Do Not Trust Budget Direct Our vehicle was involved in a not at fault minor collision which occurred in a car park. We were directed to present the car to their repairer where after a week we were informed the the vehicle was a total write off citing that the repair costs were greater than the market value (economic write off). I disputed the estimate of market value and provided an example, I also questioned repair costs and requested a second quote but was refused. I asked if they would return my vehicle in the state I delivered to them. I asked If I could access my vehicle to collect personal items. All requests were refused. Still in dispute.
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By far the worst company I have ever dealt with for insurance purposes spoke to Julia who was very rude and highly unprofessional! Their driver is at fault I'm the 3rd party not at fault I have Police confirmation that I'm not at fault and they are still saying I'm at fault ... And they want ME to pay for the damage on HIS car even though I'm not at fault .... I will be taking them to Court directly IF they think they can getaway with supporting HIS LIES just because he pays his insurance with them. Shame on this company as the whole process was completely unprofessional.
One of the most discriminating companies against people with a disability ive ever been forced to deal with WARNING WARNING STAY AWAY The team are trained professionals at abuse and harassment of the disabled.
DO NOT USE THESE GUYS. Stay away from any insurance company that is underwritten by Auto and General Insurance. I wasted 6 hours with them just trying to get signed up properly. Their service is so bad, I would have paid to avoid my experience with them.
Routinely engage in unethical business practices. Sent out threatening letters with no legal basis to my partner over a very conventional issue. They harass and try to intimidate individuals who are represented by an insurance company. Basically just bullies thinking they can say anything to push people into coughing up money (that is not actually owed) for their clients. Extremely unprofessional and rude. Grow up.
DO NOT deal with this insurance company!! it trades under various names = Budget Direct, Ibuyeco, 1st for Women, 1st For Women Insurance, Ozicare Insurance Agency, Auto & General, therefore WHEN USING ANY INSURANCE COMPARISON WEBSITES you have to check the fine print - these are all this same horrible company.
I am truly disappointed with the service. Forms are not being sent through when promised, and no follow up occurs on claims and if service providers are doing their jobs. The service providers A&G outsource to to are incompetent.
Poor Service.... Do not use these guys.... i cancelled my insurance and they still took payment worth $3000 out.... it takes circles to get it back....
Poor Performance Don't Care , Don't Pay Out You need to Go to court to get your money . Cheap and Nasty get what you pay for insurance. but remember if they don't pay go to court to get your money. Funny they have lots of money to Defend losing claims in court instead of just paying for the Damage . would give budget no star but google makes you give at least 1
I purchased a annual worldwide travel policy on the 11th January. I had planned to travel internationally 3 times in the next 12 months plus a few domestic trips.
11th March WHO declared the Covid-19 outbreak as a pandemic
24th March Australian government announced a travel ban
I booked hotels etc in Europe last year and was hoping I would still be able to travel this month (May). After holding on for as long as possible I had to accept my May travel would not be going ahead as my airline cancelled all my flights.
Beginning of May I lodged a claim with Budget Direct for the cost of my cancelled hotels.
Today I received a very rudely worded email stating it s clear you were aware of the pandemic when you purchased travel insurance and my claim was denied.
I ve written back asking for proof that I knew, when WHO didn t release their declaration until 4 weeks later.
I ve also asked for historical copies of their website as at no time did they inform me I wouldn t be covered. In fact the PDS I received immediately after purchase of the policy states Part 8 you will be covered for pandemics
My next step is to lodge a complaint with the financial ombudsman AFCA
DO NOT PURCHASE INSURANCE FROM THIS COMPANY AS THEY WILL NOT PAY UP.
Buyer Beware - Budget will find any excuse to get out of paying a claim.
While they have cheap policy's when you have an event they don't pay out.
We suffered storm damage in our house and they claimed faulty workmanship and poor maintenance as their way not to pay.We had 800mm of rain in Cyclone Debbie fall in 8 hrs. Seriously that was an extreme weather event, everyone had damage in Northern NSW.
