Do you want to know more about Halifax Insurance and what it could offer you? Maybe you currently bank with Halifax and are happy with its other services, or you’re just scoping it out. In this guide we’ll share information about how to log in, the Ultimate Reward Current Account benefits, reviews and policy details. Insurance is there to protect you and your loved ones and you have to trust in your chosen provider. Read on to see if Halifax Insurance is right for you...
Halifax Insurance
Halifax as a finance and insurance provider is a household name in the UK. Originally called Halifax Permanent Benefit Building and Investment Society, it was founded way back in 1853. The name Halifax comes from a town called Halifax in West Yorkshire. Halifax town has an impressive and long history of producing iconic brands, including Rolo and Quality Street chocolates and toffees, and in earlier days being home to the world’s largest textile factories.
History of Halifax Insurance
The Halifax company began in 1853, which is a testament to its success! It grew steadily over the years until in 1928 it merged with Halifax Equitable Building Society and became Halifax Building Society. This move was very profitable and made the company five times larger than its nearest competitor. After being in operation for 166 years, you can bet it has seen some big changes. Let’s take a brief look at its history.
Timeline
- 1853 - Halifax is founded as a building society.
- 1913 - It becomes the largest building society in the UK.
- 1924 - Opens its first office in London.
- 1928 - Opens its first office in Scotland and becomes Halifax Building Society after merging with Halifax Equitable Building Society.
- 1977 - It evolves into Halifax plc, a public limited company.
- 2001 - It merges with Bank of Scotland.
- 2006 - It becomes a division of Bank of Scotland.
- 2009 - Halifax becomes part of Lloyds Banking Group.
Halifax Insurance today
Today, Halifax is a division of Bank of Scotland, which is part of the Lloyds Banking Group. Halifax has diversified its product since its commencement and now offers a wider range of financial and insurance products and services. Along with the standard services we would expect an insurance company to offer, they also run a money advice service so people can make informed decisions about their money.
Halifax Insurance policies: car, home, landlord & business
Halifax Insurance offers car insurance, home insurance, landlord insurance, business insurance and life insurance. As of 26 March 2018 it no longer sells travel insurance as a standalone policy to new customers. Customers opening an Ultimate Reward Current Account do receive travel insurance and a range of other benefits included (see more below).
In this section, we will focus on car, home, landlord and business insurance.
Car insurance
Halifax offers three types of car insurance policies:
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| Liability to others |
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| Damage to the car |
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| Fire and theft |
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| Glass damage |
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| Personal belongings |
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| Medical expenses |
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| Personal accident benefits |
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| Replacement locks |
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| Travelling abroad* |
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| No claims discount |
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*You are entitled to 60 days European Union cover with Halifax car insurance. If you drive frequently to other EU countries and think you will go over 60 days, you can find cover for 90 days abroad with other providers.
If you take out Halifax car insurance you will be entitled to these additional benefits:
- Online Banking customers receive a 10% discount.
- Access to an online self-service centre where you can view your policy documents and change payment or policy details. It will also give you access to the Halifax Car Extras site where you can claim a free offer quarterly, as well as other various discounts.
- 24-hour emergency claims helpline.
If you take out Halifax comprehensive car insurance you will also receive:
- A three-year guarantee on approved claims repairs.
- Access to a 24-hour emergency windscreen helpline.
- New car replacement if your car is stolen and not recovered (if you bought the car in the last 12 months).
- Vandalism cover if your car is damaged maliciously.
- A courtesy car is provided while your car is at a Halifax-approved repairer (subject to availability and eligibility).
Read our detailed Halifax car insurance guide for more information (coming soon).
Home insurance
Home is where your heart is...and all your favourite possessions too. Home insurance is definitely one area you don’t want to skimp on. Imagine your house is destroyed by a freak weather incident or fire. Possibly everything you own and spent years accumulating would be no more and you would have to buy it all again. This would be impossible for most of us without saving up for it. That’s where home insurance comes into play.
There are two types of Halifax home insurance policies, which you can take out separately or combine the two in the one policy:
Buildings insurance - this covers your home and attached structures. Examples of attached structures include plumbing, wiring, kitchen and bathroom fittings, and attached garages.
You will be covered in the event that an insured event occurs. Common insured events for houses include floods, storms and fires. However, buildings insurance won’t cover your personal possessions so you will need contents insurance for that.
There are two levels of cover you can choose with Halifax Buildings Insurance: Halifax Home insurance which offers flexibility to choose the cover you need and Halifax Home Insurance Ultimate which offers more protection as part of the standard package.
Contents insurance - this covers your personal possessions, from your old CD collection to your favourite shoes. You’ve worked long and hard for your things. If a thief decides you have what they like you will most likely be devastated when you realise they have taken all of your most valuable possessions. If another insured event happens (i.e. flood), you may lose them all in one go. Replacing everything at once will be a costly exercise without good quality insurance.
Read our detailed Halifax home insurance guide for more information (coming soon).
Landlord insurance
Halifax Landlord Insurance is for landlords who rent out residential or commercial properties, whatever the size of your portfolio. Some of the main areas covered include:
- Landlord’s content - if a tenant destroys the furniture or items you own in your house.
- Loss of rent - if an insured event takes place (i.e. fire) and your tenant has to move out, your cash flow is protected.
- Legal expenses - your legal expenses are covered in certain instances, such as evicting squatters or recovering debt.
