M&S has a long and colourful history as a British icon. Just as you expect quality food and home products from Marks and Sparks, you can also expect quality M&S Insurance products. If you want to find out whether M&S Insurance is right for you, read this comprehensive guide.
Whether you want to find out if they have an email address, promo codes, reviews or login pages, we’ll share all this and more...
M&S Insurance
M&S Insurance falls under the M&S Bank brand. M&S Insurance offers the following cover:
- Car insurance
- Home insurance
- Travel insurance
- Pet insurance
History of M&S Insurance
Marks and Spencer started as a penny bazaar in Leeds, in 1884. Its name originates from the surnames of its two founders. It has come a long way since then and the M&S brand is widely considered to be trustworthy and one associated with quality.
Timeline
- 1884 - Marks and Spencer is founded by Michael Marks and Thomas Spencer.
- 1973 - The company expands into the Canadian market.
- 1975 - It opens its first stores in France, with shops opening in Paris and Lyon.
- 1985 - St Michael Financial Services (now M&S Bank) is formed as the financial services division of Marks & Spencer Group.
- 1998 - M&S becomes the first British retailer to make pre-tax profits of over £1 billion.
- 2004 - HSBC buys M&S Bank and continues to operate it.
- 2012 - M&S Bank starts opening branches in Marks and Spencer retail stores.
M&S Insurance today
M&S Insurance products fall under the M&S Bank subsidiary. M&S Bank is now owned by HSBC but continues to operate under the M&S Bank brand, as before. M&S Insurance has the following products:
- Car insurance
- Home insurance
- Travel insurance
- Pet insurance
M&S Insurance policies: car, home, travel & pet
M&S Insurance offers car insurance, home insurance, travel insurance and pet insurance.
Car insurance
M&S Insurance offers two types of car insurance policies: standard and premier.This certainly helps simplify matters for customers who are dipping their toes into the world of car insurance, especially for the first time.
Premier offers a more comprehensive level of cover and standard is designed to keep the premium down (you can then add certain optional extras, should you wish to).
Here is a sample of the benefits you will receive under each policy:
| Benefit | Standard | Premier |
|---|---|---|
| Breakdown cover | Optional - four levels available covering your vehicle only. | Included - European and UK cover. Also covers you as a passenger in another car. |
| Uninsured driver protection | ||
| Motor legal protection | Optional* | |
| Guaranteed replacement car - subject to eligibility | Optional - 14, 21 or 28 days | (28 days) |
| European travel - an unlimited number of trips up to 90 days per cover period | ||
| Loss, theft, damage and destruction of vehicle and personal property in vehicle | ||
| Personal accident cover for you and your spouse - up to £10,000 |
*Optional cover means you can choose to include this benefit on your policy for an additional premium. Alternatively, you can leave it off and receive the lowest rate.
Regardless of which policy you take out, you will also receive these additional benefits:
- If you need to make a claim you will be assigned your own personal claims manager from the start of the process until the end.
- If your car is damaged and you make a claim, M&S will send it to an approved repair centre that provides a three-year guarantee on work carried out.
- You will receive uninsured driver protection, so even if you’re hit by an uninsured driver you can recover your excess.
Read our detailed M&S car insurance guide for more information (coming soon).
Home insurance
M&S Insurance offers two main types of home insurance that are available with two levels of cover (standard and premier):
- Building insurance - Covers fixed items in your home, such as walls, windows, bathroom suites, etc. This will protect you for loss or damage against your property. If you choose the more comprehensive level of cover, premier, you will also be covered for accidental damage, higher limits and alternative accommodation (in certain scenarios).
- Contents insurance - Covers the items that are not a fixed part of your home, such as clothes, electrical items, furniture, etc. The premier level of cover offers you extras, including: accidental damage, unlimited garden contents, visitors’ belongings, and students’ contents while at uni or college.
Read our detailed M&S home insurance guide for more information (coming soon).
You will receive a 20% discount when purchasing home insurance online via the M&S Insurance website. This offer is valid when purchasing new policies and doesn’t apply to renewals.