You pay for what you get.
DO NOT BUY INSURANCE FROM THEM, THEY WILL NOT PAY OUT
This is the worst insurance company that you can ever imagine. They will grab all the money for nothing. When it comes down to claim issue, they will give worst service ever. I had an accident issue, they asked me to find service who can repair the damages. I spend time to find out services, got quote from them but when I submitted to the insurance company they said they want to find a (cheaper) company to do the repair. End of the day after 9 weeks they sent someone, very unprofessional, non-skilled person to do the job partly. They left behind half of the job. Not even paid back for it.
What a terrible comany this is! Happy to take your money and raise your premiums. Not so happy to pay for a cracked windscreen though!!!! Service was disgusting the lady Julie was rude and was definetly not the attitude of the lady that sold me the policy. What a disgrace Budget Insurance!!!!
All insurance companies are great until you need to make a claim. Half my house burnt down, they repeatedly submitted inadequate scope of works that resulted in inadequate cash settlement offers. They missed over 100sq/m of asbestos that I had to pay to have removed and stiffed me for over $50k. How they sleep at night, I have no idea.
After an accident they tried first to short change me on market value by over $4000. On challenging the first offer they miraculously agreed to the market value.
Shady operators!!
Then it took weeks to actually get the money due to admin errors and awful service
Over 20 hours on the phone all up mostly on hold
The hire car team and Europcar was also a debacle and I am still chasing a mysterious $174.23 charge to my account that no one can explain what it was for
Trading standards are now involved
Avoid at all costs!!!
I purchased through Qantas insurance and this organisation is doing their brand a massive disservice
Absolutely disgusting service. We were handed through five different people from the company (all different locations) and all of them quoted different information regarding our insurance claim. It is absolutely embarrassing for trusted brands like Allianz and ING to have their policies underwritten by this company. If you re ever looking for travel insurance, do not go with these brands as they are underwritten by this terrible company.
After reading all the reviews and the first payment deducted from Auto & General, I was surprised. ING: the reviews must be eye opener for you as it is going to affect your reputation. I taking away my insurance after checking all these negative reviews. It's a shame.
Worst insurance company I have dealt with thus far. I can not rate them low enough. The questionnaire for claim is so long that it leaves you frustrated. After a car accident, that should be the least of your worries. The other driver was at fault and all information was provided however the questions did not stop, they even asked if my dad had GST and where was the witness positioned during the incident?
Luckily, this is not my insurance company but my dad's. They didn't even send him his policy details upon signing up !!!
My car insurance company had taken care of everything I needed when I had made a claim and the only thing I had provided them is the details of the other driver and what had happened. All was fixed within minutes that I was on the phone with them.
I have my fingers crossed for my dad that hopefully it goes well during repair, Im not holding my breath as they couldn't even give me a list of company who will undergo the repair.
Please improve your process and customer service, you as a company needs to be more empathetic towards yours customers.
This company owns a number of Insurance companies. I attempted to get Home Insurance through Budget Direct, but they would not cover my house even though the two neighbour's on either side of me could. They said that underwriters would not be prepared to cover my property, even though I have never had problems getting insurance before. We are not in a fire or flood zone and have not made any claims since moving there in 2003. Of course this now makes things more difficult given that they appear to have a stranglehold on the insurance market. Of course the overseas call centre were not in a position to explain any further, and as with most companies of this type it is impossible to speak to someone here in Australia. I live on the Gold Coast and this Auto and General's head office is situated west of Brisbane. I am tempted to "knock on there door" to find out exactly whats going on.
Budget Direct or Auto and general insurance... Bad by any standard.
After over a couple of decades of no accident, I made my first claim with these lot only to find that they are inky responsive when they make sales. I was initially told that I only had three options on where I can get my car repaired. The three places were quiet far from where I live and I would have to spend about $100 or more to return home by taxi and during COVID19. The reporters were also booked out for weeks ans this woukd have meant i would have to wait a long time before I have my car repaired. This was not possible.
