Towbar mounted Cycle Racks.

[simongt]

There was a recent report that a cyclist who had a towbar mounted cycle rack was denied insurance compensation when his car was rear ended because he hadn't reported the towbar addition in his insurance renewal. It's a bit involved, but in short, the insurance coy. had decided that the towbar was a 'modification to the factory spec.' of said car, thus invalidating his insurance. The insurance coy's decision was backed up by the Insurance Ombudsman.
Not all insurance coy's have this condition, although it was in the inevitable 'small print' of this particular one, depending how it's read, so as long as all here are aware of this wee loophole.

 

[wiggydiggy]

Here is the full story: https://road.cc/content/news/cyclist-denied-car-insurance-due-tow-bar-bike-carrier-311579

Having read it the bike mounted carrier is not the issue, but that he chose to insure his car and not declare the towbar to the insurers who have stated they would have refused insurance at the start had he chose to inform them. He could have then chosen a different insurer who would cover him.

Insurer is not at fault here, the driver should have checked with them before buying the policy that he would be covered.

 

[bikingdad90]

it sounded like he didn’t read the policy on the insurers website and just read what was on money supermarket/compare the market sites. Essentially user error for not understanding and then not reading the details of the policy cover.

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

Didn’t someone in the ‘Road CC’ article responses, screenshot the stated insurance companys wording that appears to state that towbars are accepted (& no word of having to declare)

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

Funny how insurance companies always seem to find terms and conditions after a claim

Several years ago I declared - as usual - my ebike in the bicycle section of the house insurance

I read something about ebikes (legal ones) not always being covered so I rang and found it had never been covered - in spite of the make and model being declared
and there was nothing on the policy saying legal ebikes were not covered
If I had climed then they would have refused the claim - and if there was other damage maybe that would have been excluded as well


Since then I have always rung and checked - and every company has said it is OK
(to be fair - the original company says it is OK now as well - so I won;t name them!!)

but they do seem to expect that you will ring and mention every single things in your house/car that might be a little bit different to their version of normal.

I can imagine someone buying a second hand car with a towbar and never thinking they have to check the insurance every year - even if they stay with the same company in case thet change it all



I did have a similar thing with my dog insurance when I had a dog.
She was an Alsatian (GSD) and was fully covered for illness and 3rd party
then one year I renewed as usual and was bored so I idly read the new policy document
and found that several breeds were not excluded from pretty much everything - including Alsatians
but they were happy to renew knowing the breed
but would have been less happy about any claim!!!

 

[Drago]

This is why I always phone insurers and have a conversation with something passing for real human. It's a ballache, but all question get answered and there is no ambiguity.

 

[PaulSB]

I insure my bikes on the house contents policy. I always phone the insurer at renewal time to be certain a human confirms my understanding of the cover I'm buying. It pays off in the long-term. I recently had my three year old Kinesis plus all my kit replaced on a new for old basis. If, for example, I had relied on the BC insurance I would have received market value, perhaps £1200? The household policy paid out five times that amount.

I'm not sure I would have declared a tow bar. We had a tow bar fitted to our espace 25 years ago. I certainly never declared that. It didn't occur to me. I have some sympathy with the driver but I feel the age we live in means one should check everything.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

Don't think anyone would expect to have to declare a towbar.

We've got one, but never tow anything since the trailer got nicked, and life's too short to find out if it should be reported.

 

[wiggydiggy]

Didn’t someone in the ‘Road CC’ article responses, screenshot the stated insurance companys wording that appears to state that towbars are accepted (& no word of having to declare)

They do, and 2 comments further down someone else points out it doesn't say they don't need to be declared first. Thats whats caught this guy out here, having a undeclared modification.

Funny how insurance companies always seem to find terms and conditions after a claim

Several years ago I declared - as usual - my ebike in the bicycle section of the house insurance

I read something about ebikes (legal ones) not always being covered so I rang and found it had never been covered - in spite of the make and model being declared
and there was nothing on the policy saying legal ebikes were not covered
If I had climed then they would have refused the claim - and if there was other damage maybe that would have been excluded as well


Since then I have always rung and checked - and every company has said it is OK
(to be fair - the original company says it is OK now as well - so I won;t name them!!)

I'm about to renew my house insurance, I have some time before its paid so I think I'll give them a call and make sure theres nothing there to catch me out.

 

[roubaixtuesday]

I'm about to renew my house insurance, I have some time before its paid so I think I'll give them a call and make sure theres nothing there to catch me out

What on earth do you tow with your house?

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

The problem is knowing what to ask

I mean - you would not consider a tow bar to be an "unauthorised modification"
any more than a dashcam and the like

come to think of it - I had an after market reversing camera on my old car - properly installed by the dealer - given the stuff above I should have declared that!
What about a bumper sticker - should that be declared??


you just don;t know what to ask about which makes it difficult to know what to ask

 

[Drago]

A dashcam is an accessory, not a modification...unless it's a hard install.

If it didn't roll off the showroom floor with it then its a modification - the majority of drivers do seem to actually understand that. Most insurers won't charge extra for factory options that don't increase performance or attractiveness to thieves.

The irony in this case is that if he'd declared the towbar there's every chance he wouldn't have been charged more.

 

[tyred]

Perhaps I should declare my Nodding Dog and furry dice. 🤔

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

A dashcam is an accessory, not a modification...unless it's a hard install.

If it didn't roll off the showroom floor with it then its a modification - the majority of drivers do seem to actually understand that. Most insurers won't charge extra for factory options that don't increase performance or attractiveness to thieves.

The irony in this case is that if he'd declared the towbar there's every chance he wouldn't have been charged more.

I think the insurance company might argue if it was properly installed - so put behind panels and fixed in place

even if it is only an accessory like a dashcam - that could have been stuck to the windscreen with a loose cable plugged into the internal power socket
in future I will check this out if I ever get anything installed properly

 

[PaulSB]

The problem is knowing what to ask

I mean - you would not consider a tow bar to be an "unauthorised modification"
any more than a dashcam and the like

come to think of it - I had an after market reversing camera on my old car - properly installed by the dealer - given the stuff above I should have declared that!
What about a bumper sticker - should that be declared??


you just don;t know what to ask about which makes it difficult to know what to ask

I feel if you're unsure what to ask take the simple. Phone the insurer, "I've fitted a tow bar. Do I need to declare this as a modification?

I have the feeling the insurer has two things in mind if a claim is refused:

1.Was the car's performance different from the expected norm?
2. Is the value higher than expected?

If the answer to either of those is yes I think the insurer is entitled to refuse a claim. Cars are insured on known values. If the owner does something which increases the insurer's risk without informing the company he/she has mislead the company into charging a lower than necessary premium.