Should I claim motorhome roof-light damage on insurance?

[maguirem]

Due to recent high winds the main roof light was blown off - after reading the insurance polict with Caravan Guard I'm left wondering is it worth claiming for the damage or fund it from my own pocket - your positive thoughts please

 

[two]

The insurance industry has to make a profit
And that's after paying for extortionate charges and false claims
So we all end up paying higher premiums

 

[gus-lopez]

And that's after paying for extortionate charges and false claims

If they had concentrated on itemising & ensuring each & every claim was the fault of which driver rather than scamming as a cartel & doing"knock for knock" which makes it easy & ideal for the lazy ,idle & useless companies to scam the motorist

 

[Mikeamapola]

We were living in France last year and had (Big) cosmetic only hail damage claim. No impact to French NCD so all good on the French side.

The problem was we moved back to UK in July and finding insurance in UK was a nightmare because we'd had a claim.

Even though it was not our fault, because the insurance was not recoverable from a third party, it was classed as a "fault" claim.

Where you able to transfer any no claims from French insurance company to Uk ?

 

[The Wino]

If they had concentrated on itemising & ensuring each & every claim was the fault of which driver rather than scamming as a cartel & doing"knock for knock" which makes it easy & ideal for the lazy ,idle & useless companies to scam the motorist

I doubt it. The number of claims will be very similar and the investigation costs higher how could that make premiums lower?
As far as I'm aware the companies don't make huge profits I think no win no fee has a lot to answer for especially in whiplash injuries in the past.

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[The Wino]

Where you able to transfer any no claims from French insurance company to Uk ?

I think even if you have protected no claims they still increase the premium as statistics show your more likely to have another they increase the base premium so you get the same percentage off but from a higher figure. In the case of the hail claim why would it not affect future insurance the no claims discount is just that a no claims discount not a no blame discount . If a third party is at fault and they pay all the costs in effect there is no claim against your insurers unless it's possible to sue god for the hail there's no reclaim possible.

 

[CharlieFIVE0]

My view is insurance is for major incidents. Even small and non fault claims affect ALL your vehicle insurances.

My wife dinged a bumper and made a small claim on her car. My VW was hit by an uninsured driver over 3 years ago. Manchester police forgot to charge him despite CCTV, witness and confession. Insurance company have not taken him to court yet… so it’s an open claim. These have added £££s to the insurance on my VW, my PVC, four motorbikes and even the wife’s car!

It also narrows your options… One motorhome insurer refused to “mirror” my VW NCD, adding around £1200 to the quote.

 

[Wingersfs]

Due to recent high winds the main roof light was blown off - after reading the insurance polict with Caravan Guard I'm left wondering is it worth claiming for the damage or fund it from my own pocket - your positive thoughts please

While in France October 2022, something hit our main roof light whilst driving along a fast RN road causing it to break all the hinges and nearly ripping it off.
Luckily there was a Moho dealer about 15 minutes away so off we trot, very slow!!
This was a Friday afternoon at about 3pm!! Great timing!!
The dealership was brilliant. They couldn’t speak English and we don’t speak decent French but they sorted us out - at a cost of €860.
I contacted the insurance company and, again, they were excellent and very helpful. I gave them all the details of what happened over the phone and sent them a photo of the damage and the receipt and they authorised the claim there and then. They contacted me a couple of days later to confirm everything was ok and that the ‘claim’ would go through as windscreen damage, with an excess of £75.
I renewed the insurance last year and there was no increase in the premium. I also renewed my wife’s insurance, I’m named on the policy, and again, no increase.
I hope this may help you make your mind up as to what to do, but my experience with the insurance company, on this occasion, was a positive one.

 

[Gaston aires]

When our skylight was damaged a few vans ago I showed a local body shop who repaired it very well and at a reasonable price. I would go down that route if I were you..
Phil

 

[CAB96]

As someone has already said, you would have to declare it on all your car insurance renewals for the next 5 years.

I scraped my Mazda, wish I'd paid for it myself now rather than claim, even though it was £1,400. Thankfully beyond the 5 years now.

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[The Wino]

Sounds like it's a bit of a conundrum. You could phone the insurance company and ask if a rooflight is covered under the windscreen part of the policy but if you do and they ask why strictly speaking you need to tell them. If you ask and the answer is it is covered it's probably best to get it done under insurance but it could possibly still put the next premium up on the MH and you would have to tell any car insurance. If it's not covered under the windscreen part of the policy it's a different calculation.

 

[Bessy765]

Due to recent high winds the main roof light was blown off - after reading the insurance polict with Caravan Guard I'm left wondering is it worth claiming for the damage or fund it from my own pocket - your positive thoughts please

Given some of the standard of roof light fittings I have replaced or sealed over the years, I would price up the roof light and some non setting mastic. Chances are you will fit it better than some makers, by the time you deduct your excess and will then have a claim on your file it should be a lot cheaper DIY. There will be plenty of help and advice on this forum on how to do it

 

[FrankNicklin]

Colleague of mine hit a deer last year, £4000 damage. Registered as a non fault claim as the deer did a runner before he could get his details. Has a joint policy with his wife. Renewal went from £690 previous year to £3500 this year. Lost all but one of his NCB years even as a non fault claim. Didn’t have protected no claims.