I insisted that I get it repaired somewhere close by and somewhere where I ca get my car back sooner as I have a few weeks old child and can not be without a car. They refused and after several escalations, they called me back to say I could take it to a panel beater of my choosing, so.i chose one within 5kms from my place. I took it in and I was told that it that it would be repaired within 10 to 14 days and the repairer kindly provided me with a complementary replacement car free of charge. I waited for my car to be repaired for over a month only to find out that the repairer was waiting to hear from the insurance. Another week or so later, someone called from unknown number at approximately 8pm and didn't leave a message or a number I could reach him/her on. However, a minute or so later I received an email saying that he or she ( Lebohang)had called and couldn't reach me. So I would have to call the 1300 number. I called a couple of times onky to be out through a loop of recorded message and wasting 15 minutes each time. I then lodged a complaint with AFCA. A few days after the complaint, the claim was approved and revived calls and emails for Budget confirming this. My car was reported and due for pick up. I the started receiving the same sms and email saying that I will need to call the 1300 number of I am to get my claim approved. My claim was clearly approved and I was havw made an appointment to pick up my car wiring a few days. A day before picking up my car, I revived a call from someone from budget direct customer relations saying that they were calling in response to my AFCA complaint, I said that this was not necessary as I was picking my cat up the next day and advised that I do not wish to renew with Budget Direct/Auto and general. This is not the first time I asked them to note this, but they obviously decided to ignore my request.
A few days later I received an email and sms saying that they will renew my policy without (my consent ) and they would debit my payment method. I tried responding to the email and review an email saying it wasn't attended and I could respond to the sms as it was no reply sms. This is clear and utter theft. They are causing me this undue stress although I have purchased insurance with another provider. I then went in their site and advised that I didn't wish to renew and I had bought cover with another provider and they completely ignored it as I recived a voicemail from an unknown number saying they woth to.soscuss my policy. I do not have a policy with them as it had lapsed and I have purchased a policy with a more trustworthy company.
I don't know whether these people are incompetent or if they are dishonest.
I had broken windscreen and was told that i am not covered. They advised for next renewal we can add this as $40 access. I should have been told this when I joined.
How does a company like this be allowed to be an underwriter for any insurance company. They are not even worth 1 star, they should be removed from the Australian system. Its not even worth ringing them and wasting even a single thought of your mind. Absolutely the worst I have ever dealt with.
Bought through Budget Direct and how they excused paying out on a valid claim is unprofessional and unethical. Luckily Qatar Airways covered me. Do not use Budget Direct or this company
I would give 0 stars if I could! They took out 3 months of policies out of my bank account after I no longer had my car. They didn't pay a claim on my car as they said it wasn't coverable, returned my car with the window down, unlocked and unsecured, and THEN still took out 3 months of policies .. and now a further month down the track im still waiting for a refund.. I would definitely shop around... You spend an hour on the phone with these guys and they tell you its not the right department, someone will get back to you... then nothing ever happens... Don't do it to yourself...
I still can't make up my mind about this insurance company. They keep asking me for proof of my Rating 1 claims bonus from my previous insurer, even though this has already been supplied to them. In fact I sent it to them on the day I joined. They make implied threats that if I do not supply the information I will be forced to pay the full premium. If this is what I can expect from them as an insurance company I dread the thought of ever having to make a claim. I hope they can lift their game a bit or I will be finding another insurer. Saving money is one thing, but actually being helpful to customers when they are in need and not constantly procrastinating is quite another. So far my experience is leaving me in doubt about their abilities to provide top cover at a budget price. I am less than impressed by the "smoke and mirrors" slight of hand trick regarding names. I joined by going on Budget Direct, on a different web page. Next thing I am getting emails for proof of various things from a company called Auto & General Insurance Company Ltd. based in Toowong. It would have been great to know that in the first place! I had presumed that Budget Direct was a different company. Apparently they are not. Very confusing and almost seems like false advertising to me! People think they are saving money which makes them give positive reviews to Budget Direct, but then I find I am actually with a company called Auto & General Insurance Company Ltd. I shake my head in doubt about the poor online rating of Auto & General Insurance Company Ltd. Have I made a big mistake?
