“Phoned to say that I wanted to cancel my car insurance with one month left to run told it would cost £45. With refund of one month, I paid a full year in advance, I was told i would need to pay £3 in any event, because i couldn't allow the policy to expire naturally. Like most companies its almost impossible to correspond with them. ABout to complain to the insurance regulator.”
Hi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry to hear you’re unhappy with the cost of cancelling.
When a policy is cancelled, we make sure to only charge for the exact numbers of days the policy has been opened for, and for any fees that apply.
You can find a breakdown of the costs of your cancellation (how much you’ve been charged compared to how much you’ve paid) in your documents.
You would need to raise a complaint internally before referring to the regulator. If you haven't already done so, you can by giving us a call (on 0333 321 9801), sending us a letter or filling out our online form found on our website here:(https://www.hastingsdirect.com/about-us/customer-complaints/). Once we’ve logged your complaint, we’ll get back to you within five working days. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“After having representatives from Hastings ring me up making contact with me apologising over their client finally letting them know about an accident she had in hitting my classic car admitting fault many days previously they appeared to be wanting to be helpful in helping me & i explained was waiting for my insurance company to decide what was happening with my car & it was suggested they would be in contact with me at a later date over the injury side of things.So as i've just found out my Mustang is to be written off i decided to ring Hastings up again to updated them this afternoon & to ask about the injury side of the claim. I have to say right from the get go the person i spoke to was very unprofessional not very caring or understanding,i was only in contact today from advice given from my very mature insurance broker in approaching Hastings about injury involved, i'm still feeling rough from having mild concussion & whiplash.Just couldn't believe how i was spoken to from Wesley or Wes as he was prefered to be known. It wasn't nice as & found i had to end the call because of his obnoxious behaviour very unpleasant manner & unprofessional in not listening to a conversation, i did expect better given the first contact i've had with Hastings earlier from this accident claim. Disappointed.....
Date of experience: 23 October 2024”
Thanks for your review, we’re really sorry about the poor service you received.
At Hastings Direct, we pride ourselves in delivering great customer service, and it seems we may have fallen short on this occasion.
If you believe that this claim has been poorly or incorrectly handled and you want to make a complaint, please give us a call (on 0333 321 9801), send us a letter or fill out our online form found on our website here:(https://www.hastingsdirect.com/about-us/customer-complaints/). Once we’ve logged your complaint, we’ll get back to you within five working days. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“HastingsDirect is a joke of a Car Insurance. I’ve only bin with them for a month and they cancelled my insurance already. You get a tracker if you break to hard you lose points if you take of to fast you lose points. I’ve had letters and emails saying if your score goes below 30 we will cancel your insurance. So if a dog runs out in to the road and you break hard they will punish you by losing points. And cancel your policy. My advice don’t get Insurance with Hastings it will do your headin. If you break too hard you’ll get a letter if you go off too fast you’ll get a letter the company a joke it really is. Go with Tesco’s, Insurance it’s the same price and you don’t get no stress”
Hello,
Thank you for your review, I'm sorry to see that you've not having the best experience with the telematics policy.
The Telematics team does take into account that you will have to adapt to the road ahead and that this as well as other road users can cause you to take actions that may impact your score. As a result they acknowledge that your driving score won't always at 100. For the sake of the policy, it just needs to be above 30. If you have any questions concerning this, please call our YouDrive team on 0333 999 8911 so they can take a look at the policy for you. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“I have been 3 year hasting direct insurance, when someone accident my car two time and show to proof video clip all done and I have been told hasting BSL video call or intpreter sign language they are no bring sign language or video. I have been invest hasting direct is more expensive and rip off. Hasting direct look greedy and more money its was not fault accident. I have been experience hasting direct never support sign language I use behalf with my dad phone on insurance I give hasting direct one star and very expensive triple price RIP OFF”
Hello Mubeer,
Thank you for your review, I'm sorry to read about the experience you've had during your claim and if you have not received the level of customer service you deserved. I appreciate you are unable to call, however, are you able to send us an email concerning what you require? You can do so at motorclaims@hastingsdirect.com or you can send us a message via Facebook or X (formerly Twitter). ~Theo, Social Media Team
“Error in direct debit number has led to written letter in the post stating I’m in breach of contract. No payments were behind - there’s no need for such a tone post taking out an agreement a phone call or letter merely asking customers to check and correct would be a nice first step. No need for escalations.”
Hello Vanessa,
Thank you for your review, I sincerely apologise if the tone of the letter has caused some offence. Regulations from governing bodies have been put in place that urges us to be as upfront and clear as possible concerning any written communication and the outcome if certain actions aren't taken.
