Linea Directa

I've been insured for motor insurance with these guys for the last 10 years or so and they've been good.   I've had 2 no-fault damage claims sorted with only minimal hassle. They are a bit bureaucratic, but that goes with the territory.

I insured our house with their household department recently, but they seem considerably more officious.  They send out "no reply" emails telling you to phone their office which I dislike, as you never have a record of what's been agreed! 

Sometimes conversations are recorded, which in practice is most unfair - if there is a conflict, perhaps a simple misunderstanding you are on a loser!

Of course this happens in the UK too, where I always manage to find an email address (useful for Ryair in particular).  Legally you are legally entitled to a copy of any audio recording in the UK, that's probably not so simple elsewhere.  

But I've been unable to find an open email address for Linea Directa.

Whilst I've found them OK-ish - if you google them with Trustpilot  it's not so good - https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.lineadirecta.com, indicates that 83% of folk rate them extremely badly (!), which is a bit of a concern.  The reviews are strange - 13% give them a top rating too. 

The insurance sector in Spain is 50 years or so behind the UK and standards are very low.  All insurance is effectively unregulated, without any meaningful legislation or Ombudsman.  So in practice you are on your own if there's a problem - whoever you use.

So I'll probably continue with Linea Directa, simply on the "better the devil you know basis" but just prefer to put everything to them in writing and by email seems the only viable option.

Any email addresses for Linea Directa appreciated please.

You can contact us by email at the following address: privacidad@lineadirectaaseguradora.com.

This any good acer?

Hello acer

Almost all big companies (bank & insurance) now make it difficult to contact them, that is to deter the dross and save staff costs. Most will give a telephone number but you have to join the never answered queue at your expense whist listening to rap music. Of course you will get the usual message ‘’we are extremely busy due to the current full COVID lockdown’’ which ended 6 months ago. It’s all a fob off including the ‘no reply’ email.

Anyway try their website and this email.

https://www.lineadirecta.com/english-expats/contact/contact-by-email.html

902325325@lineadirecta.es

Baz & Kavanagh,

Many thanks for your replies - I will certainly try those email addresses.  I do like everything like this confirmed in writing - preferably w/o the hassle of writing a letter.

Up until this year I've insured my property in Spain in the UK for two main reasons - any dispute will be heard in a UK court (so English law applies, which is massively more favourable to the consumer etc) and the Spanish policy wordings are long winded and ghastly to read (they follow a very old format).

This morning I've read through my new Linea Directa policy - assisted by 3 cups of strong coffee.  I used to write articles in the trade sector, mainly on commercial insurance, but you get to know what to expect.  The new home insurance in Spain is a considerable surprise, not all bad. 

The English translation is very good, but I could still write a lot on concerns, but I don't believe that would be time well spent - nobody generally takes these things seriously, until a large claim arises.

My biggest concern was the "proposal/information form" which the insurer had opted to complete on my behalf.  This contains several errors which could prejudice a future claim.  Some of the replies were their making guesses on my behalf (how they decided I had "0" bedrooms is curious!).

In fairness, the Linea Directa household insurance wording is far better than the previous one I read in Spain - it is a professional document with little jargon.  The sheer length - a lot of it of modest importance is not good  Also their system is not at all user friendly and the 34 printed policy may be a challenge.  But for sure you need to check the 2/3 typed schedule and information attachments.

I'm not intending to be patronising by this post - just reminding folk of the possible pitfalls of the Spanish insurance system, which if you view the write-up on the Trust Pilot website have caused problems for Brits, some of whom may have been too trusting.  Of course, in Spain there is little consumer protection.