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1st Central: Car Insurance reviews

Name: Car Insurance
Rating: 1.68 (866 reviews)

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1.49

Based on 866 reviews, last reviewed 16th Feb 2025

100% decrease in 5 star reviews

in the past 90 days

18% decrease in 1 star reviews

in the past 90 days

12%

79%

Latest highest rating:

5

Very good quote on car insurance, and recommended on... Very good quote on car insurance, and recommended on go compare site Reviewed on: 25th September 2024

Latest lowest rating:

1

I changed the address to another one 200 yards away... I changed the address to another one 200 yards away from the first one. They wrote that they would pay me 17 pence extra. But my renewal went up from ... Read more Reviewed on: 16th February 2025

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About this product

Here at Smart Money People, we collect 1st Central car insurance reviews from genuine customers, to help you make an informed decision about your next provider.

1st Central was founded in 2008 and has been growing fast ever since. Specialising in car insurance, the brand offers a variety of products with different levels of cover, including a telematics policy for newer drivers.

When choosing a new policy, take the time to ensure it is suitably robust and meets all of your needs. Do you want breakdown cover included in the policy? Do you need legal cover? What about cover for any medical expenses that may occur after an accident? Working out your priorities before searching for a policy can make the selection process much easier. Check out our 1st Central car insurance reviews to find out what others think.

Have you had a car insurance policy with 1st Central? Whether good or bad, share your experience with the Smart Money People community to help us increase trust and transparency in financial services. Were you satisfied with the price of the premium? Did you have any interactions with the customer service team? Leave a 1st Central car insurance review today to help other drivers just like you.

1st Central Car Insurance reviews (866)

Review of the 1st Central, Car Insurance:

BEWARE!! Ludicrous charges! THEY DO NOT CARE!!

Took out insurance and over a week later they asked for proof of NCB and proof of claims. Asked my last insurance provider for this. When I didn’t get them in time they charged £175. I had told them I had contacted twice to get these documents. I decided to cancel after nearly 4 weeks and for this I was charged £156, minus my first payment, despite their website saying it’s a £10 cancellation fee after 14 days!! Very impersonal service and completely ridiculous charges!! Felt as though they grabbed me with a cheap quote and then added on extras to make money. My monthly payment went from £37 to £55!! Felt like dealing with robots whose job is to add money on excessively!! Wish I’d read these reviews first!! Reviewed on: 29th November 2024

Reply from 1st Central Hi Katharine, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear about your experience with us. All details on the policy impact the price of the policy we offer, if details are found to be incorrect we need to update them and this can impact the price of the policy. If you’d like to speak to the team about this process, please give us a call on 0333 043 2095. We’re here to help from Mon-Fri: 9am to 5pm. Ashley Response date: 2nd December 2024

Racist

Very distraught with my experience with them Reviewed on: 10th August 2022

RACIST COMPANY!!

I spoke to a manager named John who cancelled my insurance due to the fact that I simply didn’t reply to ONE email. They did not text me (which they have done before for providing them with documents) or make me aware that they will be cancelling my insurance only 3 weeks after, they texted me stating that my insurance got cancelled. I called them and spoke to the manager John and was very unhelpful with resolving this solution all because I have an ethnic last name. I am DISGUSTED with this company and to be honest, I would not reccomend ANYONE use this insurance provider as they only care about customers with Anglo-Saxon last names. I’m surprised they’re even still operating as I’ve been told by numerous people before that they’ve received racial abuse from them. Reviewed on: 10th August 2022

weeks waiting to be paid out

weeks… Been off the road now for 2.5 weeks with no car and I'm waiting for an offer on my car that's written off. I'm be waiting and waiting!! Everytime I call the customer service team for help they say there a two to three week backlog of claims to process on there offers. I ask can you give me a better idea as I need to buy a new car and they said no they can't give me an idea of how long I will be waiting. I think this is really poor service Reviewed on: 9th August 2022

