Written on: 20/05/2013
Rang for a quote, pressurised selling techniques ending up with 'well if you can't afford £160 per month' etc etc. Not the experience you want. (read more)
Written on: 17/05/2013 by kerrymckay (2 reviews written)
Insured with Swinton. Just outwith my 14 days and changed my car. They were charging an additional £185.00 for a lower insurance group car. They advised that there was a fee of £26.34. I then said that i would come back to them. I did so today and the cancellation fee is £53.09. I am appauled with the costs that they charge. I have insured with another company for a lot less money and i would never ever recommend them to anyone ever. (read more)
Written on: 14/05/2013 by JoanneCooper (2 reviews written)
This company has the most appealing customer service and in my opinion, its renewal procedures are designed to let you know at the very last minute what the new premium will be, just so that you have no time to cancel it. They can then charge you cancellation fees etc and speak to you like a piece of dirt on the phone! I did not receive my renewal notice until after they had taken out the first instalment, I am disgusted with them. Now have to pay £50 cancellation and additional £75 for... (read more)
Written on: 10/05/2013
Had Fully comp insurance and was knocked off my bike by 3rd party left in a bit of a state .. There answer if I'm not claiming off my inaurance there's nothing they can do to help.. Wrongly Took breakdown cover after phoning 3 times to stop it ., and charged me £127 for the luxury of cancelling and took £70 for a payment after my bike was written off and wouldn't pay it back .. All in all customer services are terrible. custumor care none at all. They are right and your wrong .. Would... (read more)
Written on: 26/04/2013
I have cancelled the insurance after 18 months, with no claim.Still they charge 50 pounds for cancelling fee and another 28 pounds for insurance charge. i have paid the whole £78 to get rid off them and I did collect a receipt from their Swindon branch for the my balance states NIL,Today, after one month I have received a letter from a debt collection agency called REGAL Credit Consultants LTD, says that I have to pay £102, If I ignore this matter,The external collectors will visit at my... (read more)
Written on: 25/04/2013 by alessandro1924
As an current employee of swinton I can say that they way the prices are designed are to rip customers off. The original prices that appear after inputting the customers details are inflated, and its upto to us as an agent of swinton to sell that inflated price to the customer. We can give big discounts to the customers if we wish but the less we give the more we make in commission. Some customers can easily save hundreds if they did come further ringing about to other insursance companied.... (read more)
Written on: 27/04/2013
Charged £50's to cancel policy PLUS over £40's worth of Brokers Fees...(over £90's in total!- policy only cost £200's) so almost 50% - May seem like the cheaper alternative but if you want to make any change to your policy during the term the premium is shoots right up. I changed from a FORD KA to a CITY ROVER (Same Value Car) and they said it would cost me an additional £250's so left me no choice but to cancel and lose £90's...Really annoyed...
Written on: 23/04/2013 by Crissywissy83
Best insurer I have dealt with, they are more expensive than some Internet insurers but u get what u pay for as you can go into the branch and put a face to the name at the end of the phone. I can see a lot of people complaining about charges etc if you do the quote with the branches they read the service charges to you if you do it online It's up to yourself to find out this information, ie by reading the small print (read more)
Written on: 23/04/2013
Written on: 21/04/2013 by swintonian As an current employee of swinton I can say that they way the prices are designed are to rip customers off. The original prices that appear after inputting the customers details are inflated, and its upto to us as an agent of swinton to sell that inflated price to the customer. We can give big discounts to the customers if we wish but the less we give the more we make in commission. Some customers can easily save hundreds if they did come further ringing... (read more)
Written on: 18/04/2013 by swintonian
As an current employee of swinton I can say that they way the prices are designed are to rip customers off. The original prices that appear after inputting the customers details are inflated, and its upto to us as an agent of swinton to sell that inflated price to the customer. We can give big discounts to the customers if we wish but the less we give the more we make in commission. Some customers can easily save hundreds if they did come further ringing about to other insursance companied.... (read more)
Written on: 16/04/2013 by davetownsend
i changed my posh merc for a old skoda last week , rang swindletons llandudno , said i needed to tax skoda soon as , i live half way up a mountain in wales, and go to regular to hospital for treatments . they promised to send new ins note out soon as , after charging £25 admin. for the pleasure,( IM still waiting !!! 6 days later 8 phonecalls to them etc STILL WAITING NOW ! )so ALREADY nearly lost 1/2 a month tax now ! oh ALSO there is 3 months of my ins left , they gave me £2.50 back... (read more)
Written on: 15/04/2013 by Christophe2Watches (1 review written)
Swinton have a long history of dishonesty and questionable practices and they are no different today. They are actually under close FSA supervision at the moment relating to pressure selling and misleading customers relating to Personal accident and breakdown insurance. They have also suspended the sale of legal cover throughout some of their divisions as they have been caught selling additional legal cover to customers without informing them that such cover was already included with their... (read more)
