Undying loyalty?

The personal touch isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

With our purchase of the house being all but finalised, we’ve been gathering quotes for insurance. That’s a process I’d expected to be very straightforward. Whenever I’ve purchased insurance in the past (admittedly only travel insurance) I’ve phoned an anonymous voice at some freephone call centre, answered a few questions and been informed of the resultant premium their computer generates. Occasionally I’ve helped one of them with the crossword clue they’re struggling over, but that’s been the extent of the ‘relationship’.

Now I’m finding that I have to request an agent by name in order to get a quote. One switchboard operator wouldn’t put me through to anyone to get a quote unless I had a particular name to ask for. And once I do get through, I seem to spend as much time answering questions about my life history as about the property I want to insure.

I can accept that having someone with an ‘unusual’ accent call may be a highlight of their day. That perhaps they’re starved of conversation with ‘international’ people. But really, I just want a quote. In fact, I want a series of quotes to allow for some comparisons to be made. But with all this talking, requesting a quote is a slow process.

And ‘requesting’ is the operative word there. It was optimistic of me, but I’d expected to receive a quote at the end of the phone call. As it is, it seems to take some hours (in some cases days) to put together those quotes. In many cases, I like personal service, but if it adds this much work, I’d rather go without.

I suspect years of dodging the oppressively smiley people who always hovered outside the Disney Store near my parents’ home should have prepared me for some of this. And perhaps in part it’s my “British reserve” showing. But once they’ve engaged me in conversation, turning down their quote seems that much more awkward. And once they’ve said it’ll take a while to compile the quote, they’re just a step away from having my phone number.

I’m happy to try and build a relationship with whichever agent gives me the best quote. But I wish they’d try harder to win my heart with their efficiency before expecting to be my new best friend.