Me vs Axa Insurance

[couple31]

Hi all

Just thought i'd get some advice on a little battle I'm having...

I took out a homeworker insurance policy with AXA last July

In November, I rang them to discuss a possible claim for mobile phone damage as mine had got smashed falling off my desk

I was given an appointment to speak by phone to a claims advisor which I did
Anyway, they made such a palavar about it, wanting 'crime scene' style photos of the angle I was sitting and the trajectory of the phone's fall that i decided not to bother with the claim.

I rang them to tell them this and the case was closed.

In April, I decided to switch to a different insurer, I was paying for AXA by monthly direct debit and my policy T+C stated that so long as no claim had been paid for during the policy, I could terminate at any time with no premiums due for the remainder of the contract.

This is where the fun starts

AXA claim that because they paid a claims advisor £90 to talk to me for 30 mins then that counts as paying out to me under the claim even though it was never completed and therefore I owed them £140 in unpaid premiums

I was never advised of this fact they were using an external claims processing service.

Anyway, I battled with them for a week on the phone (on their premium rate number) and finally got some call centre guy in India to email me and admit that I had nothing to pay because the claim was cancelled.

All fine and well

Except 2 days ago I got a court demand out of the blue for the remaining premiunms threatening ccj if I didn't pay up

I pointed out that the guy in India said I had nothing owing but they said 'he made an error of judgement'

Surely, the fact that I have email proof of them saying there is nothing to pay + the fact that I never received a penny of any claim is enough for me to win this if it goes to court?

Sorry for the long winded novel!

[couple31]

This isn't connected to my IVA by the way, which was a full and final last year

[kallis3]

They'll try anything won't they?

Don't see how a 90 minute conversation can be construed as a claim. They never paid you out did they?

Wonder if they do the same with all insurance?

[emma_t]

Stick yo your guns, they are obviously in the wrong and can't chop and change their minds like this.
I am no legal eagle but as you have an email confirming you owe nothing surely they need to write this off as a gesture of goodwill.

Hope you get sorted soon as its all you need after thinking all your threats from creditors were over,
Emma x

[pixie]

can't really help, but it sounds completly nuts!! they are really trying it on! I would doubt they would bother with court but whether the guy who sent the email was right or wrong he was still acting on behalve of the company. In the worse case scenario though, this could be covered within the iva.

[couple31]

Thanks people for help

As you say, it's just another stress that I could do with you

They've filed their claim through moneyclaim.gov.uk

I've responded to their claim online which then gets passed back to them to decide if they want to take it to court or drop it

I'd like to think they'll see sense but if not I'm happy to take them on in court over this. With the email that i've got, I really don't see how they can expect to win even excluding the ridiculous nature of their claim in the first place.

They've also claimed that
'Despite our extreme efforts, the defendant has made no effort to get in touch with us to discuss repayment methods'

I think this email and the phone records will put paid to that one as well

[Adam Davies]

Hi
Fight this
Your email will win your case
I would lodge a counter claim for your time and costs with the County Court involved
Let us know how you get on
Regards

[couple31]

Hi
Fight this
Your email will win your case
I would lodge a counter claim for your time and costs with the County Court involved
Let us know how you get on
Regards

Will do , thanks Andy
There was an option for a counter claim on the response form but I left it for now, if they go to court, I might consider it as it's costing me so much working time trying to get them to listen

[Adam Davies]

Hi
Fill that part in and if the court is not near to you ask for a change of venue.
If it does go to court then attend and stand tall,I bet they will not attend and you will win the counter claim
Regards

[couple31]

Thanks, will let you know how it progresses

[kallis3]

Good luck with your claim couple31 - it's about time us little people took on the big firms to show them that they cannot walk all over us!

[Viki.W]

That's terrible couple31. I hope you do take them to court. Claim all your phone call costs back too!