MiWay Insurance review: Car insurance

This is regarding claim C1715826

This is a copy and paste of a message I sent to escalate the issue internally and copied the internal complaints department and it has not helped at all.

Dear Team

I am a very disgruntled customer who has received the crappiest of services from any insurance company that I have ever dealt with. I was an FNB customer before and never had any issues with them and when I changed cars, some site that I am not going to name suggested you.

On the 2nd of August 2023, at the corner of Symphony Way and Delft Main Road - I drove into water that was dammed on the road after heavy rains. I drove on as I was not used to the area and a kilometre to a kilometre and a half I got an amber warning light on my dashboard which stated that it was still safe to drive the car, which I did because I did not want to stop in that area. As I turned into my street, my steering wheel went stiff and the warning light on my dashboard turned red and stated that I should stop the car. I was able to put the car into my driveway and left it there as there was no way that I could have turned it and drove it into my garage.

I enquired about towing (MiWay) as I wanted diagnostics performed on the car. Feedback I got was that MiWay does not get involved in breakdowns and since the car was in my driveway, then it was in a safe place. I organised my own towing and co-ordinated with my mechanic to get the car to his workshop the following day. My car was towed away and taken in for diagnostics and the guys shared the results of the test (which you have). There was a taxi strike in Cape Town around that period and I left them to do their work as it was difficult for them to even get to the workshop.

The following Monday, I followed up on my car only to find out that my mechanic had suffered a heart attack and was in hospital. I consulted with several people until I got hold of a person who specialised on Audis. The guy explained what had happened to my car (he did not even touch it but based on what I told him) and suggested that I take it to the service provider that it is sitting with. I again found a tow car and got my car taken to their workshop and that is when I realised that what had happened was actually serious (when I enquired about how much it would cost) which is when I lodged a claim with you. I lodged a claim on the app that same night and realised that I had made a mistake about the dates (the week in question, I had Pneumonia and there was no way that I would have been on the road). I tried to retrieve the claim on the app but could not and called first thing the following morning, spoke to one of your agents and explained what the issue was. She sent me a form and asked me to correct the date on that form, which I did.

Then the fun and games began. I was threatened by your merit what whats about not being honest about the claim because:

a) Of the error I made on the date;

b) I dared and had two charges on my bank statement (one for R350 and one for R420). The charge for R350 was for a replacement of my husband's oil cap that a petrol attendant forgot to put back and he lost it and had to take care of that. The R420 was for parts for my intercom but it dared say that it was for repairs (the description). Not sure how amounts that small would have any relationship with a major repair;

c) I was questioned why I had towed my own car when I had explicitly explained that it was because of the feedback I received from MiWay about breakdowns and towing.

The line of questioning was very rude and insinuated that my integrity was in question. I was threatened about all kinds of cameras that you have all over South Africa and you would know where my car was, which I said that he can be my guest.

A couple of weeks later, I follow up on my car (again) and now the reasons why MiWay would not fix my car had changed to the following:

a) It had rained on the 31st of July but the 1st of August was hot and therefore there was no way that there would be water on that road. Now we had to be experts about drainage, water evaporation etc;

b) The damage on my car was in no way caused by water damage. I told him that I am not an expert when it comes to cars. What was strange that happened was, I went into the water, a few seconds later I got a warning signal on my dashboard and my power steering packed up afterwards.

I was told that a specialist would be obtained to go and have a look at the car and investigate. I wondered how much you would be paying that expert because:

a) the guys who have custody of my car are known for being the best at what they do. They do not know me from a bar of soap and I am sure they would be able to tell you what caused the damage as I am sure they have seen a couple of these cases;

b) A desktop investigation would have shown you that the [protected] model of the A5 was prone to water ingress, such that in other countries such as the US and Canada, they had done a major recall/ issued an extended warranty in order to fix the issue they knew was a problem.

I have attached a link to an example that was posted to an Audi Forum where Audi owners had the same problems with water ingress.

https://www.audiworld.com/forums/audi-a5-s5-rs5-coupe-cabrio-b8-125/yet-another-electric-steering-system-failure-2914999/

I am disgusted with the service I have received, on Friday (22/09) I followed up because the rental I got was supposed to be returned to Avis on the 24th. I contacted your agents, she indicated that she had spoken to her senior and that he would get back to me. I waited the whole day...no call. I went back to her and told her that I am not returning the car and MiWay will be liable for the extra days. That is something that should have been treated with urgency as a customer, I should not have been left stranded. Oh, and Mr Superior had already gone home.

From where I am, I would never refer anyone I know to insure their cars with MiWay (and that is a lot of people). Some of your business depends on word of mouth and you are busy pissing on it. I have not had my car for two months (with MiWay having contributed a month and a half). I am not sure whether you think I enjoy driving a Renault Kwid from my own car and I will escalate this to the highest level if necessary.

I am hoping that there will be a speedy resolution to this.

Kind regards,

Ludwekazi

P.S. Avis is still chasing me requesting for their car. I have called MiWay more than 3 times to follow up on whether this contract will be extended as my car has not been touched. None of those calls have been returned or answered.

An ‘expert report’ was received this week. This was going to be discussed in a claims meeting and I should have received feedback on Friday, 29th. I am still waiting for it. I thought that insurance was there to remove some of the pressure when you have an accident but this has been the opposite. MiWay has been trying every trick in the book not to pay for the claim.