Churchill was founded in 1989 as one of the first car insurance providers in the UK to sell directly to customers. It now offers various insurance policies including:
Fully comprehensive - highest level of cover
Third party, fire and theft - mid-level cover
Third party only - minimum legal cover
Other Churchill products include home, travel, van and pet insurance, plus breakdown cover through Green Flag. Churchill is part of the Direct Line Group and its policies are underwritten by UK Insurance Limited.
Overview of Churchill fully comprehensive policy
The Churchill fully comprehensive policy provides a high level of cover for your vehicle. Here are some of the key features included as standard:
Fire and theft cover - Loss or damage from fire or theft is covered, with standard excesses of £100 for fire and £100 for theft claims.
Accidental damage - Damage to your car resulting from an accident is covered, subject to a £100 standard excess.
Courtesy car - A small hatchback courtesy car is provided while your car is being repaired after a claim.
Loss of keys - Covers the cost of replacing locks and keys if your car keys are lost or stolen, up to £1000.
Personal accident - Pays out up to £20,000 if an accident injures or kills the policyholder or passengers.
Personal belongings - Covers loss of or damage to personal items in the car up to £200.
Medical expenses - Pays medical costs up to £200 for each injured person in an accident.
Uninsured driver promise - Your no claim discount won't be affected if you're hit by an uninsured driver.
Vandalism promise - Your no claim discount won't be impacted if your car is vandalised.
Additional cover can be purchased for extra premium:
Motor legal protection
No claims discount protection
European breakdown cover
There are 3 excess options available:
Excess Amount |
Premium Impact |
|---|---|
£100 |
Standard |
£250 |
Small reduction |
£500 |
Larger reduction |
With a higher voluntary excess, you pay more upfront for a claim but get a cheaper overall premium.
Churchill policy ratings and reviews
The Churchill fully comprehensive car insurance policy consistently scores well in expert reviews and customer satisfaction surveys.
Expert review ratings
Awarded 5 stars by Defaqto for the quality of its policy cover.
Named a Which? Recommended Provider for car insurance.
Which? awarded the standard Churchill comprehensive policy 3 stars for policy cover features.
The more premium Churchill Comprehensive Plus policy scored 4 stars from Which?
Customer satisfaction scores
Churchill scores very highly for customer service in Which? surveys of its car insurance customers:
Area |
Rating |
|---|---|
Dealing with queries |
4/5 |
Complaints handling |
4/5 |
Online policy management |
3/5 |
Fairness to longstanding customers |
4/5 |
Overall customer score |
75% |
On claims handling, Churchill scored 73% in a Which? survey - higher than the market average.
Customers gave positive feedback on:
Keeping them informed throughout the claims process
Quality of repairs carried out
Helpfulness of staff
Settlement of claims
The main area for improvement was delays during the claims process.
Online customer reviews
Churchill scores 4.2 out of 5 on Trustpilot from over 11,000 independent reviews. Positive comments highlight the great customer service and value for money. Negative feedback focuses on policy costs at renewal.
So in summary, Churchill offers competitive premiums and packages with strong customer service - though watch out for renewal price rises.
Churchill fully comprehensive policy key benefits
The Churchill fully comprehensive car insurance policy has several key benefits that make it stand out:
Accidental damage and loss protection
This policy goes beyond basic legal requirements to also cover damage to your car resulting from accidental incidents like:
Traffic collisions
Floods
Fire
Theft
Vandalism
Falling objects
So your vehicle is protected against the most common risks of accidental damage and loss.
Courtesy car provision after claims
The included courtesy car benefit provides transportation while your vehicle is being repaired after a claim under the comprehensive policy. This convenient extra:
Removes the need to pay for a rental car
Allows you to remain mobile during the repair period
Saves time arranging temporary transportation
No claims discount protection options
You can add no claims discount (NCD) protection for an additional premium. This allows you to preserve your NCD if you need to make a claim. Key benefits include:
Avoid NCD dropping after 1 claim in 1 year
Retain high NCD and cheaper premiums
NCD protection removed after 2 claims in 3 years
This provides useful flexibility to claim if really needed without losing your NCD.
The Churchill fully comprehensive policy also includes other useful benefits like protected NCD for vandalism and uninsured driver claims along with lost key replacement.
Overall, the range of protections and inclusions provides extensive cover above the legal minimum.
Churchill fully comprehensive policy limitations
While the Churchill fully comprehensive car insurance policy provides extensive cover, there are some limitations to be aware of:
Excess amounts payable for claims
You will need to pay the applicable policy excess for any claim made. This can be an expensive upfront cost in the event of a claim.
Standard excess is £100 for most claims
Windscreen claims have a lower £75 excess
Voluntary excesses of £250 or £500 are available
Restrictions on loss of keys and electronics
The policy only covers lost or stolen keys up to £1000 which may not fully cover replacement costs for high-end car keys.
Loss of other valuables like laptops and jewellery from the car are not covered. Cover for in-car entertainment is limited to £500.
Parked car and uninsured driver gaps
Unlike some other policies, if your parked car is hit by an uninsured driver or damaged by fire/flood while parked, your no claims discount will be impacted.
And while the uninsured driver promise protects your discount if an identified uninsured driver hits your moving car, it does not cover hit and run incidents.
Other exclusions
No courtesy car is provided for only windscreen/glass damage claims.
Loss/damage from terrorism, war or nuclear incidents are excluded.
Using the car on racetracks or airports will invalidate claims.
Modifications not declared to Churchill may not be covered.
While still offering strong protection, it's important to note these potential gaps compared to some competitor policies.
