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1st CENTRAL Reviews

3.9 Rating 5,237 Reviews
75 %
of reviewers recommend 1st CENTRAL
3.9
Based on 5,237 reviews
Shipping & Delivery
Delivery Methods
Own Driver, Postal Service
On-time Delivery
99%
Customer Service
Communication Channels
Telephone, Email, Live Chat
Queries Resolved In
Under An Hour
Customer Service
4.1 out of 5
Read 1st CENTRAL Reviews
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Phone:

0333 043 2066

Email:

marketing@1stcentral.co.uk

Location:

Capital House, Perrymount Road, Haywards Heath
RH16 3SY

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Marcus Wickwar
5
Anonymous
Anonymous  // 01/01/2019
AVOID! This company may make it easy to sign up but that is because once they have ensnared you, they automatically renew your insurance at a much higher price then the previous year. They do this by suggesting they got your consent when they emailed you a renewal email which never arrives but their system apparently shows that you opened it. Now I’m no lawyer but had the email arrived and it was opened, I don’t believe that constitutes my written or verbal consent. If you are lucky enough to pick up in this fraud while you are still in your 2 week cooling off period they (kindly) waiver your cancellation fee, however they continue to charge an ‘arrangement’ fee of £50, which for some bizarre reason has to be charged regardless of legality or indeed common sense. I spoke to a manager who announced if he were to remove the fee he would lose his job? Using emotional blackmail to continue to defraud their customers gives a good indication as to how this company operates. I will not hold my breath when awaiting a return call from the managers manager who originally didn’t exist but then became available….
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hello, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. Our renewal invites are sent two weeks before a policy is set to renew. This email advises of the date this will automatically renew. If the customer has opted out of this, it will advise when the policy is due for renewal. A customer can turn off their automatic renewal at any stage during their policy with us, via Your Account. If there’s anything you’d like us to look into for you, please contact us by sending an email to customer.relations@1stcentral.co.uk. Please include your policy number and details of what’s gone wrong, and we’ll see if we can put things right. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Rip off merchants its going to cost more to cancel my policy than to continue my payments. The insurance ombudsman should investigate this company. AVOID at all costs.
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Paul, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. We advise of all of our fees on our website here - https://www.1stcentralinsurance.com/legal-information/important-information. We also have this FAQ advising why there might be an additional premium left to pay - https://help.1stcentralinsurance.com/kb/FAQ/content/PROD-7744/If-my-car-policy-is-cancelled-why-do-I-still-owe-money-to-1st-CENTRAL. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Absolutely shocking company with shocking practices to extract money from you for everything possible. Avoid at all costs is my free advice.
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Shripal, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear about your experience with us. Unfortunately, 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 there’s anything you’d like us to look into for you, please contact us by sending an email to customer.relations@1stcentral.co.uk. Please include your policy number and details of what’s gone wrong, and we’ll see if we can put things right. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
AVOID! Once you've completed your 2 week cooling off period they start demanding documents, V5 docs (never been asked for this in 30yrs of motoring), NCD etc. They then look for the slightest detail on these documents to increase your policy and subsequently add an admin fee (£50). The weird thing about the situation is they don't demand these vitally important docs at the start of the policy when you can cancel the policy in the cooling off period. Stumped with a £13 increase in policy and £50 admin fee for incorrect purchase date of vehicle in 2016? Asked how much to cancel the policy.....£50 arrangement fee, £50 cancelation fee, £50 administration fee plus £30 for the 2 months we've been insured on a £220 policy, or pay the £63 fiddle and go to the ombudsman in the hope that they see this company for what it is.....A scamming machine. Customer service is diabolical in every area too. Avoid at all costs. SCAM SCAM SCAM!
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Robert, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear about your experience with us. Unfortunately, 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. We would like to look into this further for you, please give us a call on 0333 043 2095. We’re here to help from Mon-Fri: 8am to 8pm, Sat: 9am to 5pm, Sun: 10am to 2pm. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
ZERO RATING - COMMISSION BASED SCAMMERS Charged a £50 NON Refundable Administration Fee & Additional sum of £61.72, for updating my Car Insurance Policy. Total = £111.72 Update was to reflect my NCD ( No Claims Discount ) on my account, which was the case of changing 2 digits, on my online account. If I had been informed of this minutiae, this would have taken me, no more than 3 seconds to adjust, and that’s if I was blind, deaf and dumb, which obviously I am not. In discussions with Customer Services and Management, having spent 1 hour and 34 minutes, explaining that I was not at fault for this extremely minor error and able to prove it, ended up going nowhere. I was told if I did not pay immediately, my policy would be null and void and if I cancelled, it would cost over £200 in administration fees. This company is operating on Commission Based Employment, with employees only interested in taking your money. Please avoid at all costs, using 1st Central, as in the event of a valid claim, administrative or otherwise, you will suffer ‘caveat emptor’ “Let The Buyer Beware” and reach the same dead end as I did, trust me.
