MSE News

Motorbike insurer MCE falls into administration - what it means for its 105,000 policyholders

Senior News & Investigations Reporter

Created 24 November 2021 | Edited 25 November 2021

MCE Insurance Company, one of the UK's biggest motorbike insurers, has fallen into administration. The collapse affects around 105,000 policyholders but MoneySavingExpert.com can confirm that customers will continue to be covered until the end of their policy and claims will still be paid.

Update Wednesday, 12 January 2022: MCE Insurance Company (now known as Green Realisations 123) will now no longer honour existing insurance policies until their end date. The company has confirmed it will end all car and van policies at midnight on 14 January 2022 and all motorbike and scooter policies at midnight on 31 January 2022.

You can find out all the information on what's happening and what you'll need to do later in our article published today, 12 January 2022.

MCE Insurance Company sold a range of motor products, including motorbike, private car, and van insurance, through broker MCE Insurance Ltd. Both firms are part of the same parent group but it is only the insurance arm that has gone under, not the brokering service.

The insurance arm went into administration on 19 November, with Andrew Stoneman and Geoff Bouchier of consultancy firm Kroll appointed as joint administrators.

If your policy is coming to an end soon and you're considering switching elsewhere, visit our Cheap Motorbike Insurance, Cheap Van Insurance and Cheap Car Insurance guides for help on how to get the cheapest quote.

What MCE's administration means for policies and claims

Here's what it means for policies taken out prior to 9 November 2021:

Got an MCE Insurance Company policy? You'll continue to be covered until the end of your policy. If you need to claim before the end of your policy, make a change or access your documents you'll need to submit this request to the MCE brokering side of the business. You can contact the brokering side using live chat on its website, by email (info@mceinsurance.com) or by calling 0193 335 1361.
At the end of your policy, MCE UK, the broker, should have or should be able to arrange a new policy for you with a new insurer. So you can still renew, but your insurer will be a different company. Alternatively, you can choose to switch and find a new insurer yourself - see our guides above for help on this.

Got an existing claim in with MCE Insurance Company? This will now be paid by the Financial Compensation Services Scheme (FSCS). You don't need to do anything here as existing claims will be automatically passed onto the FSCS - the compensation fund of last resort for customers of authorised financial services firms. It will get in touch with you. If you have a valid claim, the FSCS will pay this.
For compulsory insurance claims, such as third-party motor claims, you'll get 100% compensation. For other types of claims, you'll get 90%. You can find more information on FSCS protection rules and limits on its website.

If your policy was taken out on or after 9 November 2021:

Any new policies taken out with MCE's brokering arm are underwritten by Sabre Insurance Group and not by the MCE insurance arm. This means you're not affected by the insurance arm going into administration and you'll continue to be covered. In this scenario you can make any policy changes or claims by contacting Sabre. All the details for how to get in contact about a claim or policy change are available on its website.

We were originally told by the FSCS that policies taken out on or after 5 November 2021 would be insured by Sabre. However, we have since been informed by Sabre that it's actually insured policies taken out on or from 9 November 2021.