Direct Line - Honest Analysis (Direct Line)

Member Name: markafcb

Product:	Direct Line
Date:	24/10/01 (2933 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Quick Claim Handling, Good Customer Service, Cheap Policies

Disadvantages: Inexperinced Claims Staff, No Legal Expenses Cover, No Courtesy Car

Insure your car with Direct Line and you will get a competent insurance company, who are a rising star in the industry.

Be sure however to bear in mind that the cover that is afforded to you can really be described as "No Frills".

Ultimatly insurance is an average of £400 a year for a piece of paper, which no one reads! - and only digs out of the drawer when they have a crash, and thats when you get to know what you are paying that insurance company for.

I will explain this to you. Most people when their insurance comes up for renewal go with the company that can insure their car for the lowest price. What is not checked by the policyholder is what features the cover comes with.

Direct Line offer their policyholders cheaper insurance because their are no middlemen (brokers) to take a cut, you go direct to them, hence the name Direct Line.

However, if you are deciding if you wish to insure your car with Direct Line, consider the following:

Direct Line do not offer their policyholders a courtesy car while the car is being repaired, they however select only a few policyholders to receive a car on credit hire terms, as long as you are not at fault. This is also being challenged by many other major insurers in the House of Lords, but this is not common knowledge. They are really the only major insurer who do not offer a free courtesy car.

Direct Line do not recover your excess or other out of pocket expenses like other insurers such as Liverpool Victoria. They only will if you pay them a supplimentary charge on your insurance each year. This is the same system as Norwich Union however.

Direct Line do not have many experienced claims negotiators (if you have a claim where the liability is disputed, they negotiate it to settlement), most of their staff are college or school leavers, so it can get frustrating when having your claim delt with.

They do have a first rate customer s
ervice team however, should you wish to change your cover, or car etc, they will answer the phone quickly and deal with it all over the phone.

Direct Line are also part of an initiative which is only known to people in the insurance industry, called the RIPE agreement. This stands for the Reduction In Paper Exchange. This agreement means that Direct Line, Norwich Union, Zurich, AXA and Royal & SunAlliance to name a few, do all there corresponding over the telephone. Even if they need an insurer to send you a cheque to settle a claim, they can do it all on the phone, so this can knock a few months off of the time it takes to settle a claim.

I would recommend insuring your vehicle with Direct Line, but be sure to take advantage of the Legal Expenses cover, as this is essential if you are unfortunate enough to be involved in a road traffic accident. This should cost around an extra £20 a year. Well worth it.

Direct Line are also very reasonably priced for young drivers, and are the number one choice for the under 21's. You will however have to pay at least the first £300 of any claim if you are under 21.

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