Direct Line Insurance – Cautionary Note regarding Modifications

[sturgeon]

So, to be safe, having failed to discover the actual basic spec of my car, should I declare everything that I think is an optional extra?

 

[whitenemesis]

So, to be safe, having failed to discover the actual basic spec of my car, should I declare everything that I think is an optional extra?

No, just say that the information you have given is "correct to the best of your knowledge".

 

[KennyN]

Most retrofits would be done for the benefit of the cars owner and not for an an increased in car value should something happen to the car so apart from performance mods then why should they give the insurance companies a get out clause.

Because i ,or a previous owner ,has fitted a reversing camera then why should i need to declare it to my insurance company , a supercharger / turbo yes.

To highlight how farcical it is getting my insurance company said that if something happened to my new wheels they would only re-reimburse me for the cost of the originals fitted to the car. So my new wheels were £550 for the set whereas the original AMG VI were £2660 as set, so how does that make any sense what so ever ?

Kenny

 

[whitenemesis]

Because i ,or a previous owner ,has fitted a reversing camera then why should i need to declare it to my insurance company , a supercharger / turbo yes.

Because they would need to know what was fitted to the car prior to a claim, otherwise unscrupulous individuals might start 'loading' their claim with fictitious enhancements?

To highlight how farcical it is getting my insurance company said that if something happened to my new wheels they would only re-reimburse me for the cost of the originals fitted to the car. So my new wheels were £550 for the set whereas the original AMG VI were £2660 as set, so how does that make any sense what so ever ?

In this instance, no sense, other than the payout would (easily) cover your costs. Had it been the other way round and you had not declared the 'upgrade' you would be left out of pocket.

 

[st13phil]

As I said in an earlier post, I would never dream of not disclosing to an insurer any and all modifications (that I'm aware of) that have been made to my car after manufacture. At the end of the day, I would expect them to reimburse me should those modifications suffer loss or damage so it's reasonable that they should know about them in advance and if they want to levy an additional charge to cover them, then that's their prerogative.

Where I have an issue is with a requirement to declare - as modifications - all optional extras fitted to my car as part of manufacture. Maybe I'm just cynical, but I'm suspicious of DL's motivation to create what looks like a deliberate trap for the unwary. The combination of my suspicion and the difficulties I experienced attempting to comply with the requirement were sufficient for me to take my business elsewhere. This may, of course, be their objective - but there are much simpler ways of achieving that.

 

[BTB 500]

Insurance companies do vary, with some requiring all changes to standard spec. to be declared and others only those applied after leaving the factory.

But if you have a car with (let's say) an AMG bodykit that's not standard for that model then - assuming you want the car repaired to the same spec. - it seems reasonable for the insurance company to want to know ... regardless of when it was fitted. The cost of replacing an AMG front bumper/skirt after a relatively minor crash will be much higher than a standard bumper.

??

 

[renault12ts]

Insurance companies do vary, with some requiring all changes to standard spec. to be declared and others only those applied after leaving the factory.

But if you have a car with (let's say) an AMG bodykit that's not standard for that model then - assuming you want the car repaired to the same spec. - it seems reasonable for the insurance company to want to know ... regardless of when it was fitted. The cost of replacing an AMG front bumper/skirt after a relatively minor crash will be much higher than a standard bumper.

??

But this assumes the purchaser is like us on here...they know about such things. How many ordinary car buyers know?

 

[Petrol Pete]

A bit daft really, after all on most new cars these days paint is an optional extra that has to be paid for !

 

[BTB 500]

But this assumes the purchaser is like us on here...they know about such things. How many ordinary car buyers know?

Well if you've owned the car from new it would be hard to wriggle out of

But otherwise somebody, somewhere is going to decide whether it was reasonable for an owner to know about a mod. or not. And in many (most?) cases you'd probably get away with it.

 

[John]

Daft situation.

Insurers should find out direct from manufacturers.

It's the same stupid situation where life / critical illness insurers want you to disclose your medical history on their form, and then don't pay out because you didn't disclose your sore toe in 2001.

They should contact your GP for your medical record and satisfy themselves from that.

Bunch of greedy money-grabbing retards.

I am having to move from Direct Line as I have modifications on my SL55 and they say due to new policy they no longer insure modified cars!!

They told me this back in 2014 although I knew of others insured with modified cars.

