direct line to financial drama (Direct Line)

Member Name: Tim Kemp

Product:	Direct Line
Date:	20/03/09 (233 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: cheap initial quote

Disadvantages: bad customer service, appauling communication, dreadful claim handling and shoddy solicitors

let me share with you my direct line nightmare, I am a 19 year old student who passed my test in August 2007. My elder brother was heading off to Australia for a year so instead of buying me a car and sorting out my own insurance policy my parents decided to add me to his as a named driver as i earned my own no claims discount. BIG MISTAKE!

To cut a long story short, i had a bump in september 2007 which i refuse to accept liability for as i dont believe it was my fault in the slightest. The service from direct line was utterly appauling, the communication is worse than awful. They dont keep yo informed of whats happening on the claim, automatically put the premium up, even though we havent been found at fault and it took them over a year to pass me to a lawyers. These lawyers, Cogent Solicitors are completely incompetent. Direct line's fumblings and Cogent's seeming inaction has led to a CCJ being levelled against me and me being credit blacklisted, at 19 years of age. I can't do anything with my bank account and am now completely and utterly broke as i have just paid a deposit on a house to live in next year not knowing that this CCJ was there. The solicitors said that they would sort out the CCJ for me and that there would be nothing averse against me. This was on the 10th of February 2009. Try to increase my student account's overdraft limit which i am intitled to do so on the 12th of March and find to my bemusement that the CCJ is still there. After repeated attempts to try and get in touch with both direct line and the solicitors it transpires that nothing was actually done regarding the CCJ.

Also just found out that my no claims bonus that i have built up since the accident is non-transferrable to another insurance company unless i take out a full policy with direct line first.

That just isn't going to happen. I wish i could give them -100 stars as a rating because they have completely screwed up my financial affairs through no fault of my own.

Summary: would have been better off without any insurance at all