Thanks for the advice, but to be fair, im not in the habit of paying "first" and asking questions later. I will wait until they give me the information and explain why they are asking for this money they claim I owe some 14 years later despite the legal stance on this stating beyond 6 years no charges can be brought. I was hoping someone here could let me know whether the legislation applied to local councils ( I do not see why it would not ) and also what to do if they try blackmail me like this. They have had 14 years to let me know of this debt they claim I owe.. and in all honesty, they had my account on the day I signed off the property, any debt would have and should have been served then , they did not? why? no such debt existed... somewhere they have made an error, but for me, the biggest error is in trying to make me pay beyond what a Law states is fair..and making it clear that if I do not pay they will hold my right to move up housing bands to ransom.

Hi, I have recently applied to go onto my local authority housing list. They sent me some forms to fill out, which I did. They then sent me a letter saying we had been banded silver priority , but because of a debt at an old property some 14 years ago, they have moved us into bronze band, until we clear the outstanding amount. Now, when we left the property, there was no debt that we were aware of, we moved out as we were buying a property and the council were aware of our new address. We also had to wait to hand the keys in, as they had to board the property up, again, no mention of a debt at that time, just a shake of hands, sign off the property and hand keys over. At no point since that time, have we heard a thing from the authority concerned, until now. I have asked them to provide me proof of this outstanding debt, which they claim is a weeks rent and charges.....£45.12 + £9.73. So far I have had no reply, but until I can resolve this, I am in limbo with moving our housing allocation banding needs. I would just pay, but to be fair, I have always paid my way, and never been in debt, so this is something im not sure i should pay, until they can prove I actually owe it, and also reading this forum, I see other people have had "similiar" claims made against them for a debt some 14 years later and the advice was after 6 years the claims are basically Null and Void as far as the law is concerned? if I am reading that correctly. Anyone shed any light on this... I shall try emailing the council again to see if I can get a breakdown of these charges and an explanation as to why they have never claimed against me before... Hope someone can offers legal advice here please. I have just discovered this, http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1980/58 , section 19 appears to make it pretty clear, that No action shall be brought, or distress made, to recover arrears of rent, or damages in respect of arrears of rent, after the expiration of six years from the date on which the arrears became due. But does the council have the right to cause distress by asking for these monies, before they move us up a band, or are they blackmailing us, as that is now how it feels, they are holding us to ransom for a claim they cannot legally do, but are still doing it, as they are a law unto themselves?

Thats ok Dragonkeeper, all thoughts are welcome.. it might eventually help shed some light on why an underwriter would refuse to continue a current policy. And not simply use the reason/excuse, we changed the terms ... what terms?? eh...

There wasnt two cars or two policies... the old policy was put on hold due to claim, replacement car purchased , insurance company said underwriters refuse to insure replacement car, reasons were varied, but they would insure it on a full new policy. The latest excuse was a Memo was sent around, stating that they would No Longer offer a full new policy, I then asked well what if " putting claim aside" I had simply sold old car and bought another, would the underwriters not cover me then also, Yes she said they wouldnt, the terms and conditions have been changed by underwriters, I asked why I was not informed, well simply she said because it happened after you took out the policy. They are making it up as they go along, simple as. They got it wrong. Had the underwriters assessor decided to repair my car, the cover would have continued... Unlike rjstott, the offer I have been made is a fair market value of the vehicle , this I have no problem with. Most of what these companies have done to help is what one would expect and im happy with it, where they went wrong was refusing to cover replacement car, and not give an explanation.. 4 or 5 calls I made, and each time I was given different reasons and excuses. I have now received a letter from their solicitors, letting me know they are looking into my complaint. If I was such a Bad Risk.. why did a Big Insurer gladly accept me, and them knowing I have a claim... and not charge me through the nose... simple they know Im not the risk.. and my original company should have realised this and treated me as such. In reference to keeping names, I did note down every name, and this was mentioned when I called again, and they already had my details and previous conversations on file, they type as your talking.. so this is why I know the Mysterious "memo" is something new, which shows me they are covering their backsides... why say they can give me a quote from the same underwriters, and when I question this as to original running policy, they change mind and spout off about a memo.. These popular companies between them acted like some back street dodgy insurer, they had me suspecting for a while that my policy was not even covered properly and they had simply taken my money and were running an unprofessional outfit. However speaking to different departments within their group, and getting their input, I realised something has simply gone wrong between, Broker and Underwriter... The Claims side of the company has been fantastic and kept me informed all the way, and offered me advice about my complaints. We shall see.. it will all come out eventually. Thanks for the input , it all helps. If not me, others with simliar problems.

