Whilst looking at the motoring section of a popular newspaper today (written by 'you know who' from 'another place') I saw a recommendation regarding a legal protection service. It would seem to have several identities and I'd be interested to know if anyone had trawled through the various associations you find when you look in to what you're getting. It could be LegalMate / AutoMate and can be found by going to a website with 'qualityanswers. co uk' in the title...or also it could be 'AutoLaw'.... and there's an asociated Breakdown Service called 'AutoSure'....all of which look good on paper. The policies aren't expensive and you seem to be able to get domestic cover as well for an extra tenner.
But if you Google this stuff there's just their website (with an 'eu' rather than a 'co.uk' or a 'com' and virtually nothing else to be found except a post on Martin Lewis's website by someone called 'Lucy' who is enthusing over the service and says the breakdown service is backed by 'Europ Assist'. By some substantial coincidence 'Lucy BC' also pops up regularly in the forum in 'another place' as a legal representative.
But if you look you see that there are associations with Nick Freeman's law firm 'Nickfreemankeepondriving' as well as insurers ARAG plc plus Fulmar Consulting in Rickmansworth and Integrity Claims Management, not to mention Alpha Insurance in Copenhagen. They show an address at 27 Gloucester Place in London - but if you Google that you just get loads of various odd companies...and theirs doesn't seem to feature there. If you want to complain there's a bloke called David Blakemore and his mobile number given and there's also a mention of a firm called '2directltd' for good measure.
I would be happy to have a combined motor and domestic legal protection policy but always like to know who I'm dealing with and am a bit confused by this lot.
Anyone (apart from Lucy) had any dealings?
This in no way constitutes a complaint but I'd like to know a bit more about them and how long they've been going and there's so little on the net it just makes me a little cautious.
If you've got this far - I thank you for your patience!
|
was the recommendation by the newspaper itself?
if it was then contact them and see the response they give,is it self advertisement like so many things are these days and its not till you look in the top corner of the article it say advertising feature?(caught me out before now in a certain paper has that)
remember if you arent happy you can always complain to the newspaper ombuddysman if you have a stamp to waste
|
|
"was the recommendation by the newspaper itself?"........It was a reply to a readers letter in the 'expert advice' section of the motoring section...as mentioned, we all know him from the other place.....for more info I'll send you a telegraph.
|
ive stopped buying it
too contrived lately
ive gone back to the sunday times
|
|
I bet its names for Lucy's company.
|
The thought had crossed my mind. Have you typed 'qualityanswers' (with the co.uk) in to Google? You need, thereafter, to click on the various links to get the additional snippets of who, where and when. Judging by the absence of response here today I gather that (a) No-one has heard of them or (b) My post was too long/boring/pointless (delete if and where appropriate) to bother replying to.
Shame if it's all well established and reliable as you get domestic and legal cover quite reasonably priced (£25 IIRC) and, what seems, a comprehensive breakdown service for about £55......but there are so many organisations offering scope for a 'Watchdog" type investigation that I wouldn't risk relying on a company (or, in this case, companies) if there was any uncertainty in my mind.
|
(a) No-one has heard of them or (b) My post was too long/boring/pointless
The former! :-)
JH
|
KB I replied to a similar question a while back with....
***********
Lucy is Lucy Bonham Carter apparently. She is all over the net as a motoring legal advisor to various websites giving free advice. I assume she must charge some people at some point though or there's nothing in it for her??
Even a picture here....
www.articlesbase.com/authors/lucy-bonham-carter/325014
Seems to be all over HJ with his blessing and sometimes touts for *business* with her real email address. To be fair her legal replies seem to be excellent advice.
************
It's a personal thing but for many years I've been uncomfortable with any so called advice pages that often point to commercial associates in the answers. I think you have made you own decision anyway based on the difficulty of working out who/what/where this company is.
|
Thanks for that, FL. A very quick look, following on from your advice, also shows accident support company "Crashguard" to be another variation upon a theme which Lucy has associations with. I'm sure there's nothing inappropriate about any of this but, like yourself, would be happier if if was made clear who was what.........when Lucy contributed to Martin Lewis's Moneysavingexpert.com there was no indication, when she recommended her company's breakdown service, that she was, in fact, associated with it.
Anyway - thanks all.
|
FL,
I wonder if Lucy's answers are written by more than one person. Some times the writing seems expert and accurate with detail, other times it seems a littel waffly and naive.
As with you, a purely personal feeling, and I am sure that nothing untoward is occuring whatsever, I would still prefer tto take paid advice from someone a little more visible.
M.
|
>>>>I wonder if Lucy's answers are written by more than one person.
That's the problem when there's little clarity in the who/what/where aspects of this setup.... makes you over suspicious. May be different folks but amusingly I've found some *very* good reviews on these services written in a very similar style to the legal replies.
This is quite interesting where someone has prompted a prickly response from Lucy BC..
www.brick-yard.co.uk/forum/witty-response-needed_topic25398.html
Further down that link is OK for (even delicate) adults but perhaps not 10yr olds.
Helena BC's second cousin no less... so she says.
Last edited by: Fenlander on Mon 19 Jul 10 at 14:37
|
I am most grateful to have been made aware of the link in FL's post above. Not only does it shine even more light upon the subject, the dialogue in the forum....especially the piece by Tee3, appeals greatly to my misguided SOH. Regrettably the scatalogical aspects therein reflect poorly on the state of my mind...but so be it.
So "Lawanswers" is yet another incarnation. Lucy's bow must be well and truly overstrung, I would think.
Gromit, of course, is right ...it's just that I haven't got legal cover for the car or house (rightly or wrongly) and I stumbled across it and had it been OK I'd have signed up....if an acknowledged alternative is recommended I'd be pleased to take note.
Thank you again.
|
If its not obvious who you're doing business with (i.e. whose door to call at if you have a problem in the future with your policy) why not go elsewhere?
The business the OP refers to may well be legitimate, but why make life difficult. Many fully-comp motor policies from well-known, reputable, brokers and direct insurers now offer legal cover and breakdown assistance.
In my case, my insurance schedule states clearly who my broker is, and who in his office handles my policy. It also states clearly on the policy document who the underwriter is, where his place of business is, and who provides his insurance (Lloyds of London, as it happens). If any other insurance company can't provide similar details, I'd ask myself 'why not?'
|
Legal advice / Breakdown Service website. - Bellboy
