Promoted: Free 30-day GAP policy for PHers with ALA

[ALA Insurance]

Hi all,

Just a couple of videos about GAP insurance that some of you might find useful or just mildly distracting!

http://www.pistonheads.com/tv/film/avoid-dealer-ri...

http://www.pistonheads.com/tv/film/what-is-gap-ins...

As always, any questions at all please let me know!

Thanks,
Katie

[Flibble]

I'm having a rather mixed experience with ALA at the moment. While everyone I have spoken to has been very polite and helpful, it's now been over a week since I submitted the final paperwork for a claim and no payment in sight. Even my somewhat lackadaisical motor insurer managed to pony up more quickly than that. Not to mention the payment is being issued via cheque; I'm not sure why that is preferable to an electronic transfer.

I was thinking I'd take out a new policy for my new car, especially with the discount, but I'm seriously reconsidering that now.

[ALA Insurance]

Hello Flibble,

I'm very sorry to hear that things aren't going as smoothly as they could be with your claim and I'm glad you've brought it to our attention. I'd really like to get things moving for you and speak to the claims administrators to see why things are being held up.

Please would you send your policy details to [e-mail] or give me a call on my direct number 01653 916301 and I'll get straight onto sorting this for you today.

I look forward to hearing from you,
Katie

[Flibble]

Thanks to Katie's assistance, I now have the settlement cheque. Took a little while (almost two weeks from claim submission), but got there in the end.

Better sort out a policy for my new car now.

[ALA Insurance]

I'm so glad we could get this sorted for you

It was unfortunate that there was a slight delay (due to standard compliance procedures, in this case).

Please let me know if I can help with the new GAP quote although fingers crossed lightning wouldn't strike twice!

Thanks,
Katie

[mike456]

My Audi S3 was deemed a total loss after a non-fault accident.

Thankfully I have ALA vehicle replacement plus insurance. Just lodged the claim and so far the guys at ALA and the underwriters have been very helpful. I'll keep you posted on how things transpire...

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

[ALA Insurance]

Hello mike456

I'm sorry to hear about your car and hope that you're ok following the accident.

I'm glad to hear the claim is progressing well - if we can help at all, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks,
Katie

[mike456]

Thanks Katie - I'll keep you posted, it with the underwriters at the moment

[noob17]

Picking up a Seat Leon Cupra 290 on lease tomorrow and wanted to get some GAP insurance in place. Anyone here kind enough to walk me through what i need?

Its a personal lease over 2 years at 5K PA.

Thanks

[ALA Insurance]

Hi noob17

Thanks for the enquiry

As the car is on a personal lease (i.e. not a PCP with an optional balloon payment at the end of the term) we would need to look at a Contract Hire + policy.

If the car is written off during the term of the agreement, we would be covering the up to 100% of the outstanding rentals on the car, and topping up the market value settlement from the insurer if required.

If you would like a quote please let me know the estimated list price of the car, and monthly rental cost - please feel free to send this to [e-mail].

Any other queries please let me know.

Thanks,
Katie

[mike456]

Again, thanks to Katie's assistance, I now have the settlement payment for my vehicle replacement plus policy.

It took a while with underwriting, but we got there in the end. My only suggestion would be that they routinely pay settlements via faster payments.

Can't recommend ALA highly enough, particularly Katie's involvement with my case.

[ALA Insurance]

Hi mike456,

Many thanks for your update, I'm glad this was sorted for you.

Thank you for your patience with the claim process and we are always grateful for any feedback you can give to us.

If there's anything else, please let me know

Thanks,
Katie

[ALA Insurance]

Hello and Happy New Year to all PHers

We thought it might be useful to give as much information as we can to current and potential PH customers about claims.

For example, the usual method of payment by the claims team is cheque - a little bit outdated, we know!- but this is stipulated by the underwriter.

We know it can be frustrating when there is a delay in the payment of the GAP settlement. The claims team make payments every Thursday so, as long as they have the documentation they need as part of the claim process (including confirmation of the settlement from your insurer) you should normally receive your cheque the following week.