Written on: 14/04/2013
Pruchased policy as informed they did not charge administration fee for changes. Quotation was only a few pounds less than existing provided but they charged a hefty admin fee for any changes. Car change was imminent. On trying to change car spent an hour in their office whilst 2 of them tried. Finally established the policy ( they could not get hold of Insurance company for help - which was a bit worrying - are they using reputable companies) was tied to the age of my car and would not... (read more)
Written on: 13/04/2013 by Jumpyjoe (1 review written)
WARNING! Swinton charge me over £100 to cancel my insurance before the "cooling off" period which is 14 days. I cancelled just 5 days after making payment. THE EXACT AMOUNT THEY WILL CHARGE YOU IS NOT PRINTED IN THEIR TERMS & CONDITION. They will add extra costs and before you know it, you won't be able to afford to cancel. The reason for canceling my policy was because there was an error in the documentation and when changed, my insurance shot up to another £1000. Its ridiculous! (read more)
Written on: 08/04/2013
I changed my address and was charged £61 by Swinton due to post code. My husband also has a car (insurer QuoteMeHappy), he received £20 back. When my policy was ending I phoned Swinton to get a new quote. They did not have my new address in the system. They gave me a price of £32 per month (before was £24), they increased excess to £200. When I did not want to renew I was offered £21a month including £200 excess with excess insurance up to £300. I decided to cancel as not sure how... (read more)
Written on: 26/03/2013
Took policy out in Feb. There was some discretion re a claim not mentioned and the service was terrible from here onwards. Sent email of details regarding the claim and asked for acknowledgement..Nothing received. Rang the company they could not give a timescale when the issue would be resolved. Policy got cancelled and they wanted £50 cancellation charge. Sent email to Branch manager. Not acknowledged. Emailed Chief executive and got a call that afternoon. Apologising and clearing the o/s... (read more)
Written on: 25/03/2013
4 months after my policy had ended they have taken £300 out if my account yesterday!!! They keep ur card details. They can't keep them if u don't give them it so be aware! They might have the cheapest quite but it's only to bite u in the arse a few months later! (read more)
Written on: 23/03/2013
Terrible company to deal with,bad customer service,well over priced!!!!! (read more)
Written on: 22/03/2013
I took put insurance with Swinton and yes I forgot I about a claim I made a few years ago so had to add this on a couple of days later. They told me it would cost me an extra £90. I found another policy with someone else for the same amount so cancelled this one. Obvioulsy I had to pay a cancellation fee! They told me it would take 3 working days to be refunded and would be in my bank by Saturday, as I needed this money to buy a new policy. I asked if they were sure as Saturday is not... (read more)
Written on: 18/03/2013
DONT USE THIS COMPANY-took out car insurance and cancelled within 10 days they charged full months insurance plus cancellation fee, they are rude and unhelfull. luckly insurance companies are 10 a penny so to speak off get someone else ! (Torquay branch of Swinton are rude!)Direct Line and Swift cover are good to deal with. (read more)
Written on: 21/03/2013
just report to fsa swintion will b fined £500 by fsa. just you to reporting fsa
Written on: 12/03/2013
When my wife changed her car, the "helpful" guy at swinton said he could arrange a bridging policy to cover her until she sold the old one. She accepted that. He set an entirely new second policy, without no-claims as that was already in use on the old policy. When she sold the car she then got hammered for £150 cancellation/admin etc fee's. and still had to pay over the odds as they would not then apply the no-claims on the new car as the policy was already running. We left the UK last... (read more)
Written on: 23/02/2013
Took out car insurance to enable our soon to drive more in preparation for his driving test. Was quoted a very steep £230 per month. I said that our son would take his test next month but as I knew it would be expensive to insure him I went ahead and bought the insurance. So far so good. Until our son had passed his test, one month later. The insurance now went up to £500 per month! I had not been told that this would happen when he was able to drive him self. If I want to take him off... (read more)
Written on: 06/03/2013
Beware, 6 months after we left the UK, swinton used information they had saved from the year before to start taking money from our account
Written on: 22/02/2013 by m2004ike (1 review written)
I've never had PPI calls on my mobile. Swinton kept pestering me day after day about renewal on car insurance. Eventually I put the phone down on them. Then the very NEXT DAY, PPI nuisance calls began. The evidence is clear. (read more)
Written on: 20/02/2013 by xsif1984 (3 reviews written)
I took out a car insurance policy with Swintons as it came in cheaper than others with their cashback scheme. My policy cost £350 but I was supposed to get £100 cashback after 3months. When I didnt hear anything after 4 months I contacted Swintons to check on my cashback and was told that I couldn't have it as I had made a change to my policy? I hadn't changed anything so asked them to check into it and was basically told to go away. I took this to the manager who told me my... (read more)
Written on: 22/02/2013
I've never had PPI calls on my mobile. Swinton kept pestering me day after day about renewal on car insurance. Eventually I put the phone down on them. Then the very NEXT DAY, PPI nuisance calls began. The evidence is clear.
