I was recently comparing car insurance products and used an online comparison site (confused.com) one policy (from the AA) looked ok, but before I clicked through to more information I called my existing provider (Aviva) to see if they could match / better the price.
Whilst on the telephone to Aviva, the AA called and said ‘we know you’re looking at our quote online and wonder if you want to go ahead?’
Wow! This really spooked me – I’m being contacted before I’ve even finished looking. What’s really worrying is that someone far away has all my details and even through I’m not yet a customer, they have tracked me down! Very, very scary. Like the shop assistant that pounces on you as you enter the doorway – we run away. Not a great marketing model.
Interesting privacy policy on Confused.com’s website:
Disclosure of information
In order to provide our services we need to disclose the information you entered into Confused.com to our panel of service partners, and also to their appointed representatives and to intermediaries. This information is necessary to provide you with the quotations you have requested. All personal information will be held in strictest confidence and used only for the purposes of retrieving quotes, with certain caveats as described below.
We may also use your data to review and analyse market trends and to track sales data. Where you have come to our website by clicking on a price comparison service button on another site, we will supply information about the quotations you have obtained and any policies you obtain to that site. Unless you tell them otherwise, they may contact you by post, telephone, email or SMS to promote their products and services. If you do not wish to be contacted in this way, you need to let them know by clicking on the ‘unsubscribe’ button on their website
- It does not say that I will receive a chasing phone call from your panel of service partners whilst I am in the process of considering. At this stage I am NOT a customer.
- AA now have my details (as may others) and I have NOT given my permission for them to call me.
- There was no opportunity to unsubscribe or ‘tell them otherwise’ as I did not check through to a partners’ website. So how do I do this?
Have you been spooked or stalked whilst shopping or comparing the market online? Do let us know!
Perhaps I should have tried the meerkats ;)
