Derren Brown confounded by ‘mystifying’ insurance renewal trick

Illusionist Derren Brown has admitted to being ‘totally hoodwinked’ into paying a higher price for reduced cover when he renewed his home insurance – despite never making a claim. Brown claimed the experience left him ‘disorientated and embarrassed’ but equally with a sense of ‘awe and admiration’, which is why he’s nominated the trick for recognition by the Magic Circle.

‘The insurance companies are incredibly deft and I’m still trying to work out how they pulled this off,’ exclaimed Brown, who is no longer covered for water damage or acts of hedonism. ‘I’m not entirely sure, but I think I’m paying somewhere in the region of £23 more a month, for a policy that now only covers three rooms in my house.’

By use of arcane incantations in a strange language, Brown believes he was channelled into thinking that a loyalty discount would somehow decrease his premium. ‘It’s a classic ruse,’ he explained. ‘By using words normally associated with positive outcomes, fond memories or adequate cover for electrical goods, I was led to commit totally to the illusion that the Insurance industry had my interests at heart. But while they distracted me with a picture of Iggy Pop in purple underpants, it seems they’d secretly emptied my wallet.’

‘How the hell did they do that?’

The new magic trick has been widely adopted by others. ‘It’s an incredibly versatile ruse,’ said Brown. ‘The classic ‘false choice’ trick has been added by my electricity supplier who phoned me and got me to pick from a full pack of 52 tariffs. I should have guessed that the one with ‘value’ in the name would be the most expensive. But worse than feeling duped, I felt so humiliated when I found out they’d recorded it and were showing it to others ‘for training purposes’.’

Brown thinks the key to the magic may lie in barely visible medium grey small print on a light grey background. ‘Feint isn’t the word, it’s almost imperceptible, especially when read out in an foreign accent. I’ve got a lot of admiration for the traditional fakirs who are brilliant at levitating direct debits, but when it comes to the Indian roped-in trick, I’m at a complete and utter loss.”

Some cutting-edge illusionists have already adapted the black art for television. ‘This is an exciting development; by hiding your choice in a baffling range of packages, hardly anyone knows exactly how much these TV executives are sneakily taking from you and hiding up their sleeves. They’ve even tricked millions of people into paying an extra £10 a month to use a digibox that they’ve already paid for once. Brilliant! But then, when it comes to pushing an audience’s credulity to breaking point, Sky really is the limit.”

Hat-tip to JohnA

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