CUSTOMERS of motorcycle insurance firm MCE Insurance might have a shock this morning, as the firm is contacting some of its customers to advise their policy will end on January 31st.
The news comes after MCE’s own underwriter (MICL) went into administration on November 5th. This meant the underwriter’s permission to write insurance policies was suspended. The latest letter is contrary to earlier correspondence from the company and means all policies insured with MCE and underwritten by MCE will end on 24:00hrs on January 31st 2022.
From that date on, MCE customers covered directly by MICL will need to seek alternative insurance cover if they wish to continue using their bikes.
The latest email, sent yesterday January 11th, is at odds with previous correspondence from the firm, which advised customers that their insurance cover would remain in place up until renewal.
Are all MCE insurance customers affected?
The policies affected by the cancellation are those underwritten by MCE Insurance directly – you can find this information on your policy documentation and insurance certificate. There will be a number of customers who don’t receive any correspondence though, they will have insured with MCE through another underwriter, Sabre.
MCE the insurance broker (the company that you speak to when you need a quote or to make a change to your policy) is not the firm in administration. It’s MCE’s own underwriter, MICL, that is. In late 2021, MCE the broker began using Sabre to underwrite some of its policies. It seems that customers who are on a policy underwritten by Sabre are not affected by the change.
Can MCE customers get a refund on unused premiums?
The short answer is yes, although the process may be a little more convoluted than you’d hope. Because the insurance premium you paid goes to the underwriter – and in this case, the underwriter is in administration – they won’t be able to issue a refund on any unused premium.
Instead, customers are being advised to go through the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. This is likely to be quite time consuming, and there might be a quicker route. Those who took out a policy and paid in a single payment may be able to get a refund quicker if they paid on a credit card thanks to Section 75. To find out if that is the case for you, contact your card issuer.
