40% price hike for insurance jobs to cover cost of fitters
The 450-store Carpetright raises fitting prices by 40% for the £30m of insurance jobs it receives each year, the Guardian reports.
Carpetright's head of consumer affairs, Richard Renouf, said that if customers bought a carpet themselves they would pay the fitters directly - cash-in-hand. But in the case of an insurance claim the company has to "offer a complete package including fitting", meaning that the fitter's bill is processed in-house.
Carpetright charges VAT - plus an extra charge "for processing the fitters' invoices". This accounts for the bulk of the extra £1 per square metre that Carpetright charges for insurance fitting.
Malcolm Tarling, of the Association of British Insurers, said he had never heard of this practice, and Direct Line responded by launching an urgent investigation.
"We were not previously aware of this practice and have launched an investigation to find out what effect this may have on customers," says Erica Nelson of Direct Line.
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