Insurer fined me for an undisclosed claim...

[Cuchulain]

I recently got my Bike insured and suddenly they have slapped me with a £25 fee for a supposed undisclosed claim.

The claim in question was from my car policy when someone hit my car, when a named driver (my wife) was using it. No damage was caused and no claim was made from either party but insurance was informed. It was classified as a non-claim.

So I wasn't involved in the incident, and my wife who was, isn't named on my bike policy, and it was put as a non-claim.

I spoke to the car insurer and they said I shouldn't have disclosed it but the bike insurer is adamant I should have. Can anyone give me a definitive answer on this, so I know whether to try and get my £25 back or not?
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CBT 15/6/2011 Theory Test Passed 6/2/2012 Module 1 Passed 11/6/2012
Module 2 Passed!!! 19/6/2012

[Lord Percy]

Pretty sure they can't ever take any money at any time unless you agree to it.

I'm no lawyer but at a guess I'd say you need to read the small print of your insurance. It may say you have to disclose everything, and if you don't you agree in advance to paying £25 for alterations to the policy. Or some other vague wording to ensure they can milk you for as much money as possible.

That's how most of those arseholes work, anyway.

[tom_e]

https://www.financial-ombudsman.co.uk/contact/index.html Have a chat with these guys they'll give you a definitive answer.

[Ste]

Need more detail.

What exactly is it that the bike insurer adamant you should have told them? There must have been a specific question that they asked you which they're saying you didn't answer correctly.

You say the incident was when your wife was using your car, just for clarity she was driving your car when someone hit it?

[Cuchulain]

[Loui5D]

Who is the insurer?

[Albigularis]

Absolutely no good ever comes from volunteering information that insurance companies don't need to know. Telling them about an accident for it to be a non-claim is just giving them information to use against you and screw stuff up. Like what's happening right now.
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Biking history so far-
Aprilia RS125 - Kawasaki ZXR400 - Triumph Street Triple R - Suzuki GSXR1000 L3 - BMW R1200GS - Kawasaki Z1000 - Kawasaki ZX10R C1H - Ducati Multistrada 1200 S Touring - Suzuki Hayabusa

[Cuchulain]

[Ste]

Expand on the bit about 'have you had an accidents / claims in the last five years'.

What was in the small print? I'm expecting there'll have been something saying how that includes named drivers on your policies.

[Cuchulain]

[ZX-7R]

There is a reason some of these bike insurers charge cheap premiums.

They rape you in the small print almost nobody ever reads.
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Current Bike - 2000 ZX-7R

[Rogerborg]

I'm in much the same position, except that Mrs Borg was at fault and the claim against her did proceed. I made the mistake (once) of asking a bike insurer if it was relevant, the phone monkey said "No, not if it was a car and the driver's not on this policy. Hang on, I'll just double check. [POPULAR BEAT COMBO MUSIC] Uh, boss says yes, we need to count it. Moar £££."

So now do I declare it? Do I heck. I haven't been "caught" yet, but I'm sure I will be.

First thing you do is fire in with a complaint to them, headed as such.

Your position is that the question you were asked was unclear, that no reasonable person would have interpreted it in the way that they are doing, and therefore in a contract of adhesion it should be interpreted in your favour.

Doesn't matter if it was or wasn't clear, just fire in with that now because it gets the clock ticking, then check the details.

However, don't let them cancel the policy! That's a declare-for-life condition. Pay up now if you have to, then set about them afterwards.

I'll note that on the last bike policy I took out online, all of the potential answers in the "Have you had any accidents, claims or losses" dropdown used the word "rider". Since the "rider" (me) wasn't involved in the driving incident, the only truthful answer to that is no.

arry should hopefully be able to provide the real "precedent and pursuant " magic words to mess them up. Best of luck.
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[Ste]

[dydey90]

Something similar happened to a mate upon writing off his car. Previously he'd had a different car stolen, while living at a different address and using a different insurer and no claim had been made about this. At some point between him taking out a policy on said write off and accident occurring, they became aware of the theft that hadn't cost them a penny and decided he had to pay an additional £400 on his premium. After many shoutings, he cancelled his own policy and simply didn't declare it on the next one. No more has been said about it by his current insurer.
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This post is probably not serious and shouldn't be taken literally.
Past: CBR125,ER6f NINJA 650, ZZR600 Current: VFR750

[Rogerborg]

[DJP]

[faffergotgunz]

[stinkwheel]

[DJP]

[Rogerborg]

I've taken the liberty of having a look at Bike Sure's online quotation form, and they do say:

[stinkwheel]

Devil's in the details isn't it.

On my last insurance proposal form this was the exact wording:

"Have you or any person who may ride had any accident or loss (fire, theft or any other cause) in the last three years involving any motor vehicle (of any kind)? This includes any accident or loss not covered or claimed under an insurance policy, and whether at fault or not. If yes, please give details below."

That's Carole Nash.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[Vracktal]

[MCN]

Plain English: Any accidents, claims or convictions must be declared when you fill in the form.
Whether at fault or not.

They will decide to load or not based on what sort of risk you pose to the insurer, that's you, your named drivers, where you live, what you drive and your lifestyle. Many more factors are considered.

You become their risk when the offer to insure you if they do not have all the facts how can that be fair?
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Disclaimer: The comments above may be predicted text and not necessarily the opinion of MCN.

[Rogerborg]