Worst Insurance company dealt with when it comes to queries! They debit credit cards without receipts, they hold you on the line for more than 20 minutes, reply to emails 5 days after....just a nuisance to deal with!
This company is a shame to this industry and surprised to be allowed to operate. they have unprofessional staff, unprofessional assessors (builders they employ are really poor of knowledge) and dispute resolution department just wish to waste your time to prove they will not pay anything for a claim made. i would never even go near it.
I could only describe this company as a bunch trained that way to make a profit on expenses of others agony. with no empathy, obstructive attitude, unhelpful and intimidating demeanour, please avoid them and spread the word.
Competitive premiums, swift claims service, preferred repairer also provided excellent service. The only thing that worried me was paying excess up front rather than on completion of repairs. However, that turned out to be a non issue as my car was returned to me in perfect condition. I would recommend Budget Direct
this is a scum insurance cowboys. got $400+ insurance for baggage i insured my travel bags but when items were stolen on transit they say they only insure carry on luggage. why do they think one will insure carry on luggage. Budget bunch of thieves and scammers....aaaaaargh
Budget Direct has been rated very highly for car insurance by Cannex for years. Their monthly premiums are very good compared to some insurers.
Just one problem, they are not insuring vehicles for their true market value .
In a recent phone conversation with Budget Direct, I was told I couldn t be given the market value they would insure my vehicle for, but they knew what the monthly premium would be. ; )
I was told basically, only their assessor could determine that but it would be between $3300-$6300. And you know what end of the stick that s gonna be.
In other words, you need to crash your vehicle first, then an assessor will determine your vehicles current market value . Smells fishy to me.
Bottom line...
Find out your vehicles true market value .
Ring Budget Direct and ask them the exact figure market value they have your vehicle insured for.
Tell them to do the right thing and insure your vehicle for what it s actually worth.
I currently have a claim underway with them for a car that was stolen and then recovered. It is exceptionally poor service. Difficult to get to speak to anyone. No communication from them. Emails not replied to, phone calls not returned. I have been with them 11 years and this is my first claim, its fair to say that it has not been good. I can't rate them low enough.
Scam artists and just the most indifferent crims I've come across, nocked into someone at less than 4km, didn't even have my foot on the accelerator, 4 months later, entire rear of guys car is replaced and the company is seeing photos of my slightly bent number plate and feels like nearly 2k is a fair and reasonable cost of repairs! I'll be joining up with these guys if I can get in on this money grabbing scheme they've got going on here!
As a third-party claimant, I was surprised to find that Jennifer and Mark were exceedingly helpful. Together, they ensured my claim went through promptly and made me rethink past experiences with other insurance companies.
Avoid at all costs!! Thought we were going through ING, which ended up being budget direct and ended up dealing with these crooks. They dragged our claim out over 13 months with nil result. Absolutely unethical company.
The reviews say it all, In an accident that wasn't my fault the person who hit me insurance company was quick to get things sorted to go through to budget but once it hits budget things happen at a snails pace. Super slow at paying out and constantly blame everybody else saying they are waiting on them. Little did they know that both the other insurance company and the finance company to which the payout was going kept detailed records of when things occurred so budget lie about when they receive paper work ect.
Correspondence received was cut and paste , arrogant and always had disclaimer inserted. There must be staff that are helpful but training on behaviour with the public a must for the individuals I had to deal with. Would not insure with this group personally.
I would give 0 rating. My car given for repair, none communicated to the repairer, everything had to be done by me. when i give them call for anything. they don't even know where the car is getting repaired. Don't go with them.
