Last year I was crashed into by another car through no fault of my own and it was my first experience of having to go through the claims process myself, in 21 years of driving. I cannot therefore compare my experience with Hastings to any other company but overall, I can say it did not meet expectations. I actually feel like maybe if I'd been injured, I'd have had better service but (luckily) I was ok, my car was not, it was decided to be a write-off due to its age (10 years). The first problem arose when I was sent a pay-out without previously accepting it, through advice from the local garage and a little online research I realised the amount was below my car's worth. Although I had been corresponding via email beforehand, all emails I sent after pay-out were ignored. Eventually it was the salvage partners Copart that advised me to raise a complaint which would get an answer. The reason Copart were calling me was to establish whether I wanted to buy my car back for repair, I was unable to give a decision until I had been paid the proper amount. During this time a direct debit payment was taken from my account, the regular monthly payment I set up to cover my insurance over the year. Which is the second problem, because the remaining cost of my insurance agreement had been deducted from the settlement amount before I received the pay-out, as is standard. So, one department had not spoken to the other in good time (and for the record, this wasn't all within a few days or even a week, it was 3 bordering on 4 weeks). So, I raised another complaint. A resolution was offered for my first complaint, the amount was increased by £450! Hastings sent me their calculation sheet and the website details where they check it's a fair value. Great. Why wasn't this the amount they offered in the first place if it was fair and right? Why did I have to challenge it at all? Having accepted this additional pay-out, I contacted Copart about buying back my car, I already knew the amount they were charging but needed to take into account delivery cost and logistics. The helpful comms at this point broke down because I was told Copart did not have my car and in response to my two replies I got nothing but the equivalent of 'computer says no'. So, I raised a third complaint with Hastings. It took 3 weeks to get Copart to admit they did indeed have my car, by which time it was December 27th. The crash had occurred on October 8th. I had only been given a courtesy car for 3 weeks (until the initial pay-out was sent to me). I had radiotherapy during those weeks so that worked out but otherwise I was lucky my mum is part-retired so I was able to use her car to attend my Search & Rescue volunteering commitment. I had warned Hastings I had jury service coming up at the beginning of January and that's without mentioning Christmas and the to-ing and fro-ing I was due to help my family with then. So, I had to look for an alternative, a new (to me) car. I exhausted all options within 60 miles of my town, there was simply nothing with my basic requirements that I could afford (5 doors, less than 10 years old, petrol). I hadn't had to buy a second-hand car for over 16 years, so it was a minefield. None of this is taken into consideration by the compensation given by Hastings. What were my expectations? To be paid out fairly. To be assured the insurance company is doing its best by me. To have the company manage its admin efficiently so as not to put me to further inconvenience. What would be extra nice is to have time and assistance given in finding a new solution after the loss of your vehicle. Where am I now? My complaints were closed out, the mitigation of my blame in the claim continues without progress update. I've ended up with a car that is 2 years younger than my one was but otherwise no better and costing me more. Plus, the cheapest insurance I can secure is costing me £20 more PER MONTH than I was paying before this accident. On the positive side I can say that all the conversations I had with Hastings staff were polite and friendly.