I took out a car insurance policy September '16 as they were the cheapest on a comparison site, paying by monthly Direct Debit. 2 months in and they charged me (and thousands others apparently) 2x the monthly amount in 1 month. They then refunded both of these amounts and issued me with a final notice that my policy was to be cancelled due to non-payment! No prior warnings, no correspondence regarding their payment error just a letter threatening to cancel my policy. I called 1st Central to discuss the matter, the person I spoke to was lovely, she told be about the issue they had with their payment systems, apologized on their behalf, and set up a new policy whereby the 'missing' payment would be spread across the remainder of the term, which I did. Then, In December I noticed that my monthly payment hadn't left my account. I checked the MID website to see If I was still insured and to my shock my policy had been cancelled on 7th December! I'd been driving uninsured for over 2 weeks without any correspondence from 1st Central regarding any of this! I was horrified, I called them immediately and discussed the matter. Again they were apologetic, insisted it was a system error on their behalf and that If I paid Decembers installment my policy would be reinstated. I don't like hassle in my life, so I paid Decembers installment, had my policy reinstated and thought that must be the end of it. However, I received an email today from a collection agency stating that they have been instructed to collect £173 from myself on behalf of 1st Central for missing payments, and a cancellation fee. Un-be-lievable. I check my policy online and nowhere does it mention any outstanding balances, so I call 1st Central for an explanation as to why a debt file had been created in my name, to which they had no idea. I've never met such an incompetent business in my entire life. From taking double payments, out-of-the-blue threats to cancel my policy with no substance, to actually cancelling my policy without my knowledge, to selling a false debt in my name to a collection agency! And I've only been a customer for 6 months! I'm still waiting to hear what their response is regarding the debt collection agency, however the FCA and the Financial Ombudsman will be getting involved from my behalf. If you're reading this and pondering taking a policy with 1st Central - Don't. go elsewhere, anywhere, but don't trust these guys. Trust me