Written on: 13/02/2013 by l.b.joiner (1 review written)
They cancelled my policy, but didn't tell me, they still took my full direct debit payments for another 7 months so i assumed i was still insured and fully covered. Tonight i was stopped by the police and charged with driving with no insurance even though i have been paying for it for 7 months, also getting a fine and points and my vehicle has been impounded, don't know what to do, any advice welcome. (read more)
Written on: 14/02/2013
Oh dear what a nightmare - my advice would be to contact citizens advice and or office of fair trading. I'd kick off big big style - I've just taken out a policy for car insurance with swinton and already being hounded by sales calls - altho saved £80 beginning to wonder why I bothered, i might just canx this policy and stick with what I have, so thanks for sharing your experience. Hope you get sorted v soon..fingers crossed
Written on: 06/02/2013 by lsation (2 reviews written)
We have been with Swintons for 15years just recently we decided to part exchange two cars for a larger family car...but continuing with Swintons for the Insurance?....because we only now needed 1 policy they informed us we would have to pay £71.83 for the 1 cancelled policy. We have our Household policies cars contents etc with Swintons but not for much longer its easier and cheaper to do it yourself online, and as the policies run out we will insure through other brokers/web sites. (read more)
Written on: 29/01/2013 by kenstaff
2 problems with Swinton, and I really wanted to deal with a BRICKS and MORTAR business and real people, instead of call centres. What a dissapointment I had...... First of all there was a cash back Voucher that took a few months to arrive , and had to be chased up several times with the local office. Then after a change to the car due to a non fault smash, we were charged 50% increase in the policy made of up:- 1. £25.00 Admin Charge 2. 29.9 % Broker commision paid to Swinton from Ageas... (read more)
Written on: 26/01/2013
Took out a modified policy with this lot last year.Recieved a call from them about half way through the year saying i'd not told them about all the modifications,which is untrue.To avoid,so i thought,any more hassle i paid another £29 and thought nothing more about it. With less than one Month left on the policy i recieved another call from them saying because i hadn't told them about all the modifications they were canceling the policy that day.Nothing but a pack of lies with the person... (read more)
Written on: 25/01/2013 by sal1978
1 failed direct debit payment, no letter to let me know. just letter saying insurance was cancelled and i had to pay £121. customer service when you finally get through to them are VERY rude and make you feel like a criminal just because of a missed payment. would definitely not recommend to anyone. NEVER AGAIN (read more)
Written on: 23/01/2013
£50 charge to cancel my policy with only 3 months left at £9 a month... er no i'll just ride out the policy... 3 weeks later i get a letter for £65.18 because i'd cancelled my policy.. What the Hell!! (read more)
Written on: 22/01/2013
They came up as cheapest on comparison site. Then when applied it goes up . Eventually I discover 1small mistake and go to rectify it in the name of clarity and they rack up the price again by nearly £30. admin fee? This takes it to above the initial quote They said they would beat. They put you on to local offices then ( why do this if you did it online) the guy in the office seemed upset that I had woken him up--- may be that is what the £30 admin charge is Don't wake the local shop... (read more)
Written on: 22/01/2013
This has since been rectified by the local Swintons to a very satisfactory outcome.
But a little customer kindness and negotiation meant they did not lose a customer.
