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Motor Insurance warning!

SoundAsa£SoundAsa£
edited May 2012 in Not Sports Related
I was talking with a friend of mine from Swansea last night and she told me of her latest sad plight with an insurance company.
She was full comp and ran into the back of someone at a roundabout (you know the one where you're looking to the right and for no accountable reason the car in front stops when there's no other vehicle on the roundabout!) and has written her car off!
She was comfortable in the knowledge that she was fully comp....however to her horror she now learns that she wasn't covered for journeys to and from work.....she's a teacher!
Ouch....the poor lass is distraught.......the other vehicle is also very badly damaged.
Advice to you all....check to see if this applies to your goodself, I can imagine a fair few folk might well have overlooked this and just might get caught out!
We all know how slippery insurance companies can be....so be warned!
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Comments

  • Brendan_O_ConnellBrendan_O_Connell
    (you know the one where you're looking to the right and for no accountable reason the car in front stops when there's no other vehicle on the roundabout!)
    My bloody missus does that. Annoys the f**k out of me !! Only a matter of time before she gets rammed from behind (so to speak) !!

  • SwisdomSwisdom
    When you do your insurance renewal they always ask what use you require - Social, Domestic, Pleasure, Commuting. Sorry but that's a pretty fundamental aspect of insurance. Theoretically if you are commuting you are using the road at the same time as a large number of users hence your risk (and therefore premium) is greater.

    The tricky one is Business Use because insurance companies don't tend to dwell on asking for that and if you have staff using their own car for business use they are probably not going to be covered. Sadly the insurance documents are rather ambiguous too.
  • Saga LoutSaga Lout
    When you take out insurance you need to be very clear to the company how you intend to use the vehicle. I think this is a problem with arranging insurance online - if you use a broker you have the opportunity to discuss your needs with someone who knows what they're talking about. I am not an insurance broker by the way.
  • PlaaayerPlaaayer
    edited May 2012
    It's not a new thing?

    Without wanting to sound harsh she hasn't read the insurance properly and is obviously must have ticked social domestic and pleasure rather than social domestic pleasure and commuting definition
  • WSSWSS
    Another thing is to remember to look in front of you rather than the right when approaching a roundabout just in case a car has stopped...
  • ElthamaddickElthamaddick
    not alot you can do if you tick the 'social, domestic and pleasure' box only and then drive it to work...
  • WheresmeticketWheresmeticket
    Thanks for the heads up Soundas, I will check mine, I don't remember being asked.
  • tangoflashtangoflash
    It's not a new thing?

    Without wanting to sound harsh she hasn't read the insurance properly and is obviously must have tic as social domestic and pleasure rather than social domestic pleasure and commuting definition
    This. I've been driving since 87 and it's definitely always been around since then. Many people fail to declare that they use the vehicle for commuting purely to keep the policy as cheap as possible ( I know, I've done so in the past). Unfortunately, if this is what she's done, she's taken the risk and come unstuck.
  • LenGloverLenGlover
    edited May 2012
    Direct Line told me a few years ago that "social, domestic and pleasure" included travel to and from work but did NOT include travel on the employer's business once at work. For that additional business cover is needed.

    Insurance companies are thieving bastards however and have doubtless changed it without telling anybody.

    I have business cover myself so have no personal axe to grind. I do however have a pathological hatred of sharp practice and dishonesty in both business and personal matters.

    Insurance Companies are deliberately opaque in their wording which enables them to wriggle out of their responsibilities safe in the knowledge that firstly the Financial Ombudsman will take forever and generally find in their favour for reasons of self- preservation since they, banks etc pay for it and secondly most ordinary punters are unable to afford to take the necessary legal action to bring the slippery bastards to account!
  • SoundAsa£SoundAsa£
    edited May 2012
    Another thing is to remember to look in front of you rather than the right when approaching a roundabout just in case a car has stopped...
    Can honestly say I have done this....about 20 years ago I ran into the back of a motor bike in Maidenhead who only seconds earlier had gone flying past me....I imagined he'd have been long gone....instead he came to a complete stop....not another vehicle in sight and wallop!!!
    Wrote off his bike and badly damaged my car (Citroen Safari)....thank god he walked away with hardly as much as a scratch.
    Probably just about the most common motoring accident there is.

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  • LenGloverLenGlover
    Another thing is to remember to look in front of you rather than the right when approaching a roundabout just in case a car has stopped...
    Absolutely right. It seems to be de rigeur these days not to signal left when turning off a roundabout therefore you have to stop to be sure only to then see the car turn left at the previous exit!
  • smiffyboysmiffyboy
    I'm not being funny but I take it she has told them that she was driving to work.
  • ElthamaddickElthamaddick
    Another thing is to remember to look in front of you rather than the right when approaching a roundabout just in case a car has stopped...
    I've done this and hit someone before, absolutely nothing coming round the roundabout and they just stopped dead in their tracks

  • SoundAsa£SoundAsa£
    edited May 2012
    I'm not being funny but I take it she has told them that she was driving to work.
    Yes smiffy...she never gave it a second thought, she simply thought that as she was full comp she'd be covered.

  • golfaddickgolfaddick
    Having not sold car insurance since 1999 then things might well have changed, but pre-2000 the "social , domestic & pleasure" clause meant you could use it to get to & from work, but as Len says, you coudn't use it for work purposes.

    Are you sure they have changed it or is someone mis-understanding what the car was being used for ???