Hi both, Well I have just been trawling the web trying to get insurance and I finally got a quote I consider very good, only £70 more than current policy on old car, and that was declaring accident and it had "hit whilst parked option", so I am somewhat happier that I will be on the road as soon as the certificate turns up and I can then tax my car. This wasnt a cheapy back street insurer neither, one of the big mainstream companies. The only downside was a larger than average excess... but this I can live with. I also took the £25 extra legal cover to be safe. As they say, sometimes it pays to shop shop shop around... sadly I couldnt use the main comparison websites as they didnt have the 1 claim option for Hit whilst parked... and some asked what the Loss Costs were, which I currently do not know, which is why I have found it hard to get quotes. Thanks very much Mossy for your input, it has helped greatly, and yes some quotes were as high as £766 a year, the average was £500 to £600, which were crazy for the car and my age, especially when my best mate has his Mitsubishi Evo insured for him and his partner for less than I was paying originally for an old 1.4 Rover and he has less NCD, but then he does have a tracker fitted. So for some reason some companies were holding this claim against me. But all behind me now, im insured again. Albeit from another company.

Hi Mossy, Well I have rang Claims, who are more than helpful infact they are just as baffled.. they have put my claim as high priority so as to assist me getting money fast so that I can at least afford and find insurance and get mobile. They have warned me that as yet the other party, has still not accepted Liability, and as such any payments will be less my Excess of £250, not good news he said, but something I can claim back at a later date. This again was their excess not mine.. I chose £0 ... this was the compulsory Excess loaded onto me. I have just finished writing a complaints letter to Barclays Complaints Manager. The way they are acting today, just sounds to me like they are covering their tracks. But maybe they will come good and play fair. One can only hope. All I can do now is sit and wait. See what offer I get made. And then try and find a company to quote me a reasonable price, so far I have had no luck even using the Comparison websites... seems this non fault claim is going to haunt me for sometime. Had I known now what I do know, I would have simply scrapped my car, bought a replacement, changed my policy and sued other party myself somehow. But when I suggested this to Barclays this morning, she claimed, if I changed car, they would have not been able to assist me anyway, as the memo states no change of car allowed on policy. It would have to be a new policy. Maybe this is something new in the car insurance industry? something that is going to shock a lot of motorists if they make a claim? and when I asked for a copy of these words and phrases, she said put it in writing... so I have. Even though its still early stages, and probably wont make much difference, I also ran copies off of the letter to Barclays and will be mailing a copy to my local MP and seeing what she thinks , she has been pretty good helping others in various ways, who knows... Thanks all, will keep you updated as and when I know,so as to aide others or warn them of the pitfalls. Roversrus.

