19 July 2003

There are some important lessons here. If you are paying monthly for health insurance - particularly if you are a customer of AXA PPP - are you being ripped off too? What about other sorts of insurance - the same could happen to anyone who doesn't keep a close eye on their premiums. Here is my advice:

• Get a new quote every year

  Take the trouble to get a new quote each year for every major insurance policy you take out. Just call your insurer give them details that EXACTLY match your own, and see what they say. The important thing is to talk to their sales department, not renewals.

  Go on - do it right now, it takes 5 minutes and you might save yourself hundreds of pounds a year!

• Be prepared to complain

  Know your rights. Don't be put off by jargon. Never forget you take out insurance in order to remove financial risk and give you peace of mind. Not to make big corporations rich. Keep asking questions until you understand the answers.

• Don't be afraid to use the Ombudsman

  The Financial Services Ombudsman will only get involved once you have exhausted the provider's own complaints procedure - which can easily take six months - but all they require is a simple form and a copy of correspondence. You can read about the Ombudsman procedure and download their complaint form on www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.

  Als, they can only deal with certain complaints. As they explain in their literature, they cannot deal with compaints about "Firms' proper use of their 'commercial judgement' (for example deciding whether to give someone a loan, what insurance premium to charge, or what surrender value or with-profits bonus to pay)."

  If you do take your complaint to the Ombudsman, make their life as easy as possible by providing a complete file of all correspondence, in chronological order, including notes of any phone calls. A well-organised 40-page file is easier for them to action than a 5-page file with gaps. Keep a copy for yourself.

  Don't take no for an answer. The Ombudsman's first response to me was that they don't deal with cases about premium levels. I went back and pointed out the evidence that it was about discriminatory pricing, and they agreed to proceed with the file.

• Be clear about what you want

  Don't just rant. Figure out what you want, and keep asking for it. If you want money back, tell them how much.

• NEVER give up

  Insurance companies will use every possible weapon to block anyone from questioning their premiums: privacy, commercial sensitiviy, overly-lengthy complaints procedures, prevarication, confusing language. Even if you have a good case, be prepared for a lengthy war of attrition. They are relying on the fact that most people will give up after one or two letters.

Best of luck! When you get your refund, have a drink for me!