Rennie and The Insurance Broker

I've adopted a dual approach to anonymity in this blog. Paraphrasing and the Classic English Literature approach. I've paraphrased some names, for example "Pigton" and I've used the classic hyphen in others, for example "N-". It was great fun. This blog could be also entitled "How not to make a complaint".

Sometimes it's great fun working in a complaints department. Especially when you have to make a complaint yourself. I recently had a run in with a prominent high street insurance broker and took it upon myself to write in to complain. Now, I didn't really have a justified complaint. I brought this situation upon myself by failing to pay a cancellation charge for an insurance policy that I simply should not have taken out and, when I changed my mind, should have cancelled a lot sooner but I didn't. I became liable for a cancellation charge, which I forgot to pay, which led the prominent high street insurance broker to allegedly send me two reminders, which I did not receive, and then pass my debt to their debt collection division, which incurred a further charge of £25.

I paid that immediately and then wrote the following letter to them:

Rennie Antacid
3 Oliver Road
Madeupton
Madeupshire
MU14 6YY

Your ref: XXXXX
26 January 2007
Pigton Group Ltd
You Get
The Picture
......shire
Whatever

Dear Sir/Madam

I just wanted to let you know that I have now paid my debt to you. This was settled with your debt enforcement division N- over the phone by debit card.

I now would like to let you know exactly what I think of your company. I did not receive one reminder, even though the amount was due over the Christmas period and therefore was pushed to the back of my mind. You did not receive the money within the specified period of seven days (a very short period) and I received a letter threatening me with a County Court Judgement if I did not pay within 10 days (your bold, not mine).

You made me feel like a criminal and a habitual non-payer of debts. I'm actually not that bad at all and I hate owing money. It simply slipped my mind because of the time of year. I am therefore not at all impressed with your company.

So please make sure that you and all your subsidiaries and all third parties operating on your behalf never contact me again by telephone, in writing, by e-mail or even by bloody pigeon post. I would be happy if I never saw the word Pigton again in my life. If I receive any post from you in the future, it will be returned to you and don't expect me to pay the postage. Any telephone calls I receive from you or anybody calling on your behalf will be terminated immediately.

Yours faithfully



Rennie Antacid
Extremely p-ed off private citizen

I got my reply from them on Wednesday (which will be mailed back to them without a stamp on Monday):

Dear Mrs Antacid

I acknowledge receipt of your letter dated 26 January 2007 and received today. I note your comments regarding your policy that was held via our branch in Penwortham. You have informed me that you were dissatisfied with the service provided in connection to a balance owed following cancellation of your policy. I confirm the following...

[I have cut out the part of the letter which tells me they have removed me from the relevant databases and cut to the bit which really wound me up.]

For the reasons stated above I cannot uphold your views that the branch are in some way responsible for the situation in which you found yourself. I have spoken to N- who have confirmed that your account is now cleared in full...

Here's my reply in full. I don't pretend to be reasonable. Most of the people with whom I deal at work are not and it is nice for the boot to be on the other foot:

Rennie Antacid
3 Oliver Road
Madeupton
Madeupshire
MU14 6YY

Your Ref: RXB
My Ref: AL*&$*!!

01 February 2007
Rennie X Bollard
Customer Assistance Team
You Get
The Picture
......shire
Whatever

Dear Rennie

Thank you for your smug letter of 29 January 2007.

First of all, I would like to point out that you have once again failed. This time on all counts:

• I specifically and explicitly requested that no further correspondence be sent to me by either Pigton or anybody acting on its behalf, whether by letter, telephone call, e-mail or, if I remember correctly, pigeon post.
• Your letter does not contain even a hint of an apology. I am not sure if you are aware but the Financial Ombudsman Service states that an apology does not constitute an admission of liability. It can, however, be a simple way of mollifying angry customers, even if their complaint is unjustified. It is therefore a very useful tool in the Customer Service sector.
• You did not get the point, did you? I am not after compensation, a goodwill gesture or any form of redress. I simply do not like your company and I wanted to let it know. I did not want a letter saying: "You were wrong and we were right". I couldn't give a toss about the rights and wrongs of the case.
• You say that you sent me 8 letters in December asking for proof of no claims bonus. I don't dispute that. I did not, however, receive any letter reminding me to pay the cancellation charge. Not one! So you weren't even able to answer that point, were you?
• The letter from N- was unpleasant in its tone. The attitude of the people to whom I spoke there was worse. I'm sorry to use such an unpleasant simile, but they spoke to me like I was dog dirt.

So I remain a dissatisfied ex-customer. However, I would like to save you the trouble and bother of replying to me. As I said in my previous letter, I do not wish to be contacted by your organisation ever again in my life or by anybody acting on your organisation's behalf. So please file this letter in the round file after you have read it and do not act upon it.

Yours sincerely

Rennie Antacid
A still extremely dissatisfied ex-customer.

I think I was more annoyed because she had the same name as me but was much, much worse at her job than I am at mine. She makes me ashamed to be a Rennie.