Belairdirect Auto Insurance Reviews

I loved having Belair as an insurance provider, for almost 4 years. They were easy to talk to and friendly, their rates were great. Then, our vehicle was broken into, so we made a claim. It was like dealing with a different company. They were stingy on the coverage and tried not to have to pay for much, which was a car rental and glass. We made them cover it, as full coverage was our plan, they did, then forced us to find another insurance company. Nice. Never again.

Belair Direct advertises that "your first claim will not affect your rates". That's not true.

My first (and only) claim. I was parked on the street. Someone backed out of a laneway, hit my car, and took off. The incident was captured on a restaurant's surveillance cameras, but we were unable to get a licence plate number from the video.

I submitted a claim to Belair Direct, and almost immediately, they responded, saying this was an "At Fault" accident. (I wasn't even in the car, so it puzzled me how I was "at fault".) But the people I spoke with were adamant, and they were quick to point out that my "rates would go up" because of this accident. (What happened to their advertised statement of "your first accident will be forgiven"??)

As it turned out, I had to go to the police reporting center so that the accident could be "evidenced" as being a "hit and run". How was I to know? I don't get into accidents on a regular basis, so I'm not instinctually familiar with the process. But once I did this, and had it submitted to Belair, I received a letter saying that my rates would not change.

The bottom line is that Belair was "gung ho" to increase my rates based on this "first accident claim". You might say I was held "guilty without jury". They had the virtual noose out before I was able to even attest to my case. I was "attacked" by this company before my situation was heard.

In my opinion, this is despicably poor treatment by an insurance company, especially given the nature of their advertisements. Given the way I was treated, their advertisement of "your first accident will be forgiven" is a total lie. I would not do business with this company given their dishonest nature.

I have been with belair for 10 years. When I have just joined they did offer competitive rate for my car, but were gradually increasing it year after year, despite lack of tickets, claims etc, so I am not happy about that part.
Interesting fact is when I had claim they have actually decreased my premium, but given they were raising premium every time I had no claims I find it quite logical.

When I got my first and only claim (car was hit on parking lot, I wasn't in car but I have managed to catch the guy and get his insurance info before he drove away) belair shown exceptional customer service.
I was first offered by guy to cover my repair, but then he started pulling back, not returning my calls etc, so I have filed the claim only 6 days after the fact. They said that my situation is quite common and that they will do verification and will proceed. End story: They covered my rental, let me select the body shop of my choice (not that I wanted any particular body shop, but I heard horrible stories about some other insurance companies that send you to particular place). Body shop fixed everything, but delayed by 2 days as they had to repaint few times, but again I did select them myself. The Belair extended rental for 2 more days, no questions.

My experience with them during the claim was exceptionally great. I am sorry to leave belair, but they are just way too expensive now.

I am a 21 y/o new female driver and went with BelAir Direct after a couple of recommendations. I have done a couple comparison quotes with other companies and was not surprised when they gave me a quote for my premium. ($405/month). However, I am reading some pretty bad reviews about them after spending 45 minutes on the phone with them and eventually signing on with them. I hope my experience with them is a decent one and I don't run into any discrepancies. Other than that the girl I spoke with for almost an hour was unbelievably courteous and understanding considering my lack of knowledge on the subject. Any feedback on them would be appreciated :)