# Silly Exclusion



## s2kpaul (Jul 27, 2006)

Just had my ins today and was reading the policy book. This jumped out at me with WTF !!! :wall:

"loss or damage in respect to theft may be excluded unless between the hours of 10pm -7am the car is parked at your home address" blah blah 

WHat if im on holiday or at the folks or girlfriend or a party etc etc That totally unreasonable.


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

Not seen that before, what section of the policy is that in?

The word "may" suggests that other criteria will form part of any reasoning for the exclusion.


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## s2kpaul (Jul 27, 2006)

Its on a photcopy of the policy, i need words with them as i feel its totally unreasonable request.


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

What section of the policy is it in? Is it under "theft" or another part?

Can you scan and put up a copy of the page?


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## s2kpaul (Jul 27, 2006)




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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

I've had a look at the Chaucer wordings and this only applies to their "Hi Marque" product, which is what you must have.

I reckon this will only apply if your insurance policy is actually endorsed with the overnight garaging warranty (they may require this for some high risk or desirable cars) and does not apply to every policy they issue, hence the "may" used in the keyfacts document you have.

This is the full policy - http://www.chaucer-insurance.co.uk/...literature/1PRIVATECARPOLICYBOOKCIEP04104.pdf and the endorsement HM3 is on page 39.

By my reckoning if you don't have the HM3 endorsement, you will be fine. If you do have the HM3 endorsement, then the warranty will apply. Best check with your own Broker/Insurer to be sure though and clarify any exclusions or restrictions.


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## s2kpaul (Jul 27, 2006)

Thanks for your time looking over it. Still waiting to get hold of them atm to check.


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## SteveOC (May 26, 2007)

I just read the document you posted the scan of (with difficulty), and my guess is that they are trying to say that the exclusion only applies if the vehicle is normally parked overnight 'within one half mile radius' of your home address based on the 'and' and the word 'kept', and not in a building at an address declared on the policy.

It sounds to me a bit like the AA/RAC exclusion for vehicles not covered by Homestart - to combat instances where people would push the car down the road and then claim on a Roadside Recovery only policy. 

I'm guessing that policy states that the vehicle is normally kept in a garage at your home address? If so, this may have reduced your premium, and some people will state this to reduce their premium when in fact the car is parked at the roadside.

It is fairly common on motorcyle policies where the policyholder has declared that a bike is garaged, and I have seen some where effectively you can't leave the bike on the drive after dark (even in Winter - i.e. after 4PM) or the insurance won't cover you for theft.

Of course you should be covered when away from home - but I do think that the wording may be misleading.

Naturally you would be advised to get something in writing clarifying this.

Steve O.


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

That's exactly it SteveOC.

If they have applied the garaging warranty (HM3) then it will be a condition that vehicle must be garaged overnight. If it is parked up within a half mile radius of the agreed garaging address and not actually garaged, then it will not be covered if stolen overnight.

If parked up more than half a mile away, then the exclusion will not apply. 

The purpose of this is to ensure that when at home, the theft risk is minimised by ensuring you garage it each and every evening. It's clearer in the actual policy booklet i posted the link to.

If your vehicle is not garaged overnight for any reason (ie away on holiday or visiting friends) and the policy has been endorsed with HM3, as long as you are more than half a mile away from the declared garaging address, then theft cover should apply.


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## s2kpaul (Jul 27, 2006)

okay guys i did manage to get hold of them, and you are both very correct. From the sound of the bloke he must of had a few calls regarding it. lol Its only active if the HM3 endorsement is on the policy schedule, thankfully this doesnt regard me as it is not listed on my schedule. I would imgaine as you mentioned only concerns people with expensive cars listed as garaged.


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## SteveOC (May 26, 2007)

It does make you wonder what the situation is if you have the endorsement on the policy, and, like me for instance you have a pub less than half a mile away that serves food, and if, like me you drive there if it is raining, as we rarely leave the pub before 10pm.

I think that in the event of a claim, my argument would centre around the use of the word 'kept' rather than 'parked' as 'kept' implies that the vehicle is normally or habitually parked there, whilst 'parked' can cover parking on any number of occasions (from 1 to many). Of course you could also argue that stopping and parking at a pub en-route back to home means that you are still 'in transit' to where the vehicle is actually 'kept'.

Glad you got it all sorted now though. 

I recall hearing on more than 1 occasion of stories where people had their bikes nicked from the driveway after a ride whilst they went indoors to open the garage/gate from the inside or to remove their gear and the insurance not wanting to pay out because it was after dark and there was a similar clause.

Steve O.


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## s2kpaul (Jul 27, 2006)

Never heard of any wording like that before. Is it new or a normally mega small print thing. ? 

I do remember my friend had his boxer stolen off his drive. After alot of hassle the ins decided because he left his window on his house open allowing the offender to gain entry and steal the keys they wouldnt pay.


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## SteveOC (May 26, 2007)

s2kpaul said:


> Never heard of any wording like that before. Is it new or a normally mega small print thing. ?
> 
> I do remember my friend had his boxer stolen off his drive. After alot of hassle the ins decided because he left his window on his house open allowing the offender to gain entry and steal the keys they wouldnt pay.


I recall hearing stories a few years back when I used to inhabit bike forums mainly, before posting on here. I think that there even used to be 'leaflets' in MCN about making sure you weren't followed home and not leaving your bike unattended on your driveway.

When getting online quotes, I adjust the quotes to see if there is any difference in the premium between leaving the car on the drive and garaging it. In some cases the premium is the same (I guess it depends on the postcode area and theft risk) in which case I opt for the former which gives me the option of leaving the car out of the garage if I need to store stuff (like now), or even to just paint the floor, without worrying about not being covered by my insurance.

Steve O.


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## abbotsmike (Jun 5, 2010)

I have considered various methods of preventing theft. My car, for example, won't start without the clocks/speedo unit connected. It only takes 5 minutes and 8-10 screws to remove the unit. I'd be tempted if I had to leave the car unattended for a long period of time (such as a holiday)


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