Over £47 million worth of motor insurance claims were rejected during the second half of 2021, new research has found.
More than 14,000 motor insurance claims were rejected between July and December 2021, with over 1.7 million claims being submitted overall. Though rejected claims accounted for just 0.8 per cent, Go Compare, which went through Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) data to make the findings, said that it still amounts to a ‘huge sum’ of money lost.
There are a number of reasons why a claim might be rejected. These include having out-of-date information – such as an expired MOT or wrong address – or filing a claim too late. As a general rule, insurers should be informed of any incident within 24 hours.
Ryan Fulthorpe, car insurance expert at Go Compare, said: “£47 million is a massive amount of money to be rejected, especially if it’s due to easily avoidable mistakes. Reading the terms and conditions of your insurance policy carefully and making all your payments on time are the two most essential things you can do to avoid having a claim rejected.
“Keep any direct debits and bank details updated to make sure you don’t accidentally miss an instalment.”
Other reasons for an insurance claim being rejected include negligent behaviour such as driving irresponsibly or not performing maintenance checks, as well as using the car for anything other than what is specified in the policy. Claims can also be rejected if the car in question has been modified and these changes haven’t been reflected in the policy details.