Written on: 21/01/2013
I've been insured via Swinton for over two years now. It's been fine as I've never had to make a claim. My windscreen cracked at the weekend so called to make the first claim I've ever made in 17 years of driving. The call centre(run by a 3rd party company on behalf of Swinton) had no record I had ever been insured with them and told me I needed to speak to my branch. What have they done with my money and what would've happened if I'd been pulled over by the police or been in a proper... (read more)
Written on: 18/01/2013
This company take your renewal out 8 weeks prior to renewal, even before you get your renewal letter and have agreed to renew. Rang local branch, the manager is rude. They say the amount isn't showing in their account (it takes 3 working days to show) and then it will take 7-10 working days to clear in my bank. Their customer services are rude also. These people are not helpful and act like you're in the wrong! Also very high cancellation charges, amendment charges and watch out for their... (read more)
Written on: 09/01/2013 by amzyg86
got a policy with swinton thought the ammount was reasonable until i tried to change my DD details, took about 4 months and 9 bank charges later from the (changed account) until they got it right then eventually cancelled my policy as i did not have enough in my account after paying the bank charges and left with a bill for £280 to pay off the rest of the policy!! complaint after complaint- worst customers services no response i had to call to see if my complaint had been logged NO! (after... (read more)
Written on: 05/01/2013
I was a first time driver and went through all the comparison websites trying to find cheap insurance quotes which is not easy as a first time driver. I was getting quotes at £3200 plus. I found a quote from Swinton for £2800 which was £400 cheaper than the next best so decided to go with them. I was given £150 cash back after 3 months as part of the policy and had breakdown cover and legal cover at extra cost. 2 months before the policy was up i went into the local Swinton branch and... (read more)
Written on: 04/01/2013 by asswipesswinton
My partner took out insurance with these. her payments were never taken on the correct date as agreed . and amounts varied to what the agreement was for the insurance. when my wife enquired about this they told her it was a penalty that had been added to her account for a failed payment with no explination or written conformation . so her insurance has now increased by £20.00 extra per month. she was threatend that if it was not paid her insurance will be cancelled.They would not speak to... (read more)
Written on: 02/01/2013 by bebishenron
We were told our car insurance would be 11 monthly payments and that's it... Well it isn't because if you are with them for more than 1 year, they will then add a "deposit" onto your next year's premium which is taken the month before you are due to have your new insurance start, effectively making it 12 payments (yet the amount they quote for the year / 11 payments is after this cheeky payment is taken and deducted...)They are very difficult to deal with and they are crafty with interest -... (read more)
Written on: 30/12/2012
Same thing no proof problems, problems with direct debits so i paid by debit card when direct debit failed all up to date yet they cancelled!! 2 letters with different amounts one saying they are going to take the payment from my debit card which will leave me overdrawn, charges etc, the bank won't block the payment, nicey nicey until cancellation when i said i had not received any letters staing they were due to cancel they told me to take it up with royal mail!! DO NOT GO WITH THIS... (read more)
Written on: 16/12/2012 by besty_x (1 review written)
Took out insurance with Swinton in Jan 2012, took 1st payment in Jan (as expected) then followed by 10 monthly payments from February, meaning my last payment will be in November 2012. December came and they took another months payment out. I went to our local office to query this, they said its a pre-payment for next years insurance. Hello, I haven't yet said I will be taking out insurance through Swinton, they said its is in the Direct Debit terms, of which 11 months ago, I could not... (read more)
Written on: 24/12/2012
when you sign up it should say 'In the 8 week period before the renewal date a further payment of *insert monthly amount* will be collected as a pre-renewal deposit. Of course, if the policy is not renewed this payment will be refunded to you.' on the confirmation screen after you put you bank details in but before you accept to pay.
I used to work there and i still know the script off by heart....it's depressing.
