Government bans injury claim referral fees September 9, 2011 The government has banned the referral fees paid for customer data that have been blamed for a surge in personal injury claims against car insurers, retailers and the NHS. The Ministry of Justice has said the ban on such fees, to apply solely to personal injury cases, is designed to tackle the alarming rise in [...]
WHY PROBE CAR INSURANCE? September 8, 2011 Q.WHY HAS THE OFT LAUNCHED THIS INVESTIGATION? A.The competition regulator is concerned that steep rises in car insurance rates in recent years could be due to insurers levying unnecessary charges or selling products wrongly. Q.WHAT IS THE OFT CALLING FOR EVIDENCE ON? A.The investigation covers areas where insurers charge motorists additional amounts, such as for [...]
Car insurers hit by probe into rate rises September 8, 2011 SOARING car insurance costs are at the centre of a new investigation by the UK’s competition watchdog, to assess whether insurance firms are raising premiums unnecessarily. The Office of Fair Trading yesterday said it was so concerned at signs that premiums rose up to 40 per cent in the year to March that it launched [...]
CITY VIEWS: IS THERE ENOUGH COMPETITION IN THE UK’S CAR INSURANCE MARKET? September 8, 2011 KATY TANN | RBS “Car insurance is very expensive at the moment but I do feel as though there is enough competition between companies. I’m just very grateful for the fact that I’m not a new driver buying an insurance premium now.” CHRIS DAVIS | RK HARRISON “I understand that some might not feel there [...]
OFT to probe soaring car insurance costs September 8, 2011 Steep increases in the cost of car insurance have prompted the competition watchdog to launch a call for evidence to understand the pressures on the market. The Office of Fair Trading is reacting to about 40 per cent increases in the cost of premiums for the compulsory insurance for all motorists, and has asked insurance [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 5, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES LIBYA’S NEW OIL CHIEF WARNS THAT OUTPUT WILL NOT RECOVER UNTIL LATE NEXT YEAR Libyan oil production will not return to pre-war levels until late next eyar at the earliest, with many of the county’s oil facilities having suffered heavy damage and looting during the conflict, according to the newly appointed charman of [...]
Admiral hit by growth fears despite gains August 24, 2011 CAR insurance group Admiral shrugged off fears over the UK economy to post further double-digit profit and turnover gains in the first half of the year, but saw its share price slide due to fears over its business model. Admiral, which owns the price comparison site confused.com, said its pre-tax profit jumped 27 per cent, [...]
Admiral shares slide despite profit rise August 24, 2011 Car insurance group Admiral has posted a bullish 27 per cent increase in its profit in the first half of the year as it said the outlook for the UK car insurance market was improving. Admiral, an internet-based insurer and owner of comparison site confused.com, saw group turnover jump 53 per cent to more than [...]
THERE IS NO BATTLE: KLOSTERMANN DENIES FRAUD LORD FEUD August 18, 2011 DON’T BELIEVE the “tittle tattle” you read in the gossip columns, says Brocket Hall owner Dieter Klostermann, who yesterday turned to this gossip column to put the record straight about that feud with Lord Charlie Brocket. Klostermann’s leisure group CCA International bought Brocket Hall in 1996, after Brocket was jailed for a £4.5m classic cars [...]
CAR TALK August 16, 2011 PRIUS PLUG-IN Toyota is introducing a plug-in version of its Prius hybrid electric car at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. The Prius Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) has an extended EV (electric power only) range – of up to 12.5 miles – and can achieve 128 mpg and has CO2 emissions of just 49g/km, [...]