Insurers attitude ?

[DaveK]

How long before insurers refuse to pay out with out proof you took all reasonable care to avoid this happening.? Will they be insisting on a Cat alarm or coverage in locked and alarmed garages only ?

" Thieves have stolen six catalytic converters from business vans in Kendal.
Two were stolen from vehicles parked at premises on the Beezon Road Trading Estate and three were taken from vans at the Westmorland Business Park.
The sixth was stolen from a van at Shap Road Industrial Estate on Thursday.
Stolen converters can be sold on for at least £120 each or the platinum they contain can fetch prices of £1,000 an ounce (28g)."

 

[GrahamC230K]

Lets start again and see if we can have this thread run without insults (both directions).

It's a reasonable topic.

Lets try and reply on the topic, not replying with what we might think of the poster.

 

[barryj]

All reasonable care to stop your exhaust being stolen? I can't imagine what you could do to avoid this when you were say in town shopping. I think its probably small potatoes to an insurer and possibly comes under a lot of people's excess on the policy.

Pain in the **** none the less.

 

[GrahamC230K]

My own personal choice sees me with a policy where my car MUST (no theft or damage cover at all otherwise) be garaged between 10p and 7am when I am at home.

I know cats have value and also scrap value because of the precious metals, but not heard of the theft of them booming until this thread. Lets hope it isn't.

On a general note, I haven't personally (2 car household) noticed motor insurance costs rise particularly the last year or two.

 

[DaveK]

A quick google makes rather alarming reading.
'THE manager of a vehicle hire company might close a depot after expensive engine equipment was stolen for the second time in four months.
Three catalytic converters worth £5,000 were taken from vans at Global Self Drive, in Great North Road, off the A1 near Wittering, overnight on Friday.

It follows the theft of catalytic converters worth £12,000 in December.
Site manager Alastair Ross is furious it has happened again. He said: "It's getting to the point where we're looking at withdrawing our facility from the area, which would affect people in places like Stamford, where we employ people.

"We can't keep stemming these losses. Why should we?"

It is believed thieves got into the compound by cutting thro ugh fencing. They took the catalytic converters from a Mercedes Sprinter, Mercedes Vito and Iveco Daily. The converters are underneath the vehicles and they were cut off by the thieves. The converters can fetch hundreds of pounds when sold as scrap.'

I suspect that Vans and 4X4s are targeted mainly because it is easier to get under them to remove cats and that the cats might be bigger in size.

http://www.thisisyork.co.uk/display...ytic_converters_targeted_in_new_crimewave.php

 

[GrahamC230K]

It isn't good.

However my average Joe perception is that it is not a massivley easy task to remove a cat from a vehicle. I suppose maybe a van with high ground clearance and the thief simply cutting the cat out the exhaust it could be quicker than normally expected though.

While of ocurse this is not right, I feel that a vehicle depot, struck twice by this type of theft, could have just as easilly had all the windscreens, wheels or any other part you could remove easilly stolen. It sounds like security must be pretty low with this going on undetected.

If this was striking individuals cars I think it would be more scary than organised crime focusing on vehicle yards.

I know it must be a poor state of affairs to think like this, but I honestly dont see it acceptable, just suspect we are talking about an unsuitably secured vehicle compound which has been a bit of a sitting duck.

 

[nick mercedes]

I suspect that Vans and 4X4s are targeted mainly because it is easier to get under them to remove cats and that the cats might be bigger in size.

That and record scrap prices, noticed on my way to Nuneaton on Friday that many of the drain grates were missing, and cones were stuck in the holes, the natives informed me that the Dids had been out stealing them all for scrap, apparantly in broad daylight.

 

[barryj]

I have had increasing interest in any metal items that are not bolted down around my factory in recent years and fuel theft from my vehicles (that has always been their despite securing vehicles/fuel caps, cameras, weekend security etc....) always spikes when fuel prices rise. Bottom line is that when somthing has a value that is Worth the hassle to get it and it can be sold on easily people will steal it. Been like that since the dawn of time, the only difference is when 10p gets stolen in Botswana we all know about it within 12 seconds.......................thanks to the INTERNET.

