Cancelling car insurance on death of insured driver

Ger Roe

Hi,

I have cause to cancel the car insurance of a deceased family member and have found the process to be frustrating to say the least.

The car is insured with AXA who initially told me that they would require a solicitors letter confirming the executor of the estate and then a letter from the executor to request that the insurance be cancelled.

On questioning why a solicitor should be involved, they eventually accepted that proof of the nomination (naming) of the executor would do. As I am in fact the executor, I intend to copy the will, redacting all sections except the opening declaration, executor nomination and the required signatures and then write them a letter. In the meantime, several weeks after they have been told that their client is deceased, the policy remains in force with premium deductions being made.

My point is, I can't ring them up and ask them to insure a dead person, yet they can continue to cover someone that they have been informed has deceased. They also don't accept the state issued death certificate that was issued on registration of the death and have an alternative proof system that on first instruction requires people to go through more administration and cost, while they continue to make money on the policy.

While production of a death cert is definitive state issued proof of death, they wont accept that, but will accept a letter signed by someone saying that they are the executor as long as they sign the same name as on the provided proof of nomination (solicitors letter, or will copy).

I was told that the fact that they have a separate proof requirement to that accepted by the state, is due to data protection laws.

Has anyone else experienced this issue, is at an AXA thing or is it standard practice? What happens in a case where there is no will and appointed executor?

Henry Ford III

Send them a certified copy of the death cert.

FishOnABike

If you are the executor can you not dimply cancel any direct debit mandate or standing order with the bank.

Unless the car has been sold you might want to maintain insurance if it is comprehensive or there are additional named drivers who might use the car for the moment.

tcawley29

Name and shame the insurer on social media. Something as ridiculous as this should get enough attention and get the policy cancelled swiftly.

Sorry for your loss OP

Eggs For Dinner

tcawley29 wrote: »

Name and shame the insurer on social media. Something as ridiculous as this should get enough attention and get the policy cancelled swiftly.

Sorry for your loss OP

Nonsense. Firstly OP, sorry for your loss.
I would be annoyed if an insurer took instructions to cancel a policy on the strength of a call from someone saying they had authority to do so. Even if a death certificate is produced, that does not mean the person supplying it can make that decision. Cancelling a policy removes protection of an asset belonging to the estate. Worse still, named drivers could be using the car not knowing the policy had been cancelled.
Fair play to the insurers for following the correct procedure of verifying who had authority to act on behalf of their deceased policyholder

Ger Roe

To conclude the issue,

The insurance was cancelled after I sent them a redacted copy of the will, confirming the name of the executor and a letter from the executor requesting the cancellation.

My issue was not that they required proof, but the fact that having spoken to three people on the phone, they all insisted that I provide more proof than the state would look for - they all insisted on a solicitors letter confirming the appointment of an executor.

In the end I got to debate that requirement with a manager and he eventually admitted that a solicitors letter was not required. He apologised for the fact that I had been told that it was, but his staff were obviously reading from a company provided prompt sheet that will probably still continue to request it.

My other question remains however, what if there was no will and therefore no executor appointed?

Anyway, in this case, it was sorted in the end.

coylemj

Ger Roe wrote: »

My other question remains however, what if there was no will and therefore no executor appointed?

A close relative (next of kin) would have to apply for a grant of probate and the insurance probably wouldn't pay the rebate until that was granted. In the meantime, someone could supply them with the death cert. surrender the cert and disc and ask that the policy be suspended.

OP, your problem here is that you tried to deal with them over the phone. I did personal probate a few years ago and the fact is that financial institutions don't want to deal with you when they realise that you are not a solicitor. You have to dress smartly, walk into their branch with a copy of the death cert, a copy of the will and a letter stating what it is you're looking for.

But for the Axa policy, I simply sent them a copy of the death cert., the insurance cert and disc and asked that they send me the rebate made payable to 'the estate of xxxx' and I had this after a few days.