Written on: 13/12/2012
Similar to many other reviews. Took out car insurance last year with a £50 cash back. Had to pay amount plus £50 and was told I'd get the money back in a cheque. Have queried this many times but no joy. Now that policy is up for renewal and being told that the £50 was my word against theirs by an employee, the manager phoned yesterday offering £150 cash back as goodwill but I'd have to pay the policy amount Plus £150 and wait for it to come back. Needless to say, I have taken my... (read more)
Written on: 07/12/2012
cancelled my car insurance after waiting 11 days to get policy and finding it was totaly unfit for purpose, dont mind paying the 11 pounds for 11 days cover but they want extortionate amout "cancellation" fee even though i cancelled within the statutory 14 day cooling off period AVOID (read more)
Written on: 15/11/2012 by Savvydriver (1 review written)
I called Swinton as they were the cheapest on the comparison website which I used but the Internet link to the site did not work. All I can say is thank goodness I did phone them as I probably would have unwittingly voided my insurance many times throughout the year. The key issue seemse to centre around where I keep car overnight. USually this is on the driveway of my house. During the course of the conversation I happened to mention that I was going out the following night so would be... (read more)
Written on: 09/11/2012 by busymum123 (2 reviews written)
The worst company I have ever had the misfortune of dealing with. We had a car insurance which we paid in full for in April. By November we purchased a new car and phoned to switch policy to new car. The figure we got to change was extortionate. We asked to cancel but were told we would get nothing back despite having 5 months left on policy. Spoke to around 10 people in various departments, trying desperately to get to their complaints department. Told several lies along the way and told by... (read more)
Written on: 04/11/2012
Avoid swintons like the plague they will rip you off left right and center they took payments from my account 4 weeks earlier than the agreed payment date then when i wanted to change insurance over to another call (smaller one 1.2) they wanted to quote me £802.80 fully comp where as on my 1.6 i was paying £183.19 fully comp these people need shutting down. Would i recommend them ? No (read more)
Written on: 04/11/2012
If you're reading the reviews on swinton it probably means you have already had a bad experience with them. Based on my own experience I can only hope that this will serve as a warning to keep well away from them. The manner in which they treat customers is utterly dispicable and all their operators are trained in being arrogant and unpleasant, Their sole aim is to rip you off huge amounts of money in every possible way and usually it falls under the name of "administration costs". Do not... (read more)
Written on: 31/10/2012 by jackiekojak (1 review written)
Paid a full year in advance and had to sell car as retired EXpected a refund but told i have to pay £50 admin charges I do not mind paying some admin charges to cancel but £50 is a rip off They did not let me know that this was the case as i knew i would be sellng my car when i retired HAve asked for a full detailed list of how they can justify £50 Also have house insurance with them but will be changing when it expires WIll not go with this company again HAve also asked for proof of... (read more)
Written on: 29/10/2012
my partner has recently had to sell his motorbike due to ill health so he rang them to cancel the policy only to find out they wanted £12 cancelation fee what a rip off the staff are terrible 2 days later we received a letter saying our papers had been sent to a debt collection agency plus they will also charge another £25 what a joke or we could pay the £12 now. PLEASE DO NOT USE SWINTON INSURANCE COMPANY THEY ARE RIP OFF MERCHANTS,they may be cheaper or have a deal on but do not bother... (read more)
Written on: 31/10/2012
Have sold my car and had paid for a full year in advance and have been told that £50 admin charges what a rip off at no point was i given nor told that this would be the charge i would not recommend them at all The customer care is appalling when you cancelling but nice and hassle you when they want you to buy a policy I also have houseninsurance but will not be going back to them whenit runsnout stay well clear if you do not want rip off change and/or cancellation charges
Written on: 23/10/2012
had my car insurance with swinton changed car they wanted to charge me 100 more for a smaller engine car then cancelled my policy and said i had requested this and charged me a extra £50 for the privillage they are rude on the phone and everyone i speak to tell me something different cant get anywhere with then STAY AWAY THEY ARE CROOKS (read more)
Written on: 16/10/2012 by Debbie61
I have recently had to take over my mum's financial affairs which included selling her car and canceling her insurance - I was horrified to find out what they had been charging her over the past few years, way over the top, when we phoned to cancel the chap she spoke to was most obstructive and left my mum nearly in tears, they slapped on a £50 cancelation fee and this bill arrived 2 days later. Less than a week later they sent a threatening letter saying they were sending the bailiefs... (read more)
Written on: 11/10/2012
Although the insurance for my car was arranged through Aviva - the aviva price online was much lower than the one swinton quoted me. As said in previous emails they charge ridulously high fees for changes to insurance policies. I was quoted £ 300 to change my po;icy from a diesel getz to an MX5 for the balance of the year. They misadvised me over the costs of my insurance - leave them alone and book your insurance directly online. They were once reasonably ok and helpful now they are simply... (read more)
Written on: 10/10/2012 by BRIANRUDIE
got them from compare the market.com only to find the quote received was with 1 years no claims added I DID NOT OPT IN THAT I HAD 1 YEARS NO CLAIMS WHEN I SIGNED UP SCAMMERS (read more)
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Joannecooper's Response to JoanneCooper's Review
Written on: 14/05/2013
Please let me clarify - *appalling certainly NOT appealing