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hello, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. As mentioned on Trustpilot, I'll pass your review on to our customer relations team. to update your file. Please see this FAQ for our complaints procedure - https://help.1stcentralinsurance.com/kb/FAQ/content/PROD-6082/How-do-I-complain-about-my-car-insurance. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Beware of automatic renewal it cost me £51.48 to cancel an insurance policy that automatically renewed that I didn't want or need. E-mails go to junk folder, I don't review my junk e-mail folder on a weekly basis.... It up to the customer to review their junk e-mail folder is the only response I got..... Not happy at all.
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Joanne, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. Unfortunately, we can't decide which mailbox our emails go to, you can amend the settings on your emails to make sure emails go to your inbox. I can see we sent the renewal invite 14 days ahead of your policy renewal date and I can see this has been opened. In this email, it advises how a customer can switch off their auto-renew in Your Account. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Why don't you have Bulgarian language? There are too many Bulgarians in the UK and many of them do not speak English well and this turns out to be a very big problem, as in my case. Why are you suspending my insurance, I have written to you many times and sent you emails, I do not speak English well and that is why I cannot call you. This was my first insurance in England and I didn't know what the rules were, and since I also don't want you to renew it because you sent me an email, I couldn't log in to my account, so my nephew called many times, but you didn't get in touch. Now I have a new account with you and because I did not know that the insurance is renewed, I made a new insurance with you, which I paid once, in this account I wrote in the chat on this issue but did not receive help from there. For people like me who don't speak English well, it's best to reply by email. I'm having a hard time right now and I need a car every day. Please fix this mess 🙏
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Spasenka, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. Firstly, you can always look to authorise someone to speak on your behalf if you would find that easier to speak to us. Unfortunately, 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. We would like to look into this further for you, please give us a call on 0333 043 2095. We’re here to help from Mon-Fri: 8am to 8pm, Sat: 9am to 5pm, Sun: 10am to 2pm. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Recalculation of my insurance should have happened following the removal of a claim that was made against me, for an incident I was not involved in. They are telling me that the price for the fees is solely based on the information provided to them and that they do not run any internal check across the national claim database. Absolutely disgusting. I am paying more when I have done nothing wrong and never involved in any accident!
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Stephane, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. I can see that when you completed your purchase for your policy, there wasn't a claim declared to us. This means we aren't able to recalculate your premium, as the premium we've given you doesn't have a claim assigned to it. We only advise customers on a price on the details we are given by the customer. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Appalling company, avoid, outrageous price to change a date that was entered wrong on confused.com ( only minor detail nothing bad) Do not buy from them
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hello, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear about your experience with us. Unfortunately, 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. We would like to look into this further for you, please give us a call on 0333 043 2095. We’re here to help from Mon-Fri: 8am to 8pm, Sat: 9am to 5pm, Sun: 10am to 2pm. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
If I could give 0 I would, Please please please do not waste your time or money on this 'insurer'. This company is not an insurance company they are brokers who will scam you, rob you and affect you both mentally and physically. I have no idea how this business is still running with the amount of people they are scamming. Out of the blue they cancelled my insurance, they said they needed extra documents. I was not notified at all, neither by text, phone call or post to indicate they require additional infomation. The only way I found out about this was because I checked my bank balance and they had refunded my money for the month. I gave them a call to understand why I had been refunded and only then they told me my insurance was going to be cancelled on 08/06/22 11:59pm - I FOUND OUT 10 HOURS BEFORE THE TIME IT WAS DUE TO BE CANCELLED. They expected me to pull out the documents out of thin air. To avoid this tarnishing my good record I asked the policy to be cancelled and they kept passing me over person to person - I was trying to deal with this whilst I was at work. Then in the end I had to ask them to call me back and then the lady said she will at 6:00 after I finish work. 6:00pm comes and no one has called me, instead I got a lazy email to say 'sorry we cannot cancel your insurance and there is nothing we can do'. The 'analysis' had locked my account so i was unable to cancel the policy online. Even the website is extremely dodgy, they had added a fee of £135 on my account and it said once i make the payment my account will be unlocked. I paid it and it