Churchill premiums and discounts available
Churchill offers several ways to potentially lower your car insurance premiums:
Multi-car and multi-policy discounts
Insuring multiple cars on one Churchill policy provides a multi-car discount of up to 15%. Separate no claims discounts can be applied to each car.
You can also get up to 15% off for holding multiple policies like home and car insurance with Churchill.
Young driver telematics app discount
Churchill's DriveSure app allows young drivers to have their driving monitored by smartphone. Safe driving unlocks up to 30% discount each renewal.
Price comparison site exclusive deals
Churchill offers exclusive deals on certain products only through price comparison sites:
Motor legal protection included with Comprehensive via comparison sites.
Interest-free monthly payments available.
Getting a quote via a comparison site can flag these extra perks not visible elsewhere.
Limited time discounts
Churchill periodically offers one-off discounts like £50 off or extra no claims discount - so keep an eye out for deals.
Some other ways to reduce your premiums include:
Opting for higher voluntary excess
Limiting annual mileage
Adding an experienced additional driver
Shopping around remains key to get the best premium. Churchill's list prices may be beatable for some drivers.
Making a claim with Churchill
If you need to claim on your Churchill fully comprehensive car insurance policy, here is a guide to the process:
Claim phone numbers and opening hours
To start your claim, call the Churchill claims helpline on 0345 878 6261.
The line is open:
Monday to Friday: 8am - 9pm
Saturday: 9am - 5pm
Sunday: 10am - 5pm
Bank holidays: 9am - 5pm
There is also a 24 hour UK accident recovery helpline on the same number that can arrange assistance if your car cannot be driven.
Online claims tracking and documentation
If you have a Churchill online account, you can log in to track your claim status and upload supporting documents like photos.
Having an online account can help speed up processing of your claim.
What to do at the accident scene
Focus first on safety of everyone involved.
Gather details of all parties involved including drivers, injured people and witnesses.
Take photos of damage and accident location if safe to do so.
Note conversations accurately - avoid speculation or blame.
Contact Churchill claims line at earliest opportunity.
The claims process
Call Churchill with accident details as soon as you can. Provide factual account of what happened.
Churchill will register claim and explain process. Documents may be required.
Engineer inspects damage and evaluate cost of repairs if covered.
If economical to repair, an approved repairer is instructed to fix your car.
If written off, Churchill will pay the pre-accident value of your car minus salvage value.
Excess will be collected from you by Churchill or the repairer.
Continue liaising with Churchill throughout - ask if unsure.
If claim is rejected
Request written reason for rejecting the claim.
Review policy documents to check if claim should have been covered.
Make formal complaint if you believe rejection is unfair.
In summary, contact Churchill promptly, cooperate fully and keep informed throughout to smoothen the claims process.
Renewing and amending your Churchill policy
Automatic renewal process
Churchill will automatically renew your car insurance policy at the end of your existing term, unless you advise otherwise.
Renewal invitation will be sent at least 21 days before your cover expires with the new year's premium and policy terms.
Contact Churchill to opt out of automatic renewal if you wish to switch insurers.
You should still compare market prices yourself each renewal.
New FCA rules ban loyalty premiums - existing customers should pay same as new customers.
Updates required for changes in circumstances
You must inform Churchill about any changes affecting your policy so they can recalculate your premium and terms accordingly:
Before renewal
Changes of car or use
Motoring convictions
Accidents/claims/losses
Additional drivers
As soon as possible
Change of address
Change of job
Passing driving test
Modifications to car
Providing incorrect information or failing to disclose changes could invalidate your policy or lead to rejected claims.
Making mid-term changes to your policy
You can amend your Churchill policy during the existing term. Some examples:
Add/remove drivers
Adjust voluntary excess
Increase policy cover
An admin fee (around £20-£50) may apply for mid-term changes. These will also alter your premiums.
Contact Churchill to discuss required changes and get a quote for any extra cost.
Cancelling your Churchill fully comprehensive policy
You can cancel your Churchill fully comprehensive car insurance policy at any time. Here are the key conditions and processes:
Cooling-off period cancellation
You can cancel within 14 days of receiving your policy documents to get a full refund, provided no claim has been made.
This applies both for new policies and renewals.
Mid-term cancellation
Cancelling after the 14 day cooling-off period ends will receive a pro-rata refund based on the remaining policy term, minus:
An admin fee of £50 shown in the terms.
Any claims paid during the policy term.
To cancel, call Churchill or write informing them of your wish to cancel.
Outstanding payments
If paying by instalments, any outstanding premiums must still be paid even once cancelled.
Churchill can deduct unpaid premiums from any claims settlement due to you.
Returning
documents
Future
applications
Your certificate of motor insurance must be returned if cancelling or not renewing your policy.
There are specific rules for Northern Ireland, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man.
Cancellations appear on your record and may be considered by other insurers on future applications.
So while you can cancel a Churchill policy at any time, outstanding costs may remain payable afterwards depending on timing and claims.
Overall verdict on Churchill fully comprehensive car insurance
The Churchill fully comprehensive car insurance policy provides extensive cover for your vehicle including accident, fire and theft along with extras like a courtesy car and lost key replacement.
It scores very highly for customer service and claims handling from independent reviews and surveys. Discount options like multi-car policies are useful for saving on premiums.
Downsides to weigh include higher excesses than some rival insurers and gaps in protection for parked cars and uninsured drivers.
Shop around thoroughly as Churchill's premiums may not be the cheapest in all cases. But overall it offers very good quality car insurance with excellent customer support if you do need to claim.
For many drivers, the Churchill fully comprehensive policy represents a competitively priced option with lots of inclusions and peace of mind.
Sources:
No comments:
Post a Comment