Travel insurance
M&S Insurance has two main travel policies that you can select:
- Single trip - This will cover you for one trip (can be to multiple countries). There is no upper age limit for taking out a single trip policy.
- Annual multi-trip - This will allow you to take as many trips as you like throughout a one year period. Anyone under the age of 80 can take out this type of policy. You will be covered for trips of up to 31 days as standard and can upgrade this section if you want to take longer holidays of up to 45, 60 or 90 days.
Some of the key benefits that are included are:
- Major incidents cover, including extreme weather and terrorism.
- Travel disruption cover for non-refundable travel costs.
- Medical emergency cover if you have an accident or fall ill while travelling.
- Cancellation costs if you can’t travel.
You can also add optional extras, such as:
- Cover for lost or damaged baggage.
- Winter sports cover for lost or damaged winter sports equipment.
Read our detailed M&S travel insurance guide for more information (coming soon).
You will receive a 10% discount when you buy a new travel insurance policy online via the M&S travel insurance website.
Pet insurance
M&S pet insurance is available at three cover levels: essential, standard and premier (essential offering the most basic level and premier the highest).
The price for pet insurance will increase at renewal because as your pet gets older the likelihood of them falling ill increases. However, having pet insurance does mean peace of mind that you will be able to ensure your pets receive treatment when they fall ill.
For new policies, you will receive a 15% discount if you buy online, via the M&S pet insurance site. If you already have a dog or cat insured and want to add another one, you will receive a 5% discount under the M&S Insurance multi-pet discount scheme.
Marks and Spencer login: what can I do online?
Marks and Spencer login details vary by product and service. Here are the options available for M&S Insurance products:
- Car insurance - You can manage a variety of details online, such as adding a driver, changing your address or simply viewing your policy details. Navigate to the M&S Bank ‘existing customers’ tab and select car insurance. If you want to renew a policy or make a claim, you will need to contact Marks and Spencer (see the contact details section below).
- Home insurance - You can view your home insurance policy details online and renew a policy. Thet type of policy you hold will determine what information you need to enter in the Marks and Spencer login page. At a minimum, you will need to enter your email address and password, and often your date of birth.
- Travel insurance - You can view your travel insurance policy details online. You will need to provide your email address and password.
How do I get a quote for M&S Insurance?
You can get a quote for M&S car, home, travel or pet insurance products online. Simply head to the relevant product homepage and click ‘start your quote’. Alternatively, you can get a quote over the phone (see our M&S Insurance contact section below).
Marks and Spencer promo code for M&S Insurance
You can often find Marks and Spencer promo codes online for M&S Insurance products. Usually, these will just lead you to the M&S site to book directly. M&S Insurance offers great discounts if you book directly and are taking out a new policy.
At the time of writing, the following discounts are available on the M&S Insurance website:
- Home insurance - 20% discount on new policies taken out.
- Travel insurance - 10% discount on new policies.
- Pet insurance - 15% discount on new policies purchased. If you’ve already got one pet insured, you can take advantage of a 5% discount if you insure another one (or two or more!).
Contact: Marks and Spencer email address and phone numbers
Most companies these days are moving away from email and may offer online chat instead, as is the case with M&S. While there is no Marks and Spencer email address offered for queries, M&S does have a live chat service for enquiries that aren’t related to an existing account.