In some cases there can be instances where further authorisation is needed from the underwriters, which may mean your settlement is received slightly later than it would be normally - however we would never expect your payment to take more than a few weeks so please let us know if you experience that kind of delay.

If anyone has any questions about the claims process - or anything else about our policies- as always, please let me know.

Thanks,

Katie

[HoHoHo]

Hi Katie

Just purchased a new X3 for Mrs. HoHoHo and opted for GAP and tyre from ALA.

I already have GAP for my F10 M5 from ALA and I'm aware you are competitive however I had no idea you would be 50% of the cost the BMW dealer quoted on the new X3 for 4 year GAP and 3 year tyre.

I'm hoping we never have to claim for either but that's the point of insurance I guess!

Many thanks

[ALA Insurance]

Hello there HoHoHo!

Thanks so much, very glad we could help and save you money!

Anything I can help with please let me know

Thanks,
Katie

[Tonyc32]

Just a little customer input. I bought your GAP policy and also the alloy policy when I got an M5.

I called to claim as I had a bad week and kerbed both passenger side alloys side over the weekend the driver side another a few weeks ago.

When they asked for the specific date I kerbed the passenger one I gave it - and it is not covered because I did not report it within 7 days!

Why does such a rule exist? A kerbed alloy does not equal dangerous or structural damage? Does it matter that it was 18 days ago? Why 7? Or is it just so when people give an honest answer without reading the small-print it means they wont get their alloys fixed then or ever because any future damage will be considered 'pre-existing' and therefore render the policy worthless??

Edited by Tonyc32 on Monday 8th February 23:46

[ALA Insurance]

Hi Tonyc32
 
Thanks for getting in touch. I can completely understand why this is frustrating and hopefully I can explain the rationale behind the limitation.
 
The policy covers painted alloy wheels, rather than diamond cut, polished or a bare metal finish, and so it is a SMART repair which is provided. If the paintwork on the wheels is scuffed or scratched and the top layer of paint is removed, any delay in repairing the wheel could mean that underlying damage can set in. This might include corrosion or flaking of the paint and that is more than this policy will cover.
 
It would not be reasonable to ask that a claim is made immediately after any damage has occurred, therefore the underwriters have put in the 7 day time limit to allow flexibility in reporting the claim. We appreciate this could be seen as arbitrary but there also needs to be a cut-off point. Also, whilst this damage will need to be repaired by an external company this will not automatically exclude any future claims made under the policy.
 
I hope this at least helps with the reasoning behind the policy limitation but if you have any other questions at all please do get in touch.

We are always grateful for any feedback and the chance to address any issues or questions you might have with any of our policies. If you would prefer to talk to us we're also happy to discuss anything over the phone on 01653 916304.
 
Many thanks,
Katie

[anonymous-user]

I have used ALA forbthe past 5 years and currently have GAP with you in two cars. Three reasons I chose you:
1. The extended term! Most places I came across only offer a year long cover but with you I have been able to take out 3!
2. Your pricing is beyond reasonable. The local VW dealer wanted £380 for 1 year cover. This would have been included in my finance and billed with interest! No thank you! Slash that price in half and add more cover and yiu get ALA.
3. Lastly a friends car suffered from an act of God and the process was straight forward and quibble free.

[MondeoMan1981]

Just to say I used ALA this week to sort out RTI GAP this week for my new 208 GTI and the service was excellent from the first email, to price matching over the phone and to the docs arriving before I'd even got off the phone. Top marks and £238 cheaper than the crazy dealer price.

[ALA Insurance]

Hi Super_G and MondeoMan1981

Thank you to you both for the great feedback and really pleased to hear we were able to help

It isn't unusual to hear about really high dealer prices. They're often a bit barmy to say the least but still makes us go when we hear about them!

Glad we could save you money (hopefully to spend on something much more exciting than insurance) and, as always, if there is anything I can help with please let me know!

Thanks,
Katie