I was looking on another Forum where a poster had asked for insurance recommendations,a forum member member posted that AXA had a good record for claim handling!
Car insurance is an absolute mine-field, and largely a matter of luck, I feel. You never know how good (or bad) any company is at claims handling until you have to claim. Then what is "good claims handling"? Some may be very quick at dealing with the claim, but give you a ridiculous settlement figure, whereas others may take an age but give you a much better settlement.
When I had my Mazda Bongo stolen back in 2009, my insurers settled quite quickly, but the figure they gave me was ridiculous and they wouldn't budge. My vehicle was in very good condition, used daily, and an excellent runner. The best I could have bought with the settlement they gave me, assuming I wanted another Bongo, would have been a rusting wreck with a clapped-out engine, and needing a major restoration! Their argument when I queried their figures? We don't know how good your stolen one was!
Quote: Originally posted by Colin21 on 06/5/2019
Car insurance is an absolute mine-field, and largely a matter of luck, I feel. You never know how good (or bad) any company is at claims handling until you have to claim. Then what is "good claims handling"? Some may be very quick at dealing with the claim, but give you a ridiculous settlement figure, whereas others may take an age but give you a much better settlement.
When I had my Mazda Bongo stolen back in 2009, my insurers settled quite quickly, but the figure they gave me was ridiculous and they wouldn't budge. My vehicle was in very good condition, used daily, and an excellent runner. The best I could have bought with the settlement they gave me, assuming I wanted another Bongo, would have been a rusting wreck with a clapped-out engine, and needing a major restoration! Their argument when I queried their figures? We don't know how good your stolen one was!
If you think your car is worth more than the average book value for its age and mileage then you need "agreed value" specialist insurance. There is nothing wrong with their argument, if you hadn't agreed a value with them when you took the insurance out what else can they go apart from book value
Not necessarily, richard0805, though if you feel you have a car worth more than book value, it's the best way to go. However, when my Freelander was written off (was cut out of car), I refused the offer point blank for the very simple reason, the only damage to the vehicle was bodywork - mechanically it was all sound and in fact the vehicle was driven out of the location it landed in. It was a dual fuel vehicle plus I'd just had four new tyres put on it. I did some checking on what firms like Breakers Yard would get for various parts and emailed what I'd found to the insurers. A couple of days later, I had a vastly increased offer.
------------- " When I die I don`t want my life to flash before me in an instant, I want it to be a 3 hour epic !"
i informed my insurance that i would be bypassing them and going straight to the underwriters fraud dept when i was presented with a grossly inflated claim. they took one look at it and agreed.
the underwriters have been fantastic, forensic vehicle examiners, barristers and all. so much so that the solicitors for the other side (who are known in the industry as being very aggressive) are trying to wait for the statute of limitations to almost run out in the hope they can sneak it through court with a non appearance defence.
Agreed value insurance is very hard to get, as it's only really for classic vehicles that are not used on a daily basis. My Bongo was my everyday (only) transport, and I doubt whether I could have got agreed value on it. If I could I suspect it would have been hideously expensive.
This so-called "book value" is a massive rip-off in my opinion. Surely the main reason for having insurance, apart from the legal obligation, is so that if your vehicle gets written off you are able to replace it like for like. The "book value" of most vehicles is often way below what a similar replacement would cost. At the time a Bongo in similar condition to mine would have cost me at least £4,500, (showroom condition ones were fetching around £10,000) but if I remember right all I got from the insurers was around £3,000, and may even have been less. It was true that you could buy another for what they gave me, but I doubt whether it would have been driveable. If it was, it would almost certainly have needed considerable work to bring it up to scratch and get it through an MOT. Mine had recently passed its MOT and needed nothing whatsoever doing to it for it to be used daily.
In my opinion you should be no worse off than you were before the incident, whatever it was. Surely that is the whole purpose of insurance? Doesn't work that way though.
the government passes a law that says you MUST be insured, then allows private companies to grant that insurance.
if it is law, then the government should provide basic third party cover at an agreed price, and if you want anything else, like fully comp, then it is up to the individual to arrange.
Thinking about what I said above, maybe all vehicle insurance should be on an agreed value basis, and do away with this so-called "book value" altogether. You agree a figure with the insurers, pay a premium accordingly, and that is the figure they pay out in the event of a write-off or stolen vehicle claim?
Why should you be worse off just because the insurer decides your vehicle was worth much less than its replacement cost? I know from experience that having a vehicle stolen costs a lot more than simply the cost of its replacement. Being without a vehicle is expensive, then there are the costs associated with sourcing a replacement, such as travelling on public transport to view numerous unsuitable vehicles, and maybe having to get taxis to places you would normally have been able to visit using your own car. If I had been able to I would have put in a claim for at least £500 for the inconvenience and costs involved in being without my vehicle for several weeks, on top of the cost of its replacement!
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Car insurance