Expensive contents insurance offered by ING and look at the ratings. ING need to lift their game as they are trusted by many, but their underwriters with these guys is iffy and more expensive than competitors.
Just by reading the reviews I would steer clear of this company I was considering them as I m with ING banking and they receive commission if insurance is taken out with this company, but after reading the nightmare reviews and them taking money out of your account without permission I wouldn t recommend them to anyone
Auto and general insurance company, Who own Budget direct are CROOKS. My mother maid a claim due to a an international travel trip canceled due to a death in the family. And the insurance company refuses to pay for flight rerouting and hotel cancelations. They clearly state family emergencies are covered but they have knocked back the claim 3 times. We are getting lawyers involved and justice will be served. DO NOT TRUST RHIS COMPANY. DO NOT USE BUDGET DIRECT. THEY WILL TAKE YOUR MONEY IN 2 SECONDS AND SCREW YOU OVER IN AN EMERGENCY.
Is there negative star to give to this insurance company? Pathetic and ridiculous motor insurance company, no support regarding claim, will start checking previous claim history or do anything possible to decline your claim. Never had any issue with all major insurer like NRMA,ALLIANZ,QBE but this one extraordinary .NEVER TAKE THEIR POLICY
Consistent with previous reviews - Customer service has been appalling. Spoke with one particular insurance consultant today (Reema) who was very rude, resistant and vague about the policy details. The experience has certainly left me questioning the need to investigate alternative home insurance options.
Been in an absoulte mess with the insurnace company. I was hit in the back so clearly not st fault yet its taken 3 weeks and and still no cover. I cant get to work and this has caused so many dramas. Would reccomend going with an insurance company who will provide a hire car as promised unlike these phonys. Was told we would get it tuesday its now been 3 weekz. Iv given up and now perusing other options and seeking legal advice. Whats the point of having full coverange if you wont cover an accident that wasnt even my fault..... waste of time and money with these jokers.
Budget Direct insurance ( Auto General) is the worst insurance company if you have to claim. I thought it's best value for money in the start when I purchased the comprehensive policy but if you claim just once.You will experience their pathetic service. They take at least 2 weeks to decide if you are eligible to claim even you confirm that it's your fault and you pay the access immediately because of their internal processes. You have to call several times to priortize otherwise they might take more.During this period, you can't have any car to drive because you can't use hire car option.
Then they give you the Repairer details and Repairer take another 2 weeks to give you the time for inspection only. If car is drivable then you have 2 options on the inspection date either you have to avail the hire car or use the existing car until there parts are delivered. I only have 14 days hire car option so I choose to drive my own car. Best part of inspection is they just view the car from the front. Don't have mechanism internally to check on inspection date.
My car has only 3 faults from the front view . bumper, headrest and one of the head light. It took 6 to 8 weeks to deliver all parts. Then told me to drop the car at their Repairer shop after 6 weeks. Initially they given a week time because they just have to change with new one. On week end, they send a message they need additional 2 days. After 2 days, they sent me another message that headlight is wrongly sent so they need further 15 days because parts will come from Melbourne and you can extend your hire car. Insurance company said that they can't extend the hire car even mistake done by their preferred Repairer company. Repairer Company ' Swains Motors' said that they can't help me out because they can't control the parts even there provider don't send the part correctly.
Only you have to suffer. You have to pay for hire car privately if you need it. Secondly they don't support you anything even you use budget direct preferred Repairer.
Solution: my 2 friends have good experience with Suncorp. They highly recommend Suncorp and they provide uber service to give pick and drop service from repairer shop to hire car place and they give you hire car until it's fixed.
When you change to another insurer because they are too expensive they take money out of your credit card anyway, without permission to automatically withdraw. I have never ever given permission for any insurance company to automatically withdraw. Another wasted few hours on the phone ahead of me again. I should have learnt the first time.