 

[The Wino]

Colleague of mine hit a deer last year, £4000 damage. Registered as a non fault claim as the deer did a runner before he could get his details. Has a joint policy with his wife. Renewal went from £690 previous year to £3500 this year. Lost all but one of his NCB years even as a non fault claim. Didn’t have protected no claims.

It's not a no fault bonus it's a no claims bonus. If you have a claim that can't be recovered from someone else it's a claim. I don't know why it surprises anyone. Even if he had protected NCB the premium would have gone up but at least not as much as he would get the NCB off the base premium.

 

[FrankNicklin]

It's not a no fault bonus it's a no claims bonus. If you have a claim that can't be recovered from someone else it's a claim. I don't know why it surprises anyone. Even if he had protected NCB the premium would have gone up but at least not as much as he would get the NCB off the base premium.

I get how this works, I was just highlighting how a claim as even a no fault claim can inflate premiums. The question has been asked about claiming for the vent through insurance which would also be a no fault claim. I was merely highlighting the impact this can have on premiums. I agree that the number of years NCB has no bearing on the actual premium you pay as the insurance companies can set whatever value they like before taking NCB discounts in to account.

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[The Wino]

I get how this works, I was just highlighting how a claim as even a no fault claim can inflate premiums. The question has been asked about claiming for the vent through insurance which would also be a no fault claim. I was merely highlighting the impact this can have on premiums. I agree that the number of years NCB has no bearing on the actual premium you pay as the insurance companies can set whatever value they like before taking NCB discounts in to account.

Sorry it sounded like you were surprised that the claim affected the premium even though it wasn't their fault. I do think a lot of people do expect insurance companies to behave as charities and say it's not your fault we'll pay and not up the premium. There was a previous post where someone had a rooflight repair under the glass part of the policy without it affecting their claim history but I think that would be really unlikely.

 

[FrankNicklin]

Sorry it sounded like you were surprised that the claim affected the premium even though it wasn't their fault. I do think a lot of people do expect insurance companies to behave as charities and say it's not your fault we'll pay and not up the premium. There was a previous post where someone had a rooflight repair under the glass part of the policy without it affecting their claim history but I think that would be really unlikely.

Yes agree. Any claim is a claim end of. Personally I think it wrong that a valid enquiry can be recorded on your record. If you have an accident for sure, it should be recorded irrespective of who pays, but a genuine enquiry about a glass breakage where there is no 3rd party involved shouldn't be recorded as a claim. But clearly if the claim is less, equal or over your excess by a few hundred quid then it just isn't worth getting them involved.

 

[two]

Fault is very subjective. Some people are accident prone (the roof light may not have been secured correctly) so an element of blame may apply. I don't think it's not unreasonable for the underwriter to want to know about past behaviour. You may be someone who tends to claim more than those who settle small incidents from their pockets. If you become more relaxed about security because you're covered, it's not unreasonable that you should pay more than those who are more careful.
What troubles me (a little) is that insurers ask if you've ever been involved in an accident, wether covered by insurance or not. I'm not sure that they want to know that I spilt the milk this morning but there may have been moments of carelessness that I have not disclosed which they would like to record.

 

[gus-lopez]

Where you able to transfer any no claims from French insurance company to Uk ?

I transferred 3 ncb's on to my spanish policies many years ago.

If you have a claim that can't be recovered from someone else

& this is why I say that there should be no"knock for knock" & that someone should be made liable K4K only suits the companies at the expense of the drivers.

I do think a lot of people do expect insurance companies to behave as charities and say it's not your fault we'll pay and not up the premium.

That is what they are there for.The idea is/was that the total overall premium income is balanced against outgoing claims. As long as income,less expenses,is equal to or in excess of outgoing claims amounts that is good.Profit for the company or for shareholders should not even enter the equation.

There was a previous post where someone had a rooflight repair under the glass part of the policy without it affecting their claim history but I think that would be really unlikely.

Here in spain all is classed as "glass" & comes under the windscreen part.

 

[The Wino]

I transferred 3 ncb's on to my spanish policies many years ago.

& this is why I say that there should be no"knock for knock" & that someone should be made liable K4K only suits the companies at the expense of the drivers.

That is what they are there for.The idea is/was that the total overall premium income is balanced against outgoing claims. As long as income,less expenses,is equal to or in excess of outgoing claims amounts that is good.Profit for the company or for shareholders should not even enter the equation.

Here in spain all is classed as "glass" & comes under the windscreen part.

If there's no profit for the shareholders why would anyone buy shares? Why would the underwriters take the risk if there was no return? It's not the real world