Hi Sam, I did not try to mislead anybody, I was not aware of the change of engine size, when I purchased the car, as It was listed as a Rover 45, which when I looked at it was identical to the car I had just had written off. There is no badge on the rear of the vehicle stating engine size, and I have not received the log book back from DVLA yet which will also show me engine size, so at the time I posted my assist here, I was not aware. This only came to light when I questioned over and over with my insurer why the change of vehicle was being denied. I have been told various reasons... not had car long enough being the 1st reason. Today however they stated it was because the car is 1 year newer.. a 2000 model, rather than a 1999 model, a 1.6 not a 1.4 and higher spec on their BOOKS.. in real life however the SPEC is LOWER than previous car. No deception on my behalf at all. Im sorry you feel that way. And yes, I would expect a small increase in the current policy for a change of car, I had the same a few years back when I simply changed down from a 2.0 engine to a 1.4 .... that is why the way they have dealt with this is so confusing. They have NOT offered a small increase in premiums... they refused point blank to insure me on current policy and despite what she said about car model/make today, that was not the reason, that was what " she suspected" was the case, she stated she could Not answer for the underwriters... and she could not pass me onto them either, I have to complain in writing....neither does this explain why I was quoted by the underwriters for a new policy, and how now they say this is incorrect and they now want almost 3 times... my original policy premium to insure me with another underwriter... I have no convictions, no speeding/parking etc, my cars sole use is to transport my disabled son around... the car does less than 3000 miles p.a. I have built up my NCD.. and have always had reasonable quotes of £250 and below on ALL engine sized cars that I have owned. But since this NO fault accident, any quotes I try and get are twice or three times my usual premiums.. Now even allowing for Fluctuations in market prices and this "non fault claim" these prices are way and above what I should expect. Oh and by spec, I did not mean engine size, this is how the insurance company describe the model of the vehicle. and whether it has heated seats, air con etc... my older car was better finished ( to name it better ) than current vehicle. And trust me, I would much have rathered the insurance assessor had decided to repair my car and not leave me in this situation, thanks for your understanding and help.

Hi both, Well I suspect that someone from Barclays has been here reading this, as I have just been informed on the phone, that they have done all they can to assist me. And that the information about the Underwriters offering to insure me on a full years new policy was incorrect, despite the fact I had been told this twice, yesterday evening around 5.15pm, but they claim this is incorrect as they have all received a "memo" stating that in cases where a policy has been declined, they will not offer a new renewal quote... I just suspect covering up... but they claim no this memo was sent out long before my contact with them. Anyways, the phone call to Advantage, was as I suspected, answered with "good morning Hastings Direct how can I help", the lady got quite shirty and said they are not the underwriters, blah blah.. same old same old, and that if I have a claim issue speak to claims, if I have an insurance policy issue, speak to my broker, Budget, I said NO its not Budget its Barclays, they said well on my screen its Budget, I said and Budget have said YOU need to amend your pages... because they are incorrect, Budget have no knowledge of me, and refer me to Barclays, hence my call again this morning to them. She basically said, that I will need to make an official complaint in writing if I am not happy as there is nothing furthur they can do to assist me. And If I feel it necessary to seek legal advice , that it is my right to do so. They have explained that the Underwriters, do not speak direct to the "public" and as such they cannot provide me with a "reason" for refusing to insure other than stating that between me taking my original policy out, and they time of the claim, they amended the terms, and have the right to refuse some vehicles, or people, in my case... she claims that as far as she can see, it is down to the fact the car is NOT identical... it is infact 1 year newer. slightly bigger engine size, and better specs. Yes it is 1 year newer, the engine is 1.6 rather than 1.4 , but the spec is the same, its just BMW took over Rover and changed the model to rover 45 , not 400 as I had, the spec if anything is less on the replacement car... but there we go.. that is their explanation and they stand by it. The fact I was given a quote last night from Advantage Polaris Plus she claims, was either a mistake, or as they use a Live Insurance Panel , is no longer showing on her screen, as she could not find or get a policy to match... seems my "quotes" are now tripled the original policy. Seems to me, some insurers, are a law unto themselves... and can make rules and terms as they go along to suit.. Just like the banking industry.. until the whole lot crumbles... I have always been 100% legal in my car, paid for my insurance now since 1990, and never made a claim, and only this claim due to a 3rd party hitting my parked car, yet I am the one financially out of pocket, and stuck housebound... So, yes, I will now be sitting down, writing to Barclays complaints, and also sending a message to FOS to see what guidance they can now offer me. Every department and Company blame each other, or suggest I contact the other.. if you have out of pocket expenses, or you feel the cost of re-insuring is too expensive you have to take this up with Claims... but claims do not deal with policies... yes they can try and assist me getting back these loses, but this doesnt help me right now.. a car, sat on drive uninsured, and no money to insure it, as my money budget for insurance was paid on the Written off car insurance policy that they now refuse to re-insure on. I will get "some of this" money back on the original policy, BUT via the claims department.... when they finally get all the info together. Have just got off phone with claims, who say they might need to intruct a solicitor for me, to recover my loses, as I have legal protection... again this is fine in the long run, but meanwhile...? They are just waiting on a supervisor to go over the engineers report.... and will get back to me today... but so far no reply. Unreal. Unbelievable. And Uninsurable. So yes, the law is right, we need car insurance.. just so others can hit our cars and leave you stranded. I cannot tax car, as I need insurance, I cannot get insurance as I no longer have the funds having spent my money on replacement car, and will not be able to use the car, when I finally do get insurance, as I will have no transport to get to the local dvla office, where I need to have the replacement car changed to disabled tax...as I cannot use this car to get there as it is untaxed... Oh the joys of motoring..... some minister needs to get some board together to look at the powers they have given these insurance companies... especially when the LAW states we must have it... well most people would have it if they were not being punished for others actions. Its time Normal Honest motorists... were NOT paying for the Guilty, this has to stop... Thanks all...