I've had nothing but a very positive experience. Some initial confusion on two policies being implemented for car insurance but they were easily sorted, the staff were terrific & I've got the policy I required. Overall no complaints at all.
I have been in retail/service industry for over 50 years. these days I think we all accept that lack of service, non-returned calls/emails etc are somewhat normal but this company has exceeded my tolerance level -4 non-returned calls (press button 1 and you wont lose your place in the queue) 2 unanswered emails, quotes sent in and never received (common I am told by repairer) vote with your feet-go elsewhere
Rod Nelson was so amazing in helping make all this run smoothly and even assisted in getting my car towed back to me after a death in the family. I'm so very greatfull!
Won t waste your time with another review as there s plenty of warnings and bad experiences already listed against them. Just go through and read a few.
I am not reviewing their product but their claims department. The paperwork I received from A&G stated to call a specific extension, however after multiple phone calls this particular extension was never answered (during the week, 9-5). The wait time on the phone unlike many other insurance companies (Aami or RACV) in regards to claims was extensive and a little ridiculous. Once i finally got put through, apparently I was in the wrong department and I had to be transferred, with yet another wait time. This is despite calling the exact number in which I was supplied from A&G. While waiting on the phone I was asked multiple times to leave a message in their message bank, at first it seemed like a great idea... however the message bank is actually full, therefore a message cannot be left and I had to call back and wait from the beginning again. After discussing the issue with an A&G staff member I was told it is actually no longer in use! Despite being asked at least 8 times to leave a message to avoid the wait time. While normally this wouldn't be cause for too much of an inconvenience however, 3 months ago the last time I contacted A&G, I mentioned the message bank issue and I was then (November 2017) told they are aware of the issue and are working on fixing it. Now it is mid February 2018 and the staff member said "IT is dealing with the issue", still after 3 months... then I discussed if she could please pass my complaint onto the manager and let me know what happens, and she said "why does it matter you won't be calling again" (I am insured with Aami, the other party in my accident is insured with A&G)
Once I was then on the phone with the correct individual she was polite but not friendly and I completed my necessary task.
Don't know what everyone is whinging about. I've always had great customer service from these guys. Every time I've called they have been very helpful and nice people to deal with
Had some initial issues with my sons no-fault claim, but then we spoke to Bernadette (Claims) ... wow, this associate really took ownership of our claims issue, escalated it - and helped us get to a speedy resolution!
Based on the experience that Bernadette s provided - we d personally recommend Budget Direct to other Customers!
Auto and general insurance company /budget direct will avoid a payout at all costs. The premiums are cheap but there is a reason for this. I made a claim for storm damage and was told it was maintenance issue and just condensation , they would not pay for any damages and was the first claim I made with them. Please save yourself the hassle and look somewhere else.
Appalling service. It would seem two small undisclosed claims have increased policy by 150%. They then have back charged me but cannot explain how the charge is calculated. As a result, there was an error and the have reduced the amount by $645. Imagine if I had not asked? Needless to say we are moving the policy elsewhere. Never trust an insurance company!
Cancelled my policy 2 months & 4 days early and was told that as I had made a claim they would not issue a refund. I advised this was unconscionable behaviour and said I would make a formal complaint. I consider them to be thieves.
Would not recommend at all. Worth paying extra for a company you can trust. Auto & General do whatever they can to refuse a claim. Read the policy very carefully, including all their 'special terms' - hidden in their comprehensive car insurance is a condition that you must obtain the address of the driver for you to be able to claim a 'no fault accident'.
This would have to be the worst insurance company I have ever dealt with. If you want to take a person off your policy they wont let you do that - you have to do a whole new policy and oh yeh, while we're at it we are going to increase your policy by $150 for no other reason than you're changing the name on the policy. AND then when you go and cancel it they don't refund any money if you're on a monthly policy. So I may have saved a little bit of money initially but it's ripped back off you in the end. Definately the old saying "if it's too good to be true it usually is" applies to this company. RIP OFF MERCHANTS!!!
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