    I have business use on mine, but can not ever knowling been asked the to & from work nit instead !!
  • ellisaddickellisaddick
    I used to work in insurance and social domestic and pleasure included to and from your permanent place of business, if however she was at various schools as a cover teacher then that would have been excluded.
  • smiffyboysmiffyboy
    Read the paperwork that came when she took out the policy and it might outline what social domestic and pleasure represents or look up on the company's website, failing that has she sought legal advice.
  • SoundAsa£SoundAsa£
    edited May 2012
    Read the paperwork that came when she took out the policy and it might outline what social domestic and pleasure represents or look up on the company's website, failing that has she sought legal advice.
    Only happened a couple of days back....so not sure what she's planning...poor lass is really upset.
    She hasn't received anything in writing as yet and was given this info over the phone but she categoricaly 'was' informed that it did not cover her for journeys to and from her place of work.
    I think we need to remember that not all insurance companies nowadays have the same set of clear cut clauses in their cover re to and from work, business or social and domestic usage and the wording can be somewhat ambiguous.
    If there's a loophole they'll jump through it that's for sure.


  • LenGloverLenGlover
    edited May 2012
    Just googled this as my conversation, as I said, was some years ago.

    However it appears that SDP DOES still include commuting to and from a permanent workplace

    http://faqs.directline.com/help/car-insurance/commuting

    I guess other companies might be different but worth arguing the toss in my view and quoting this since it shows that it is not unreasonable to assume that you are covered travelling to and from work.

    Bournemouth will probably know more but I would have thought that Trading Standards should dictate common insurance definitions.
  • North Lower NeilNorth Lower Neil
    90% of companies have SD&P, and SD&P plus commuting, two different things priced differently.
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  • colthe3rdcolthe3rd
    90% of companies have SD&P, and SD&P plus commuting, two different things priced differently.
    Exactly, surely even if you do it online there is a drop down box or at least a selection of the two, the fact one of them says the word "commuting" should give the person an idea that if they use their car to get to work they would need that option as well.
  • southamptonaddicksouthamptonaddick
    Hopefully not too off topic but you're now asked how many miles you do a year.

    How do they check if you say 10k but you do 20k?
  • randy andyrandy andy
    They ask for you car's approximate mileage. In the event of an accident, they'll get the accident repair centre to check the current mileage. Also your car's mileage will be on your MOT, so in the case of a big claim that they don't feel like paying it's easy enough to get current mileage and the mileage from the last MOT.
  • SoundAsa£SoundAsa£
    Hopefully not too off topic but you're now asked how many miles you do a year.

    How do they check if you say 10k but you do 20k?
    Just have an accident and the crafty buggers will find out (looking at MOT certificate maybe?)...you can bet on that!

  • southamptonaddicksouthamptonaddick
    But randy they didn't ask the mileage which is why I wondered how they checked.

    I have never been asked to confirm approximate mileage by any insurance company.
  • ellisaddickellisaddick
    As i said if she has a permanent place of business she has an argument that can be put to underwriters
  • randy andyrandy andy
    But randy they didn't ask the mileage which is why I wondered how they checked.

    I have never been asked to confirm approximate mileage by any insurance company.
    I imagine that in these days of digital storage of MOTs they don't need to ask you any more, they can get the info any time they like. They love it if you make a mistake when applying for a policy, as it gives them a free out if/when you make a claim. So if you ring them up and say you do 10k a year, and they can see you do double that according to the recent MOTs on your car, then it's happy days for them as they can collect your premium and only have to pay out if you have an accident in the first 6 months (and they'd probably argue the don't have to pay out as extrapolating your mileage to date they can see you are going to exceed your allowance).

  • C.Walsh'sLoveChildC.Walsh'sLoveChild
    I have also done this. The daft cow in front pulled away then stopped half way on the roundabout for no good reason.
  • colthe3rdcolthe3rd
    But randy they didn't ask the mileage which is why I wondered how they checked.

    I have never been asked to confirm approximate mileage by any insurance company.
    I imagine that in these days of digital storage of MOTs they don't need to ask you any more, they can get the info any time they like. They love it if you make a mistake when applying for a policy, as it gives them a free out if/when you make a claim. So if you ring them up and say you do 10k a year, and they can see you do double that according to the recent MOTs on your car, then it's happy days for them as they can collect your premium and only have to pay out if you have an accident in the first 6 months (and they'd probably argue the don't have to pay out as extrapolating your mileage to date they can see you are going to exceed your allowance).

    But then on the other hand if people enter in the correct information then there isn't a problem
  • bingaddickbingaddick
    I was an insurance broker for twenty years. I haven't been one since 1997.

    There always were several types of certificates/cover

    1. Social Domestic and Pleasure
    2. Social Domestic and Pleasure including commuting
    3. Social Domestic Pleasure and Business
    4. Social Domestic Pleasure and Business including the carriage of goods for hire and reward
    5. Social Domestic Pleasure and Business including the carriage of passengers for hire and reward

    Most if not all certainly used to restrict cover other than for S, D & P to the policyholder in person. Some were written that commuting, or business (such as it was offered) was permitted for the policyholder and spouse for their respective businesses.

    Most of the major insurers used give commuting as standard within their S, D & P cover for no extra cost. Some Lloyds Policies or schemes used to specifically restrict to 1.

    It is always best to check these things. Signing up on line is lovely and easy but full of potential traps. It seems to me more likely to be full of restrictions now because comparison sites are about finding the cheapest policy.

    Remember that cheapest is often the headline for poor quality or restrictive cover.

    Can I also suggest that those who carry the tools of their trade around with them should check that their policy/certificate covers them for that.
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