Hi, just a quick update... I have still been given the run around, and today following a call from Drive Assist who say they will be taking the loan car back on Friday , I was more determined than ever to get some assistance fast. I rang Barclays, who said they will call back, seems they withold number and my phone doesnt except, so limbo land, meantime I then getting frustrated rang, Hastings Direct to find out what is happening with the final settlement, ie where is my money for the car you have said is beyond economical repair. They say , they are awaiting an engineers report, I said oh, the same one I have in my hand, they said, yes we havent received our copy ?? hmm... anyways, I then asked why as the underwriters, were they not honouring my current policy, they said, not us, we will transfer you, they put me through once again to customer services, after all the explaining again, they said, ah... Barclays are your insurer, its down to them, I said no, Barclays say its you, or your underwriters, hence the reason your "Hastings Direct" dealing with my claim... Put on hold , then told I have to take it up with Budget who are showing as the company who issued me with policy, I said no I took it out with Barclays, they said, yes thats right but you must ring this number and speak to Budget who can explain what is going on.... You guessed it, Budget know nothing, as I took my policy out with Barclays... so this time, Budget transfer me, direct to someone more senior within Barclays, who then explained they had tried calling me earlier.. anyways, he went through providing me with cover quote, again by the same underwriters, Advantage Polaris Plus... whom current policy is with until November, and sure enough they will insure me, for 1 year on replacement car for £424 .... BUT hang on... I already have a policy on my old car until November.... with the same Underwriters... why are they refusing on "current" policy, but will accept on a full years new policy... On hold again.... I have found a number for Advantage Polaris Plus, I will ring them now, said the nice chap at Barclays... few minutes later... ahh, I have just been informed they close at 5.30... its now 5.38... I will give you their number direct, so you can call them tomorrow to discuss this with them... FINALLY.... a number for Advantage Polaris Plus... although... it has similiar digits to the Barclays number I have to ring... Tomorrow we shall see.... How I get cover before Friday so that I am not left Homebound with my disabled son beats me... especially if they continue to refuse to honour current policy and insist I take out a full years new policy, something for obvious reasons, I do not have the funds to do anyway... they havent paid me out for OLD CAR they decided to write off... the same car had they chosen to have REPAIRED, would have still been covered on the current policy.... I will post tomorrow the results of their reply, thats if my head hasnt exploded from the stress of this now... Cheers all.

