So how does this work...?

Insured through the brokerage of a well known lady.

I pay:
Insurance Premium: £106.23
Fee (to broker): £35.00
Discount (from broker?): £15.00
Additional Cover NCD etc: 64.23
TOTAL: £190.46

I sell the bike and cancel the policy exactly halfway through:
Insurance Premium: £106.23 / 2 = £53.11
Broker's fee for cancelling the policy: £50.00
No refund is given in respect of the Additional Cover items.
I get a refund of £3.11

To off-set 6-month's risk and make myself legal:

I have paid: £187.35 (£190.46 - £3.11)
Broker takes £70.00 (£35 - £15 + £50)
Underwriters take £117.35 (the balance)

Add to that the annual dance we have to do in respect of the auto-renewal premium hike farce and insurance brokers still wonder why they are ranked lower than politicians and estate agents.

Think yourself lucky you had some funds to return. It wouldn't have surprised me if they asked for the £50 simply for talking to you, even if your refund was £10.

Only once have I ever had a greater return, and it was their fault. I rang a dedicated insurance line, and I was told it was 'X' which was actually a lot more than elsewhere. The broker went into their system and gave me a new price. However, when I rang back (on the dedicated manufacturers number) I had the reference for the other quote. Turns out they shouldn't have given me the extra quote on that phone line. In the end, they let me pay the cheaper amount, and the broker paid the difference.

When I had to sell, I went to cancel my policy and my refund was based on the total amount, so I got back more than I actually paid