I appreciate however, that the tone can cause distress to some customers and we're happy to feed this back to the relevant team. Please contact us on 0333 321 9801 if you need any help with this correction or change. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“Absolutely appalling cinpany. It's been nearly a year and my car (less than 5 years old) is still not repaired following a relatively minor not fault claim. They use cowboy credit repair companies (Alton Cars). You have to do 100% of the work and updates and progress os snail paced. Even getting their claims director David Carter involved has done nothing. Clearly has no grip or control of the Operations team. Shocking!”
Hello,
Thank you for your review, I'm sorry to read about the experience you've had.
If you want to make a complaint concerning this, please give us a call (on 0333 321 9801), send us a letter or fill out our online form found on our website here: (https://www.hastingsdirect.com/about-us/customer-complaints/) . Once we’ve logged your complaint, we’ll get back to you within five working days.
Alternatively, please send us a message via Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) and we can help you get a complaint raised. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“Avoid this company! We had our car stolen. We have fully comp insurance and have never had a claim in over 45 years of driving. We have been lucky. This company cannot quantify how much of our No Claims we would lose if we made a claim and so far refuse to refund any of our annual premium paid in full in April.
After complaint now saying they will have to put a Notification on our file which may affect future insurance. Diabolical……….dreadful treatment of two pensioners!!!!”
Hi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry to hear about the theft of your vehicle and to hear that the outcome of your complaint isn’t what you’d hoped for.
If you have received an final response to the complaint, you can escalate it further with the relevant governing body.
If you’d like to take your complaint further, the final outcome letter we sent you explains how to do this. Alternatively, if you’d like to discuss the outcome or anything else relating to the complaint, please call our Complaints team on 0333 999 8904. I hope some positive progress can be made concerning this soon. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“Steer Clear If Your NCD is over 6 years
I would give them -1 if I could, Been with this company for 4 years , and had 16 years No Claims Discount, after scratching another car in a car park , they have reduced my NCD from 16 yrs to 4 . Spent 90 minutes on phone , most of that time on hold, and spoke to 5 different people, NONE of them could explain why this company do this, One of the agents actually asked "If I could prove I had 16 years NCD " I complained and my complaint has been upheld, But my NCD will not be restored, Imagine if you had 30 years NCD and you have an accident, even if its not your fault you will lose 26, YES 26 years NCD...yes maybe I should have protected it, but even that wont stop your renewal going sky high, next stop Ombudsman”
Hello Jimmy,
Thank you for your review, we’re sorry to hear the outcome of your complaint isn’t what you’d hoped for.
Before making a final decision, we investigated your complaint thoroughly to make sure we covered everything. Please note that Hastings Direct only accepts 9 years no claims on the policy. As a result, if there is a claim, the no claims will be reduced from that figure, not 16 years.
If you’d like to take your complaint further, the final outcome letter we sent you explains how to do this. Alternatively, if you’d like to discuss the outcome or anything else relating to the complaint, please call our Complaints team on 0333 999 8904. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“Did not honour home emergency, did not honour storm damage claim, did not honour contents and offered less than a quarter of the cost of remedying the internal damage under accidental damage. Also instruct their surveyors to write down poor workmanship or wear and tear or malicious damage to falsify reports in order to reject genuine claims. Avoid like the plague.”
Hi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry you weren’t happy with our service.
We always aim to deliver the highest level of service to all our customers. When it comes to a claim being made, this is even more important.
If you believe that this has been poorly or incorrectly handled and you want want to make a complaint, please give us a call (on 0333 321 9801), send us a letter or fill out our online form found on our website here:(https://www.hastingsdirect.com/about-us/customer-complaints/). Once we’ve logged your complaint, we’ll get back to you within five working days. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“Insurance company’s are never great to deal with however, Hastings are by far the worst. If you value communication and customer service I would recommend you use a different insurer. We were in an accident that happened 8 days ago and have had no contact from them at all other than an update online giving us a shockingly low pay off without any contact from an agent.
In addition, I logged a complaint with them several days ago in which I still haven't received contact from them!”
Hello Samantha,
Thank you for your review, we’re sorry you’re unhappy with the time it’s taking to deal with your complaint.
We appreciate your complaint hasn’t been resolved yet however we want to make sure we’ve looked into all aspects of the complaint. We often deal with complaints pretty quickly but sometimes complaints can take up to eight weeks to be investigated, based on the time allowed by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
If you’d like us to arrange a complaint handler to contact you, please send us a message via Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) or call our Complaints team on 0333 999 8904. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“Unhelpful and obstructive. No one takes responsibility. Just get given the runaround between repairer and insurer. Many hours of calls and emails. No result. Complaint made. Just closed it with no reasons. No attempt made to deal with and answer our valid concerns. Damage remains to our car despite a third party admission of liability some months ago.”