Rubbish company

My daughter purchased her first car and chose 1st central for her insurance, they a rubbish company do not use . Reviewed on: 9th August 2022

Trap for customers

Three weeks have passed and they still haven't done anything and they're asking for longer . They told me to find another work shop and I found one within an hour and today they told me to wait another week for probation. They told me they would lend me a car similar size to the one I have for my holiday and they still haven't done this. This company traps clients into spending money with no effect and continuously lie saying that they will do something. Due to this, they will ruin mine and my family's holiday. Never buy insurance from this company because all they do is lie. This is a jock, don't buy policy with the company just lost time and money. Reviewed on: 8th August 2022

Trying to speak to someone............

Wanted me to send them invoices, but post only......in 2022 no direct line to accounts or email address. Reviewed on: 5th August 2022

Evil

They marked my credit file claiming I owe them £90, AFTER they told me they cancelled the debt and there would be no further action against me. I’ll remove this review IF they remove the illegal marker on my file and financially compensate me. Due to the marker they put on my file, I was turned down to move house which I needed for my family. EVIL. Reviewed on: 5th August 2022

Money grabbing scammers and very rude staff

COMPANY DOSENT EVEN DESERVE THE ONE STAR! So I purchased my policy paid it everytime on time. One payment I was a couple days late which I had called up on the day it was due to let them know it was going to be a few days late. They cancelled my policy I called up to make the payment was happy to make the late payment fee aswell was told everything went through and next payment would come out on the 4th of next month. So driving home and got stopped with the police no insurance showing on the vehicle apparently. Had to sit and go through my online portal to prove them i made payment even had to call up and they say yeah you've made payment but we cancelled the Insurance cause of the few days I was late. And wouldn't reinstate the money I paid. You think they would have told me or sent me an email to tell me my policy was getting cancelled cause I was a couple days late. Even the police officer I was with said it was very unprofessional. I would steer clear of this company absolute joke and money grabbing cunts laughing at there customers too and I come on to leave a review and every review is shocking exactly what I have went through with them Reviewed on: 5th August 2022

Absolute joke of a company

After having to search for a new insurance company, first time ever seeing and coming across this company. There rates seemed cheap. I wished at the time I had done some research first. As I was to find out. They first request me to send them the No Claims Discount (NCD) proof. That should have been my first clue as to the stupidity and unprofessionalism of this company, I started thinking I wouldn't need to send them it, as having been driving for 6 years and each time the company I chose was able to get prove from the NCD database. Imagine my shock when I received a letter a month later, of their intention to cancel my claim on the grounds of me not providing my NCD. So that day I contacted them, after speaking and get a email with proof from my previous insurance company, I sent it over and then contacted them a day later, asking if they had received it, as even though their website claimed I could send it over through the website, it was never an accepted format, despite me following the recommendations. After speaking to 3 different representatives, all of which had manners that left alot to be desired, I was lied to by all them, claiming there was no national database for NCD's, refusing to accept the email from another company dispite me speaking to the previous company and being told that should be accepted, as that is all they ever send, and is accepted by 90% of other providers. After again trying to get through to them to, explaining that they are the ones who are not accepting any of my attempts to get this sorted, yet they claimed they would still want money off me. I went else where, THEY wanted this to be cancelled, THEY refused to accept a standard Nationally recognised email as proof of my NCD's, THEY would not access a national database for NCD's. This is the kind of rubbish I had to deal with yet I was told I was the one in the wrong. This will be send to the financal ombudsman and the Insurance watchdog as this company is still claiming I should pay for THERE mistakes. I am a carer, for a severely disabled partner who does not need this cowboy, joke of a company accusing me of this. I will fight this if I have to, even though I really don't want to. Though I will if I need to. Reviewed on: 4th August 2022

Waste time and money

NOT RECOMMENDED -2 weeks after accident they don't provide car repairer. Car is still on the driveway and customer service just say.... We send email about etc. I'm spoke six times with customer service about. This is a jock, don't buy policy with the company just lost time and money. Reviewed on: 3rd August 2022

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