Business insurance
Most businesses will need some form of insurance, whether yours is a start-up company in your basement or employing people across the globe. Halifax Business Insurance has a long list of business insurance options, including public liability and professional indemnity insurance.
You can view all the policy types online or speak to a Halifax business insurance adviser (see our Halifax contact page for phone numbers, coming soon).
Halifax Insurance: Ultimate Reward Current Account benefits
As we mentioned earlier, Halifax no longer offers travel insurance to new customers unless they are opening an Ultimate Reward Current Account. This bank account has a monthly fee of £17 involved but there are a number of insurance benefits that are included. Below is a summary of just some of these benefits and exclusions:
- Travel insurance - worldwide multi-trip family travel cover for you and a partner (you live with) and children under 18, or 24 if they’re in full time education. The maximum trip duration is 45 days and you have up to 31 days winter sports included each calendar year. The insurance is only valid up until your 71st birthday and no pre-existing medical conditions are included unless you first agree them with Halifax Insurance. You can find out more in our Halifax travel insurance guide (coming soon).
- Car breakdown cover - provides cover, including roadside assistance, within the UK, Channel Islands and the Isle of Man.
- Mobile phone insurance - covers you for the repair or replacement of a phone up to a maximum value of £2,000 (including VAT) per claim. It also covers you for loss, theft, damage or breakdown.
- Home emergency cover - this cover is to deal with home emergencies that need immediate attention. It will cover costs up to £250 in order to make your home safe again i.e. restore electricity, gas or water if they have stopped working.
This package could save you a bundle depending on your circumstances. Read the full policy details before signing up for anything to see if the limits and cover are suitable. You can contact Halifax via phone or online if you have any questions. Head to our Halifax contact page for all the information you need (coming soon).
Halifax Insurance log in
If you have a Halifax Insurance policy, you can have access to the online portal. Before you can log in for the first time, you need to register. You can do this really easily.
Step 1 - Click on ‘register’ on the top right of the screen.
Step 2 - You will then run through four quick screens and enter information, where prompted:
- Help us identify you
- Sign in details
- Verification
- Registration complete
Once you have registered with Halifax Insurance online you can log into your account with your saved details. Simply click ‘sign in’ on the Halifax Insurance homepage.
How do I get a Halifax Insurance quote?
You can get a quote for Halifax home, car, business or landlord insurance products online. Simply head to the relevant page and start your quote when you’re ready. Alternatively, you can get a quote over the phone (see our Halifax contact page, coming soon).
Make a complaint
If you choose to purchase a Halifax Insurance product hopefully things so smoothly. However, there is always a chance that something can go wrong. If you do need to make a complaint, Halifax will let you do it over the phone with an adviser or by sending an online form with all your information. You can find more details on how to place a complaint in our Halifax contact page.
Halifax Insurance reviews: a quick look
Let’s take a look at what customers are saying about Halifax Insurance.
On reviews.io, there are 272 reviews from current and past customers. It receives an overall rating of 3.29/5 stars (five being the highest rating possible). Furthermore, 60% would recommend Halifax Insurance.
The main things that customers like are the reasonable prices and helpful customer service.
“After reading the reviews on other sites I was wary when I had to ring to change the payment date after a technical glitch online. But I have to say the customer service adviser was pleasant, helpful and even rang me back when she had sorted it so I’m impressed at her efficiency.” - Janet, reviews.io
On the flip side, many of the negative comments are around renewal prices being too high and the claims process taking too long. You will find with most providers that prices increase at renewal. If you ring Halifax you might find that they lower the price. This is why you should never let your policy renew automatically.
“Rubbish service and they don’t record details properly, then have the audacity to apply excess charges and increase insurance when the errors are their fault and amazingly their investigations show no issues with their service.” - Anonymous, reviews.io
Complaints handling
An insurer’s complaints data can give us an excellent insight into a company’s customer satisfaction. Unfortunately the individual complaints data for Halifax Insurance is not made available as Bank of Scotland (Halifax’s parent company) publishes the data from all of its subsidiaries together.
Considering the group has so many subsidiaries (a total of nine), we do not feel that it can give us much useful information in relation to the complaints handling of Halifax Insurance. However, if you are interested in the figures, they are listed below.
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| Insurance & pure protection |
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The main cause of complaints opened was advising, selling and arranging.
Selectra’s verdict
Halifax Insurance is part of a company that has been around for an impressive amount of time. This can often be a sign of a good company that has customers’ interests at its heart. If nothing else, it proves the company is strong, capable and successful.
Customers like the friendly, professional attitude of advisers and this should give you hope should you ever need help. The Halifax Insurance website is also easy to use and customer-friendly. However, as with many insurers these days it seems renewal prices can increase, which doesn’t show the best loyalty towards customers.
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| The company has a long, well-established history in the UK. | Travel insurance can only be taken out if you sign up to the Ultimate Reward Current Account. |
| The website is easy to navigate and will allow you to perform many functions online, without the need to call. | Renewal prices for policies often increase even if you haven’t made a claim. Customers have reported that Halifax will offer a better rate if you call and discuss it before renewal. |
Data and information correct as of October 2019.
All material on this page and the selectra.co.uk website is for information purposes only and does not constitute any form of financial advice. Selectra.co.uk is not responsible for any consequences that might arise from your use of the information provided.