Bad customer service (Dent and scratches) / value added product

I am placing this complaint on record to warn other consumers about what I consider to be bad faith claims handling and procedurally unfair conduct by Budget Insurance.

I lodged a minor dent, and scratches claim on my black Mercedes-Benz GLC 43 AMG on 08 December 2025, covered up to R5,000.00. This should have been a routine claim. Instead, Budget Insurance has subjected me to delays, shifting requirements, and unreasonable demands that appear calculated to frustrate and discourage settlement.

From the outset, Budget Insurance failed to follow through on their own processes. I was promised a WhatsApp message to submit photos of the damage this was not sent, forcing me to follow up in writing on 10 December 2025. Only on 11 December 2025 did they finally send the WhatsApp, after which I immediately submitted all required documents.

On 12 December 2025, Budget Insurance issued their own assessment of R12,000.00 and instructed me to obtain my own quotation. I comp**** fully and submitted a quotation from an approved panel beater for R7,009.25 on 18 December 2025. Receipt was confirmed telephonically. Only after full compliance did Budget Insurance introduce a new and previously undisclosed requirement: that I must provide an invoice from a prior claim dating back to April 2021. This condition was never mentioned at the start of the claim and was clearly raised retrospectively, which is procedurally unfair and contrary to reasonable insurance practice.

When I requested Budget Insurance to provide the quotation, they re**** on settle the April 2021 claim, so that I could identify and trace the service provider who carried out those repairs and to request them for the April 2021 invoice, I was informed that they do not have it. This is deeply concerning. Budget Insurance authorised and paid that claim based on a quotation, yet now claims they no longer possess the very document that formed the basis of settlement. Despite this, they continued collecting premiums for years thereafter and are now attempting to shift the burden onto me by demanding documentation they themselves are unable to produce. This reflects a serious failure in record-keeping, transparency, and good faith claims administration. It is unreasonable, irrational, and arguably ******** for an insurer to: • settle a claim without retaining supporting documentation, • continue collecting premiums without raising compliance concerns, and • later weaponise a historical invoice as a barrier to settling a valid, unrelated claim.

On 22 December 2025, I was informed that my complaint could take up to 15 working days an excessive and unjustified delay under the circumstances This conduct creates a strong impression of claim avoidance, rather than genuine assessment. The fact that this obstruction is being app**** to a small cosmetic claim of R5,000.00 after more than four years of premium payments, makes the situation even more unacceptable.

I escalated the matter to Budget Insurance’s internal disputes department on 19 December 2025 and was promised feedback within 24 hours. This commitment was not honored. Upon follow-up on 22 December2025. In my view, Budget Insurance’s conduct reflects: • lack of transparency • shifting goalposts • failure to act in good faith