Following your advice Mossy.. I rang Barclays , again , rather than Hastings, and I asked them how I gain from them written details about my claim and calls to them. I explained that I want the details where they have been unable to insure me on current policy , as underwriters refused on grounds havent owned car long enough, yet they will accept me, if I take out a Full Years New Policy at almost double the original premium. I have been told they cannot give me any information over the phone, I must write to the Customer Relations Manager, requesting, a log of my claim and calls, and also a screenshot of the underwriters decision, which is supposedly where they claim they wont insure on the old/current policy. So I shall sit and write a request now, mail it off, and see what comes back, and take it from there... doesnt help me much, as I still have a car outside, that I am unable to tax or use, until I can get /afford insurance. And all for parking legally on a road... perhaps it was the next doors cats fault... maybe it ran out in road causing the accident.. I have already heard "rumours" from Police that the two parties involved in the accident, which forced one vehicle into mine, are claiming a knock for knock.... the plot thickens...my photos of the scene suggest otherwise and photo's dont lie. will update when I get reply from Barclays... whom I have to point out have been Very Helpful... but all the problems are out of their hands..

Thanks Mossy, I did get put through to a senior claims handler, and they read through the terms, and claim that they remember this being a problem when it was first sent to them from Advantage Underwriters, he said that he neither can understand how they can Accept me in this car under a Full Years New Policy, yet refuse to insure on the current policy. All they could say on phone was they were sorry and the best they could offer me was a refund of the premium from now until the end date in November. Nobody seems to be able to give me straight forward answers, one telestaff member told me I didnt have motor legal protection cover, a 2nd call and it was confirmed I did.. Advantage are the underwriters, they are somewhat attached to Hastings Direct, as its is Hastings Direct who is dealing with my claim, and I paid Barclays for my years cover... but when I speak to Barclays they say speak to Hastings, when I speak to Hastings, they say I need to speak to Barclays... I have yet been able to speak or message Advantage who seem invisible. Hastings deny knowing them on phone, Barclays say they do know them as they are a connected company.. This is why I now feel I need to write letters of complaint... which if no satisfactory answers from either company means I can then take the matter furthur. At the sametime, the only company who has offered me help and required pictures etc is Drive Assist. I am dealing with them as my insurer transfered me to them ref a replacement car whilst mine was being repaired/written off, but Drive Assist have said if I do lose my Excess they will also claim this back for me, along with any other associated loses. I am lost as to how an innocent motorist has to go through all this messing about... it should be cut and dry... my car hit by other party, my car gets written off, I buy a replacement car,change details on policy to cover car, same make model etc, my insurance pursue other party insurance company for my loses, and their own time and costs.. This is not what is or has happened. The only difference in cars is the replacement car is 1 year newer.. but still an old car 10 years or more old etc. Barclays could not answer why the premium was double the current policy, they did not understand it either, and could only apologise and say they cannot tell the underwriters what they should charge... it was the cheapest quote/deal they could find, £438 a year... when old car was £224. I am older than 40, car is 10 years old, max NCD protected.. beats me...

Cheers Sailor Sam, I am now writing complaints first to all parties concerned, Barclays, and Hastings, then if not satisfied , which unless they can explain in detail, how they refuse to insure on a current policy but will insure if I take a full renewal, then I will then take the matter furthur, 2nd stage Ombudsman. Im still miffed by how they supposedly have this in writing, from the underwriters, but never informed me until I need to change vehicle following an accident. I also want them to explain how they would do a change of vehicle insurance, if the person simply decides to change car without an accident , must they park it up for 6 months, before they decide to insure it. It simply makes no sense. But I dont seem to be getting any explanation of how or why the underwriters are refusing on these grounds and it doesnt help when the people you speak to on the phone dont know or understand it either. Add that to the fact Hastings dont seem to want to admit to "having dealings" with Advantage... despite the fact I have now found a PDF of Terms and Condtions online from Hastings which shows they use Advantage which is wholly owned by Lucky 888 Global who have common shareholders in Hastings 888, it also provides me with what to do to complain and even provides me with addresses of both themselves and ombudsman. Shall keep updating here, so as to assist others.

