RateTart Forum

I recently used The Rate Tart when renewing my home and contents insurance. Worked a treat! I settled on the specific cover I needed (particularly covering contents value and limits to the length of periods of absence) and found a good price, and bought the policy from The Post Office. So far, so good.

However, I noted the PO's "get a month free" advertising, and thought that the policy was even further ahead of the competition if the premium covered 13 months rather than 12. I read the policy details pretty carefully (or so I thought), and when I pressed the "Buy" button, was amazed when the policy details came back with a cover duration of just 12 months.

I rang the Post Office and asked "what game?" Answer: the free month is month 12 - the premium you paid covers months 1 - 11, and we give you the 12th month free!" Initially, the person I spoke to tried to convince me that 12 months cover or 13 months cover, it was all the same. I eventually managed with a struggle to get him to see the difference (in my case, around £24-worth of value).

Charlatans! I don't dispute that the cover seems to be good; that the premium (even for 12 months rather than 13) is competitive; and that I would have bought the offering even without the free month's 'come on'. So why, Mr Post Office, do you resort to shabby tricks like your "free month" stunt, and taint a product and your reputation, to no worthwhile end?? Even the dumbest of us can see that getting 12 months cover instead of 13 months is not the same thing.

So, thanks to The Rate Tart for helping pick out these deals in the first place - but a reminder to all of us that you can never be too vigilant when you are after the best deal.