 - what could possibly go wrong?

The advisor started telling me that I had not been charged for the hire car which is why the installments would remain the same - WRONG!
They then told me that the car hire was never added to the policy - WRONG!
Next, I was told the legal cover was not added to the policy - WRONG!
Just issue a refund of £32 to the policy as instructed to by the previous advisor will you?

I'll just have to clear it with my supervisor - another 10 minutes on hold - a complaint has been raised for you with our complaints department and I'll issue the refund for you now.
Only it wasn't "now" was it... the system won't let me issue a refund at the moment?
Like I was responsible and advising churchill's staff on how their system should be working!
Don't worry sir, I've issued the refund and it will show on your new documents.
Finally at last!

I have received three (that's 3) complaint department letters telling me how seriously they are taking my complaint, but not actually sorting anything out about it!
Yesterday I received a message from a complaints advisor on the phone saying don't worry I shall ring you back later today..... no call came.
This morning I received a new monthly policy statement to take into account my refund, sadly, the refund was for £22 only and after my monthly payments have been made, I will still be £8 out of pocket more than I should be.

It really is a simple process churchill - I took off a guaranteed hire car policy (pointless as I drive a van) and changed it for legal protection, the price difference was just £6.20 more.
As it stands now after all the messing around I will be paying £14 more to correct churchill's own mistake.
Is it really that difficult to put right?
Churchill have had numerous opportunities to charge the correct price, but instead all I get are excuses and buck passing by incompetant staff.
It really is not good enough!