Car insurance giant Direct Line has said it's seen the number of claims fall 70% during the coronavirus lockdown, but it won't be issuing automatic rebates to customers.
The drop in claims should save the firm around £60million in payouts, rivals have calculated.
But while other insurance providers have said they will hand back money to everyone automatically, Direct Line told Mirror Money it will only do so if people get in contact and explain why they deserve it.
A spokeswoman for Direct Line told Mirror Money: "Our intention is to always do what’s right by our customers and ensure they have good value.
"We don’t want to benefit financially from the lockdown period and we’ve introduced a range of support measures to help our customers, for example in motor, if customers are not using their vehicles, then they should call us to discuss their individual circumstances so that we can provide them with the best option during this difficult period."
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LV=, by contrast, has set up a £30million fund for any of its customers experiencing difficulties financially, whether they drive less or not.
Chief executive Steve Treloar said: “We spent a lot of time thinking about the best way to help customers and this enables us to give between £20 - £50, which to some families will make a real difference. In taking this approach, we can do more for those who need help the most.”
The money is available to people who haven't yet received the 80% payment scheme from their employer, are self-employed and are unable to work or trade because of coronavirus, and haven’t yet received the 80% payment scheme via the government or were made unemployed at any point after 1 March 2020.
So far the only company offering automatic car insurance refunds in the UK is Admiral - saying it will hand people £25 back, per policy, thanks to the savings it's making.
In total, that means £110million returned to drivers of the 4.4million vehicles insured with Admiral.
"Refunds will be issued by 31 May 2020 and will be credited to the current payment method Admiral has on file for customers," a spokeswoman told Mirror Money.
James Blackham, chief executive of pay-as-you-drive firm By Miles, said: “Direct Line stated they saw a 70% reduction in claims in April, which we’ve calculated adds up to a Covid-19 windfall profit of £60million.
"A profit that is a direct result of fewer cars on the road, due to people being instructed to stay home during lockdown."
“Their offer to refund premiums to motor insurance customers who contact the insurer directly asking to update their mileage is not enough.
"Refunds should be automatic and based on reduced usage month by month, not reliant on customers recalculating and asking to update their annual mileage."