Hi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry you weren’t happy with our service and that you didn't get the outcome you hoped for where your complaint is concerned.
We always aim to deliver the highest level of service to all our customers. When it comes to a claim being made, this is even more important.
Before making a final decision, we investigate your complaint thoroughly to make sure we covered everything.
If you’d like to take your complaint further, the final outcome letter we sent you explains how to do this. Alternatively, if you’d like to discuss the outcome or anything else relating to the complaint, please call our Complaints team on 0333 999 8904. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“We were hit by a third party vehicle. The driver admitted liability straight away. Firstly, Hastings used false and misleading scare tactics to 'persuade' us to use their approved repairer. They then produced a report to include unnecessary repair/replacement costs. When challenged they simply said "go somewhere else then". We did, and a realistic quote that accurately reflected the significant damage was submitted. This was substantially less than the original quote and although included the damage assessed in the first quote it was rejected by Hastings as having no connection with the accident. To date damage to our car, caused in the accident, remains unrepaired. I complained and have been fobbed off with inconsistent, nonsensical, and incomplete, erroneous excuses, ever since. This appears to be a severe case of an organisation hiding behind a thin veneer of gross incompetence. No transparency, or genuine attempt at sincere communication whatsoever and no reasons or evidence provided to date from Hastings. Through no fault of our own, and having complied fully throughout this process, I am now having to pay to have the damage repaired ourselves.”
Hello Michael,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry to hear the outcome of your complaint isn’t what you’d hoped for and to read about the experience you had during the claim.
Before making a final decision, we investigated your complaint thoroughly to make sure we covered everything.
If you’d like to take your complaint further, the final outcome letter we sent you explains how to do this. If you need any further information concerning this process, please send us a message via Facebook or X (formerly Twitter). ~Theo, Social Media Team
“Hastings Direct paid out a fraudulent claim and then tried to issue me without warning with a CCJ. My experience with Hastings has been appalling, and I want to highlight the legal and ethical failures they have demonstrated. I made a formal complaint to Hastings Direct, and the response was delayed far beyond the promised timeframe. When it finally arrived, it was a sloppy dismissal of my concerns, completely unsupported by any evidence.
Their solicitors Horwich & Farrelly’s handling of the case has been even worse. Acting as a representative for Hastings their employee, who signed the Directions Questionnaire to the courts, misrepresented herself as a legal professional. They alleged she was a solicitor when there is no proof of her being qualified as a barrister, solicitor, or member of CILEX. This misrepresentation constitutes a breach of legal standards under the Legal Services Act 2007, which prohibits unqualified individuals from acting as legal professionals without proper authorisation. They are reliant on customers not knowing the law or their rights.
On top of these failings, as someone diagnosed with ADHD, I had specifically requested additional time to seek legal advice complete paperwork due to my condition and because the ccj came out of the blue due to them originally admitting the claim was fraudulent and they then tried to reclaim the money from the third party. When they couldn’t reclaim the money they paid out to the third party they shifted the blame back to me two years later. I had assumed they had reclaimed the money from the third party as I had no correspondence from Hastings to say otherwise. The first time I realised they hadn’t been able to do this was when I was issued with a CCJ. Instead of accommodating my request, Horwich & Farrelly ignored it entirely, never responded to emails or calls which constitutes discrimination under the Equality Act 2010 and the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. These laws are designed to protect individuals with disabilities from unfair treatment, and yet my legitimate need for extra time was disregarded.
In addition, they refused to mediate, even though it was compulsory under CPR Practice Direction 51ZE.
Horwich & Farrelly and Hastings have demonstrated not only a lack of professionalism but also a disregard for the law. I strongly urge others to think twice before engaging with them. Their legal misrepresentation and discriminatory practices have left me feeling neglected and deeply frustrated.”
Hi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry you weren’t happy with our service received during the claim from us or the solicitors you mentioned.
We always aim to deliver the highest level of service to all our customers. When it comes to a claim being made, this is even more important.
I have passed your review to the relevant department so that this can be reviewed further and so assistance can be given if this is possible at our end. I hope that some positive progress can be made soon. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“I would give Hastings Direct 000 what ever you do do not insure your home with them Shocking service took over 6 months to settle claim which should have been settled months ago if they contacted us but never did BVS acts for them and there service is appalling We are in our 80sand had a large hole in the kitchen floor and wires everywhere which was a trip hazard but was never offered alternative accommodation until 5 months after we had lived in the mess They were a total nightmare which resulted in my wife suffering mental stress Do not insure with them for home insurance This was after a water leak under the kitchen floor”
Hi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry to hear you’re unhappy with the customer service and delays you've experienced.