was still locked - luckily I had sent written proof that i want my insurance cancelled and this was the only thing I had to cover my back. I called this morning and spoke to a man who was also very useless and he did nothing to help me and he kept saying to me the insurance cannot be cancelled and he has spoken to his manager. Later i conferred with a family lawyer and they advised me that what they have done is unlawful and should be reported to the ombudsmen. I then called them and threatened them with legal action and notified them that I have also contacted ombudsmen. After this they changed their tune and agreed to cancel my insurance on my behalf rather than them doing it and tarnishing my good record. This has caused me an unbelievable amount of stress and anxiety. PLEASE RUN AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY - The few pounds and pennies you save going for this insurance will only last a month before they start slapping random charges on your account. I insured my run around car with them and for a 2005 mini i essentially paid approx. £200 a month with all the charges they gave me and i only had this insurance for 2 month. I own a BMW X4m and the insurance is no where as expensive. I must say I have learnt my lesson and I will definitely do research before looking for insurance. STAY AWAY LIKE THE PLAGUE.
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hello, Thank you for your feedback. We’re really sorry to hear about the experience you've had with your policy. Unfortunately, we can't see any of your details, but we would like to look into this further for you. Please contact us by sending an email to customer.relations@1stcentral.co.uk. Please remember to include your policy number and details of what’s gone wrong, and we’ll see if we can put things right. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Very poor communication skills
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hello, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. Let’s see if we can help put this right for you. Just give our team a call on 0333 043 2066 or speak to us on web chat which can be found on our website. We’re here to help from Mon-Fri: 8am to 8pm, Sat: 9am to 5pm, Sun: 10am to 2pm. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Absolute joke! Will be writing a massive complaint and will be raising this with your CEO Michael Lee, due to your technical errors and failure in informing me that my automatic payment fell through, but even this is incorrect as I had updated all of my details on your portal! you left me uninsured and UNAWARE!! You then charged me an extra £80 from my original renewal quote which I had confirmed and agreed back in May. I will be raising this further as you failed to communicate adequately and then overcharged me!!
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hello, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. I can see we sent you two emails, one advising of the payment had failed and to contact us and one to advise the policy had come to an end two days later. If there’s anything you’d like us to look into for you, please contact us by sending an email to customer.relations@1stcentral.co.uk. Please include your policy number and details of what’s gone wrong, and we’ll see if we can put things right. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Totally unhelpful,very rude staff who pass you on from one to the other like a stinky parcel,as no one wants to deal with your query.my wife involved in accident which she was not at fault,struggled hours on end to get through to them,refused to send recovery truck for my vehicle and had to arrange with another company,refused to be involved in the third party claim and advised me to use accident claim companies,tried to hoodwink me by sending me emails that say I have decided not to use them for my third party claim and I could be liable for some charges-when they are the ones that said they cannot take on my third party claim,the list of troubles from this terrible company are never ending,avoid avoid at all costs,this company’s insurance is not cheap at all but very expensive in the end and they will run rings around you,when you are in desperate need for help after an accident,they promised to call me back and they never did ,it’s all shambles with this insurance company
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hello, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. If a customer of ours is driving another vehicle and has driving over cars on their policy. then any accident would be covered as a third party, fire or theft. We have this FAQ to explain what is covered under this cover - https://help.1stcentralinsurance.com/kb/FAQ/content/PROD-7555/What-am-I-covered-for-with-third-party-fire-and-theft-insurance. We also have this FAQ that advises our customers about driving other cars - https://help.1stcentralinsurance.com/kb/FAQ/content/PROD-7627/Does-my-policy-cover-me-to-drive-other-cars?query=driving%20other%20cars. If your wife is covered on the other car, then that insurance can look after this. If you require any clarification, please speak to our team on 0333 043 2022 or speak to us on web chat which can be found on our website. We’re here to help from Mon-Fri: 9am to 6pm. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Have been a customer of 1st central for a few years now. Recently inhereted a new car, changed my policy on line as requested and ended up with two insurance policies, one for new car and one for car I have sold. Then had to pay £91 to cancel this policy and £53 for the new policy. Not a happy customer
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Ni Nicola, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. I can see that a new policy was set up for your new vehicle, rather than a change of vehicle via Your Account. Unfortunately, this means that two policies would be set up at that time. If there’s anything you’d like us to look into for you, please contact us by sending an email to customer.relations@1stcentral.co.uk. Please include your policy number and details of what’s gone wrong, and we’ll see if we can put things right. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