If you have an enquiry about an existing policy, you should head to the relevant Marks and Spencer login page (see above for more details) or phone M&S on the relevant number below:
| Product enquiry | Sales / Get a quote | Complaints | Customer services |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car insurance | 0800 107 1827 | 0344 858 6877 | 0344 871 2349 |
| Home insurance | 0800 015 7760 | 0345 900 0900 | 0800 015 7760 |
| Travel insurance | 0800 051 3263 | If your policy number begins with MTV, please call 0800 056 3394 If your policy number begins with 820, please call 0800 068 3918 | 0800 051 6670 |
| Pet insurance | 0800 980 8740 | 0800 980 8740 | 0800 980 8740 |
You can also contact M&S Insurance via post. The relevant addresses are listed below:
Car insurance - Customer Services/Complaints Fusion House Bretton Way Peterborough PE3 8BG
Home insurance - Customer Services
For policies which begin with MHO: M&S Home Insurance Aviva Pitheavlis Perth PH2 0NH
For policies which begin with 830: M&S Home Insurance PO Box 97 Lancaster LA1 1WG
Home Emergency Claims team
For policies which begin with MHO: HomeServe Membership Limited Cable Drive Walsall WS2 7BN
For policies which begin with 830: Homeserve Claims Management Caxton Wood Fulwood Preston PR2 9NZ
Travel insurance - Claims/Complaints
For policy numbers starting with MTV: M&S Travel Insurance Customer Care Team Customer Service Centre PO Box 7463 Perth PH2 0YX
For policy numbers starting with 820: M&S Travel Insurance Civic Drive Ipswich IP1 2AN
Pet insurance
M&S Pet Insurance Customer Relations team PO BOX 255 Wymondham NR18 8DP
Marks and Spencer reviews: a quick look
Reviews can be a good way to understand any common issues customers may have with a company. However, remember to take them with a pinch of salt as experiences can vary hugely and are dependent on many external factors too. If you see a consistent theme that bothers you in this summary of Marks and Spencer reviews, you may want to do some more research.
Trustpilot reviews Marks and Spencer Money but includes other financial products too. Of all the Marks and Spencer Money reviews, it receives an average of 1.4/5 stars.
On the other hand, Reviews.io has reviews for M&S Bank and the average rating is 4.54 / 5 stars. Of the reviewers on this site, 91% would recommend M&S Bank, which sounds promising!
Some common positive feedback based on the reviews includes helpful customer service and easy-to-understand policy information.
The negative aspects centre around price, with policy costs increasing too much upon renewal, and some even commenting that new M&S Insurance policies are not competitive. Another gripe is around claims taking a long time to be processed.
Complaints handling
A company’s complaints data can also provide you with a good idea of what the main issues that customers experience are, and how proactive an insurer is at resolving a complaint. We’ll also go a step further and compare the data to other insurance companies for you.
The data in the table below is for M&S Insurance and pure protection products, for the first half of 2019.
| Product/ service grouping | Number of complaints opened per 1,000 policies | Number of complaints opened | Number of complaints closed | Percentage closed within 3 days | Percentage closed after 3 days but within 8 weeks | Percentage upheld |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insurance & pure protection | 32.89 per 1,000 policies in force | 30,308 | 28,550 | 2.8% | 97.1% | 66.1% |
The main cause of complaints opened was unclear guidance/arrangement. Compared to other insurance companies’ complaints data, M&S Insurance certainly displays strengths and weaknesses.
For example, M&S closed 2.8% of claims within three days for the above-mentioned period. This is considerably lower than many other companies. However, of the claims opened, it closed a total of 99.9% (includes all claims closed in under eight weeks). This is a great score and one of the best on the market.
While most of M&S claims are closed after three days, the consistency of closing cases appears to be reliable. This could be an important factor when considering which insurance company to choose. Many companies have claims open well after the eight week period reported online, leading to many disgruntled customers.
Selectra’s verdict
M&S Insurance is a subsidiary of a company that has a long and favourable history in the UK. Furthermore, it is owned by HSBC, a company with good credentials in the financial sector.
| Excellent rate of closing complaints, indicating that M&S Insurance’s ethos is customer-centric. Follow-up is often a big issue across the industry. | Can be expensive for first time policy-holders of M&S Insurance and for renewal policies too. However, as we mentioned earlier, there are discounts if you buy directly from M&S online for many new policies. |
| Simple, clear policy documentation. | The claims process can take a long time. |
Data and information correct as of November 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.
Other providers are available and the best deal for you will depend on your individual circumstances. Please do your own research and seek professional advice if necessary (moneyadviceservice.org.uk offers free, independent advice on all financial issues).