Hello all
Our 2007 caravan has been written off. We got a really good deal when we bought it 18 months ago from a guy who needed to sell quickly. We ended up paying less than the market value but I insured it for the market value.
Insurance company now want to know how much we paid for it but I'm reluctant to tell since I believe they will use this as a reason to give us a lower price for the settlement.
Can anyone help who has had experience of dealing with insurance companies?
Thanks
tell them you paid 500 more than the market value,its unlikely they will ask for a receipt or proof of purchase.
its their way of saving money,you paid 3k they will pay out 2700 allowing for deprieciation(example figures)
i wonder how much they would offer if you said you won the caravan in a competition?
------------- Who needs travel agents,we have our static
Their email wanted vendor's details, where and when purchased, price paid and method of payment.
Had a look at the policy docs and can't see where the purchase price is relevant to the market value since my caravan is older than 5 years.
I have emailed them back seeking clarification.
They're probably trying to establish that the 'van did exist, and was lawfully acquired. I strongly suggest you read the section of the policy setting out the basis of settlement.
Irrespective of the price paid, or its value at inception, the maximum they are likely to pay is its value at the time of the loss.
Do some research and find examples of a similar model so that you are ready with a counter proposal, and remember it's a matter for negotiation.
Good luck.
------------- Mike
My advice is worth no more than the price paid for it
Thanks mike. They know it exists because they've seen it.
Policy states "c Market value
If neither a) or b) above apply, we may pay the retail
value of the caravan at the time of the loss or damage
(as shown in the current edition of Glass’s Guide
to Caravan Values), less a deduction to reflect
pre-accident condition."
A and b don't apply because older than 5 years.
When our caravan was written off the insurance company did nog ask anything to do with how much we had paid. The claim was handled very quickly an they offered us thd value stated in glasses price guide, they even sent us a copy of the guide to prove it! We were please as this was £500 more than what we had paid for the van! From other posts there has been re insurance i advice is stick to your guns an dont accept the 1 st offer they make as normally they start low. I think we must have been lucky firstly that no one was injured in the accident but secondly we were able to get a 5 berth to replace our 4
Lots of car insurers try to pay trade value. This is against the financial ombudsman advice which is here: http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/technical_notes/motor-valuation.html#2
If they try to underpay, you may have to go to the ombudsman.
it is likely to be their own internal policy to get a copy of the purchase receipt, this may assit them in any detail of accessories added, like a mover for example - this will also give them a guide to its condition at the time of purchase which they may try to use against you.
Many policies have an underinsurance clause in it, so they are also looking to see if you you paid for enough insurance to protect the value of the van....you will be surprised at the number of people that will try to insure something for less than its true value to reduce the premium, only to find that they didnt buy enough cover. As you insured for market value, you should be OK, but who decided the true value?
as Mike said above, get yourself some values, and see if you can see copy of the glasses guide from a friendly dealer.
Our van was written off last year, and they did ask for the purchase receipt, but it was less than 3 yr old, so a little different as i had NewforOld. At the end of the day, the receipt was irrelivant as they paid out the full value i had insured it for and it was realistic.
Also make sure you have sight of a glasses guide - as my insurer originally offered a market value (thats another story), they said it was "from the glasses guide", but it was a made up number as i had actaully seen the guide at the dealer. So get as much detail as you can independantly to then use your negotiation skills in deciding the final market value.
Of course you could have lost the receipt, as i have!
The ombudsman report is very good and makes me realise that I should get a fair price for the caravan - even if it does mean a bit of a battle to do it.
Actually, when I say it was insured for market value, I mean I guessed at the market value. £8000 for a 2007 Sprite Major probably is a bit on the low side actually.
I know of a Rover dealer who gave his daughter a new Metro which was later written off. I don't know what the final outcome was but they took two years to agree figures because the insurance company wanted to reduce their payout by the amount because they bought it directly from Rover with no dealer markup.
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Topic: Caravan write-off - Insurance help