If you want to make a complaint, please give us a call (on 0333 321 9801), send us a letter or fill out our online form found on our website here: (https://www.hastingsdirect.com/about-us/customer-complaints/). Once we’ve logged your complaint, we’ll get back to you within five working days.
Alternatively, please send us a message via Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) and we can help you get a complaint raised. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“I called to renew my car insurance they gave me a Quote over the phone £382.83 Auto renewal came in at £487.48 called them they said because I went into the app it changed not my fault I didn't press renew price. Why would I 😕 called 3 times still waiting on a call back from a manager. I lost my job and £100 is a lot of money to me please can someone help me...”
Hello John,
Thank you for your review, I'm sorry to read about the poor experience you've had and I hope that some positive progress can be made concerning this soon. I have spoken to the advisor you had your recent call with and they informed me that you should expect a call in the next 24 hours. If you don't please send us a message via Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) so we can chase this. ~Theo, Social Media Team
Hi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry you’re unhappy your policy was cancelled and to see that you didn't get the level of customer service you deserved.
At Hastings Direct, we pride ourselves in delivering great customer service, and it seems we may have fallen short on this occasion. We’d like to look into this and, as long as you’re happy, pass on any feedback to the colleague and their team leader.
To do this, please send us a message via Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) and we can arrange for this to be done or you can email us at customersupport@hastingsdirect.com. ~Theo, Social Media Team
“I unticked the renewal box for my car insurance as soon as I was set up online. Eleven months later when I received a renewal quote the box had been ticked, without my authority. I again unticked the box. Hundreds of pounds were taken from my account without my authorisation, on phoning Hastings they reluctantly agreed to a refund minus £20. A complaint has been made to the company and if I am not satisfied with the outcome I will be going to the Ombudsman. The company’s actions have caused me to go overdrawn. Recommend to avoid dealing with Hastings.”
Hi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry to hear about this and to see that you've had to raise a formal complaint.
I hope that you receive a quick resolution to this. If you need to discuss the complaint or add anything further, please contact us by calling 0333 999 8904 so the assigned handler can assist you. You can also send us a message via Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) and we can see if there are any updates.
~Theo, Social Media Team
“3 months after my claim I am still waiting for a Valuation. Multiple 'transfer you to the correct team' even though they email you the direct number to call! Nobody wants to, or can help. Passed from one person to another consistently. Excuses made time after time and blaming 3rd parties for the delay when in actual fact it is sitting with Hastings They are not allowed to pass through to a manager as nobody wants to own Customer Satisfaction or see things through to resolution. Now blaming delay on undeclared convictions which are clearly on the quote. Laughable and Desperate”
Hi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry you weren’t happy with our service.
We always aim to deliver the highest level of service to all our customers. When it comes to a claim being made, this is even more important.
If you want to make a complaint, please give us a call (on 0333 321 9801), send us a letter or fill out our online form found on our website here:(https://www.hastingsdirect.com/about-us/customer-complaints/)
. Once we’ve logged your complaint, we’ll get back to you within five working days. ~Theo ,Social Media Team
“I cancelled my multicar insurance renewal policy (two cars) on the first day, and I phoned them to cancel my policy, they charging me £20 on each car, even though I the was in cooling period which I have 14 days and it is written in the renewal document no charge if renewal cancelled with in 14 days I.e cooling period And does not say there will be charges but the made it up to take money from customers. As I high lightning shown in attached photo On cancelling new or renewal with in 14 days.
I been dealing with insurance companies for the past 20 years and they all do not charge any money with cancelling a renewal insurance during cooling off period.
Hastings Direct is the first do make a charge making any reason to charge. I do not recommend company to anyone.”
Hi Radhi,
Thanks for your review, we’re sorry to hear you’re unhappy about our fees.
We appreciate no one wants to be charged fees but, like most other insurers, these cover some of our business costs - like the costs of staffing our contact centres, managing your policy, creating and sending documents and maintaining and developing our systems.
Please note, the £20 isn't a cancellation fee rather it is an arrangement fee that is retained following the termination of the policy.
We try to keep these in line with everyone else and make it as clear as possible how much these fees are and that they’re non-refundable.
~Theo, Social Media Team
Hello,
Thank you for your review, I'm sorry for any frustration this has caused. The type of policy you have purchased may require you to provide this information. We do ask that you read the terms before you buy the policy. If you’d like to check out our other insurance options, head to our website or give us a call at 0333 321 9801. Our advisors would be happy to help you. ~Theo, Social Media Team