I also told Admiral on Tuesday that my son has a different head unit in his car but they were not interested , just mods for top speed and acceleration is all they need to know about.

Kenny

When I started with Admiral, I had to disclose all the factory options as well as any modifications, which don't apply on my other half's car.

On my CL, I didn't disclose any as I have no idea what is optional and what is standard.

I would happily go to the ombudsman to uphold a claim should it ever be declined on this basis.

From a well known comparison website..

"The law changed in 2013 to reflect the way in which the FOS had been viewing this area and puts the emphasis on the consumer being honest and careful, rather than 100% accurate.

The Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Act 2012 says that the consumer's duty is to "take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation", replacing the previous duty to disclose all necessary information."

... this should back me up too.

 

[Crickleymal]

I switched from DL to Admiral via Go Compare last year. I'd been with DL for a number of years but then they suddenly hiked the price of the insurance by at least £100. Shopped around and got it for half the price. Same with my wife's car. I had a little bit of difficulty with the current car as it's been wheelchair modified. "Does that improve the performance?"

 

[Scooby_Doo]

So Merc’s packaging of extras makes things even more complicated,premium and premium + is fine but how is the next owner going to know what’s in each pack. Have had to specifically mention the Pano Roof every time,but it’s part of the packs on other models.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

Daft situation.

Insurers should find out direct from manufacturers.

It's the same stupid situation where life / critical illness insurers want you to disclose your medical history on their form, and then don't pay out because you didn't disclose your sore toe in 2001.

They should contact your GP for your medical record and satisfy themselves from that.

Bunch of greedy money-grabbing retards.



They told me this back in 2014 although I knew of others insured with modified cars.



When I started with Admiral, I had to disclose all the factory options as well as any modifications, which don't apply on my other half's car.

On my CL, I didn't disclose any as I have no idea what is optional and what is standard.

I would happily go to the ombudsman to uphold a claim should it ever be declined on this basis.



... this should back me up too.

Oh dear.

 

[brucemillar]

Whitenemesis. Answers this in his post. The paw protects you here if, you are not failing to disclose. You are not expected to know but should take reasonable steps to check what is insured or not.


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[RonFleet]

LV weren't interested in any factory-fitted options when I first insured with them a few years ago and they still aren't. And they haven't tried to gouge me when renewal time comes around - the quote is usually just a few pounds more than the figure I get from comparison sites, and this is quickly rectified by a quick phone call to them (in my experience, they either match the comparison website's figure or better it).

 

[geraldrobins]

I switched from DL to Admiral via Go Compare last year. I'd been with DL for a number of years but then they suddenly hiked the price of the insurance by at least £100. Shopped around and got it for half the price. Same with my wife's car. I had a little bit of difficulty with the current car as it's been wheelchair modified. "Does that improve the performance?"

It may cost more to repair though?

 

[John]

Oh dear.

On the sauce again Lewy?

I suppose when you have nothing positive to contribute, we can always rely on you to point out boring technicalities, spelling mistakes, grammar and other stuff no one else cares about.

Have a 'nana and cut back your drinking.

You might live longer so you can carry on your "contributions".

 

[Deleted member 6183]

On the sauce again Lewy?

I suppose when you have nothing positive to contribute, we can always rely on you to point out boring technicalities, spelling mistakes, grammar and other stuff no one else cares about.

Have a 'nana and cut back your drinking.

You might live longer so you can carry on your "contributions".

I never called you stupid or a retard.

 

[clk320x]

I was thinking of buying my brother's '04 Range Rover as a runabout for the winter.
I approached the usual confused.com et al and then I remembered that DL were not on such sites so went through their quotation system.
I received a quote of circa £900 (£350 more than most other quotes) and it was on the strict understanding that a Tracker would be fitted!
For an '04 Range Rover HSE!
They're having a laugh. I won't be back to their site in a hurry.

Has he still got this? and considering selling?

 

[Deleted member 37751]

If these stipulations were rigorously enforces the whole system would collapse, how is your average joe on the street meant to know whether his auto dimming rear view mirror was an optional extra or not?!

As an example I was driving back from a meeting the other day in a colleague’s (a successful and clever man in his own right) new Discovery SDV6 and he wasn’t even sure what size engine it was “think it’s a 2.7”, he then also admitted thinking the “S” in SDV6 meant Supercharger!!!! How does someone like him stand a chance of knowing anything other than where to put the fuel in?!