Cancelling top-up insurance

[stan]

I wonder if anyone can provide some advice on what I can do to cancel my complimentaire santé as I can no longer afford the premiums, and we plan to return to the UK by early next year

I have had the policy for one year and the anniversary for renewal is June 15th. I sent a letter "avec recom

mandée" (and an email) stating that I would either cancel the contract with notice or cancel within 20 days (by sending letter recommandée) of receiving the renewal notice.

The insurance company have come back stating that they will only cancel the policy if I send a letter (recommandée) at least 3 months prior to the 1st April of each year, OR if I move back to the UK, proof of change of residence along with copies of plane or train tickets home.

When I mentioned that I could cancel within 20 days of receiving the renewal notice, they said that they do not recognise that and that I cannot cancel unless I adhere to the terms in the preceding papragraph.

I was sure that I could cancel within 20 days of a renewal notice which they were obliged to send.

Any advice please.

[Clair]

I have just had to cancel our top-up (mutuelle) as Mr Clair's new job comes with a compulsory one, so I've had a chance to look into what reasons are acceptable for cancelling.

To cancel mid-term, you must fulfil one of the following conditions:

- professional retirement or end of professional activity

- move (change of address)

- change of marital situation

- change of matrimonial regime

- change of profession

To cancel before the renewal date, you must inform them by registered letter 2 months before the renewal date (if renewal is on 1st Jan, you must send your cancellation letter before 31st Oct).

To cancel at the renewal date, you must do so within 15 days of receiving the renewal notice, which should arrive between 1 and 3 months of the renewal date (loi Chatel).

If you do not receive the renewal notice less than 15 days before  (or even after) the renewal date, you have 20 days from the date of receiving the notice (keep the envelope) to cancel the renewal. The cancellation will be effective from the date of despatch of your cancellation letter.

Hope this helps.

Source

[stan]

I have just received the following email from the mutuelle stataing that the Loi Chatel does not apply in my case :

Suite à votre dernière correspondance ,je vous rappelle que votre

contrat est un contrat de groupe à adhésion facultative souscrit par le

biais de l'association ACADIA et qu'il se trouve donc exclu du champ

d'application de la loi Chatel.

I knew that in certain cases this law did not apply, but I was sure that the contract could be cancelled within 15/20 days by letter recommandée in any case.

[Sunday Driver]

Check out this website for an article about  Résiliation de Mutuelles : savoir utiliser la Loi châtel.

Contains useful information about getting out of 'group adhesion' contracts.

 

[stan]

Thanks Sunday Driver. I put the article through an online translator, and as usual its just gobbledegook! Can you, or someone oblige, and advise me if I can get out of this? Many thanks in advance.

[audio]

It’s amazing how difficult and awkward some companies want to be. I have experienced that several times in France, mainly because of the language.

Your guys seem to be very unreasonable, in fact a shower of s@?t.

My previous bank apart from being a dead loss also supplied my top up insurance. When I changed banks, the new bank cancelled everything for me with the previous including the top up health, all at very short notice.

Tell your company that you will give them a mention in Que Chosir. Also have a word with your local association de consommateurs.

Good luck.

[Sunday Driver]

[quote user="stan"]

Thanks Sunday Driver. I put the article through an online translator, and as usual its just gobbledegook! Can you, or someone oblige, and advise me if I can get out of this? Many thanks in advance.

[/quote]

Normally, when you take out a complimentary heath insurance policy, you enter into a contract directly with the insurer. As an individual, the Loi Chatel then gives you your rights of cancellation.

In the case of a collective 'group adhesion' arrangement, you enter into a contract with an association who then contracts with the insurer to provide the cover.  Because that contract is between the insurer and the association, which is classed as a 'professional' rather than an individual, the Loi Chatel doesn't apply.

So, instead of writing to the insurer to cancel the policy, you write to the association resigning your membership. Having done so, you are no longer part of the collective arrangement therefore you no longer benefit from the insurance guarantees and the insurer can no longer demand the premiums.

The website I gave you contains links to download two example letters - a letter of resignation that you send to the association and a letter you send to the insurer notifying them of your resignation from the association.

Your insurer is not being difficult and awkward, they are merely abiding by their contract terms. You are going to be doing the same.

 

[stan]

Thank you Sunday Driver, much appreciated. Now....does the one year anniversary date of this policy (ie 15th June) have any bearing on this course of action?, ie can I still cancel the policy now, using this method, or has it been left too late by way of giving the appropriate several months notice?

[Sunday Driver]

You resign from your association (in this case ACADIA) as per the terms of your agreement with them.  If that specifies a particular notice period, then you must adhere to that period.

Or, as they suggest.......provide them with details of a property you have back in the UK and copies of a pair of one-way Ryanair tickets to Stanstead......

 

[stan]

Thanks Sunday Driver, this is more complicated than I ever thought possible. Firstly, I never knew that I was subscribed to an association ( I never signed anything to say this was so, everything was done via Euro-Assurance. Consequently, I cannot see anything in the documentation I received that states any particular notice period stipulated by Acadia ( this name is menationed once at the bottom of the 1 page of documentation I received from Euro-Assurance).

I will send off the letters anyway and see what happens.

As per their suggestion of property and tickets...I do not own any property in the UK and we drove over here...and will drive back!

[stan]

I was about to send off the letters when I looked at previous correspondence from Euro -Assurance. Apparently the anniversary date of the policy is 1st April annually (even though it says 15th June on my policy document) and that I require 3 months notice to cancel. So therefore, it appears there is no way at the moment to cancel the policy. I am just worried that in future there will be insufficient funds in my bank account to cover it and that will cause further financial problems ( at least the complimentaire santé will cover the psychiatric bill caused by the stress of the way this country works!)