INSURANCE COMANY! Had nothing but trouble with this company from start to finish, Nothing is good enough even after been in touch with my old car insurance company for my no claims discount emailing and texting my phone demanding my no claims or the insurance would be cancelled! wants proof of your driving licence card front and back its a right fares to say the least. Payed my car insurance in full as it was one of the cheapest quotes I have had but believe me don't be sucked in Iike I have its totally not worth the hassle.. Thought right the have all my details everything is all above board the shouldn't hassle me no more but no how wrong was I the sent me an email stating that I needed to pay an extra £179.00 plus administration costs , so rung them up to get through to a rude man who wasn't helpful at all asked him why I had to pay the extra his response was you have changed some details on your online account which was the year I past my driving test my mistake yes and also I forgot to add my points too so all this results in been changed £179.00 for been honest and changing the details. After paying the insurance in full I have now left myself financially short of money so asked if I could pay monthly even thou I wasn't happy with paying the 179 and to my shock straight answer NO ! WHY can't I pay monthly his response was because you have payed the insurance in full you can't pay monthly 😡 even though there page saying if you are struggling to make a payment please phone to chat to our friendly staff🤣😡 PLEASE DONT BOTHER IT WILL COST YOU MORE IN LONG RUN..
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Tracey, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear about your experience with us. Unfortunately, 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. This is the price we would've offered at the time if all of the details were as they are now. Please speak to our team on 0333 043 2088 or speak to us on webchat which can be found on our website. They can discuss the additional premium if you need any assistance. We’re here to help from Mon-Fri: 8am to 8pm, Sat: 9am to 5pm, Sun: 10am to 2pm. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
I hate leaving bad reviews but honestly this is the worst company I have ever dealt with please be careful pay a bit more for a reputable Insurance. I am 75 years old and thought I may buy a car got a quote and decided to take out a policy. The car fell through so contacted to cancel was happy to lose the first month that’s only fair, was told I could not cancel as I had not sent copy of log book, how would I have that for a car I never bought. I have tried 14 times to cancel and have proof but they won’t budge
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Lynne, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. Let’s see if we can help put this right for you. Just give our team a call on 0333 043 2095. We’re here to help from Mon-Fri: 8am to 8pm, Sat: 9am to 5pm, Sun: 10am to 2pm. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Not good reports at all. Not good treatment.
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Benjamin, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. We’ll use your comments to help improve our service and training for our agents. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
ABSOLUTELY APPALLING ONCE IT GOT PAST THE TAKING MY MONEY STAGE. TOOK 3 YEARS TO SETTLE A CLAIM AS CLAIM HANDLERS ARE LAZY AND INCOMPETENT
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Luana, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. Unfortunately, some claims can take longer than others. It depends on the circumstances of the claim, as well as any third party involved. if there's anything you'd like us to look into. Please contact us on customer.relations@1stcentral.co.uk with your policy number and a summary of your experience similar to your review and we will look into it. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Great until there is an issue, at times where most peoples finances aren’t great does this company feel it’s acceptable to charge a £15 late payment fee when I want to pay today 25th may by payment is due 25th may I can understand if I didn’t want to pay and just missed it, but not when I’m here stressed out wanting to pay I’m on maternity times are hard as it is! Had card issues and issued a new one and want to use that why can’t you just help people. There is no need for any of this hassle. Spent all day trying to pay trying to speak to someone and Nicky most unhelpful advisor as iv had issues with them before, everyone is struggling financially no other companies charge this unless the day has passed and a late fee occurs but I’m here trying to pay and they don’t care, they don’t care I have a family to feed I literally only have my insurance money available in my bank right now. I’m shocked I really can’t believe this awful company please they may be the cheapest but go for a more reputable understanding company because imagine what making a claim would be like I would dread to think.
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Tara, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. We would like to look into this further for you to help resolve this, please send an email to customer.relations@1stcentral.co.uk with your policy number a summary of your experience similar to your review and we will look into it. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
Terrible customer service. Very unhelpful. Won’t be using these people again and wouldn’t recommend anyone else.
Helpful Report
Posted 3 years ago
Hi Mark, Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear on this occasion your experience with us hasn’t been as positive as we’d hoped it would be. We’ll use your comments to help improve our service and training for our agents. Ashley
Posted 3 years ago
1st CENTRAL is rated 3.9 based on 5,237 reviews