Already answered my own question above, just used Go Compare, and despite the fact I have full NCD and have had for more than 12 years, and had it protected, my quotes are over £120 more than on previous car. Even though Im not at fault and declared the claim it would seem insurers are taking it into account. And there is no loss to my insurer, they get all costs back from the guilty party who hit my car... I can now see why so many people are driving uninsured.. its far cheaper...even if caught and fined. Seems insurance companies now set the rules... law states we must have insurance, the companies charge us a sh*tload... and when they have to pay out, pay the minimum, claim it back from other side, and also stiff you the innocent party for higher premiums.. so they have a double win situation. The guilty people also pay higher premiums to the companies that they insured with , so its not like their insurance company lose out either... we need decent easy laws brought in , that allows the guilty to pay in full for their damage caused to others... so the people who suffer get paid without loss... and not a situation where the only winners are insurance companies... Sorry for the rant, but im really sick to death now of being 100% legal, yet losing financially due to others bad driving.

Back, Just got off phone with Barclays Claim department. They state that Advantage Polaris Plus, changed their terms, which states you must own the car for a minimum of 6 months. The chap at Barclays said it does seem odd, and something they claim they will look into. I asked why the underwriter Advantage Polaris Plus ( Now found out this is part of Hastings Direct) would re-insure me a full year at double the price of the first policy, yet refuse to switch the policy from old car to new. They simply do not know, and said it doesnt make sense to them neither. They have said as my insurer, that as a gesture of goodwill, and being unable to find me a better quote, will cancel my policy from today, and not charge me any cancellation fees etc, and pay me back the remainder of my insurance up until November when it was due for renewal. I dont see what else Barclays could do, they cannot force the underwriter to change policy, other than not use them in future. I have said that I will contact the regulators who allow companies to change terms like this, which make no sense at all. They simply should not be insuring anybody if this is how they operate. How many people Own a car 6 months prior to insuring it? I have never known anybody do this. If they had repaired my car, they would have continued the current policy, they chose to write it off, and as such its pretty obvious an identical replacement vehicle would be purchased, and thus continuation of policy, especially as I am NOT at Fault... so I am completely lost how they have added these terms since my initial policy was undertaken, and how it got past the Financial Service Commission in Gibralter, who Advantage are apparently regulated by and where there registered office is. Anyone know if I am okay to use another company to try and insure my vehicle , or am I simply better off waiting for claim to be settled in full ? Regards. Mr Confused and Angry.

Hi vusys1 The bank is Barclays,I took the insurance policy out with them, but the people who i have had to send documents to is Hastings Direct. The underwriters I have been informed are Advantage Polaris Plus. Having spoke on phone to Drive Assist, they told me Barclays is coming up on their system on my claim as Budget insurance. They stated that the underwriters refused to change the car to the newly purchased replacement as I had not owned it long enough. I did try to explain it is an identical model car, nothing is different apart from the number plate. Im totally confused, they said the underwriters will insure me if I take out a completely new policy at £500+, which I refused, as I simply do not have the funds to do this, my insurance money that I put aside each year is already paid into the old policy. They told me they cannot refund the policy as it will affect the current claim /incident. I have to wait for the result of this, and they will release the NCD etc?... I dont understand how so many companies have got involved.. I paid Barclays, I paid for fully comp protected, and had confirmation on phone in the last hour that I do have motor legal protection, she said thats why drive assist have provided a loan car till my cheque arrives and claim settled. And she said that Drive assist will persue any losses on my behalf. But they seem fixed that they will not change over the car on the policy. Yet what I found odd, is Barclays seem to come up with that reason, yet speaking to Hastings, they informed me had I had the policy Direct with them, they would have simply moved my policy onto the car I have purchased. I will have to find out how I complain and who , where etc. Barclays say it is not them, but the underwriters, but Google doesnt even show me who Advantage Polaris Plus are, and the phone staff at barclays seem to be shunting me around, not wanting to give me information. I had to ring twice to find out who the other parties insurance company was, as the 1st rep, did not know, the 2nd however was more helpful. Thank you for your advice. Will keep posting here, so others can possibly gain help from my experiences.