Hence the current perception is if you leave the armored compound that your house has become in your Mercedes sprinter, your cat will be stolen, when you get to where you are going the job you went their to do will have been done by a Polish immigrant, on the way home you will be car jacked by a 12 year old pregnant smack head, then killed by an escaped mental patient for your gold fillings.

Message.......................things aren't as bad as the Daily Mail or the INTERNET makes out, they don't print positive stories and we don't write a post at the end of the day telling everyone how everything was fine and we survived to fight another day! HTH

 

[st4]

.

Message.......................things aren't as bad as the Daily Mail or the INTERNET makes out, they don't print positive stories and we don't write a post at the end of the day telling everyone how everything was fine and we survived to fight another day! HTH

We may be going political/argumentative here, but these "horror stories" won't get printed unless they were not happening. Because it hasn't yet happened to you or someone you know doesn't mean it won't happen or isn't a likely enventuality.

 

[barryj]

We may be going political/argumentative here, but these "horror stories" won't get printed unless they were not happening. Because it hasn't yet happened to you or someone you know doesn't mean it won't happen or isn't a likely enventuality.

Sorry, you missed my point. I am not saying that they never happen, what I am saying is that the negative reporting in this (and probably other) countries cause us to worry more about this type of thing than is necessary.

I will not worry undualy if you don't mind about the kind of crap you read about daily but in reality only happens to a tiny % of people in a tiny % of the country. Thats just my opinion, if you want to worry about it its a free country but I can only tell you how I see it.

 

[DaveK]

Why is it that as soon as some paper or other highlights a particular problem, it becomes ' negative " reporting ?
Is Britain really a country populated by Ostriches who hope that by keeping their heads in the sand, everything will go away ?

My quotes are actually from a Yorkshire Evening paper that reacted to numerous Police reports relating to stolen cats. ' Fleet News ' , a non political magazine for fleet owners carried more tales of cat stealing from large fleets . Hardly regard Fleet news in the same light as SearchLight .

 

[crockers]

3 points...

1.. Stealing grates is rife in China as metal scrap is very valuable....now carries the death penalty...(maybe an internet myth)

2... Negative press sells copy....pure and simple...stock market crashes -- front page news ..stock market goes up -- buries page x

3... Insurers don't care about cat thefts..as I said in the original post...they charge a premium comesensurate to the rish brought to a common pool...therefore if cats are being stolen in cities A, B, & C but not in cities D,E,F then those living in cities A,B, &C will be charged a higher premium...Insurance companies will cover the risk but at a premium...

If it became uninsurable risk then it would be just that an uninsurable risk...so again they will not lose out financially..

 

[DaveK]

I would hate to have a claim for a stolen cat rejected because it was decided I didn't take the appropriate steps to safe guard it. What are the appropriate steps ?

 

[kbhogalW126]

I would hate to have a claim for a stolen cat rejected because it was decided I didn't take the appropriate steps to safe guard it. What are the appropriate steps ?

By slamming your car really low to the ground by removing your springs and getting a big mean dog to guard the car in a locked garage.

Seriously though, if someone is going to nick your cat they will.

I remember about 3 years ago I went to visit a relation who was posted to Birmingham temporarily.

As i was leaving he wanted to show me his Mk2 Golf Gti (I wanted it as a toy) which was sitting parked up on the road (taxed, insured and MOT'd just in case someone starts) and I commented on the lack of an exhaust.

He was shocked as it had been there in the morning!

They had taken the backbox (i dont think it had a CAT as it was a 1990 G plate).

The guy was gutted.

What I'm trying to say is that people will try and steal anything.

You take out car insurance to cover things like this.

What is an individual to do apart from locking the car up in a garage with 20 locks and crash barriers, Mean Guard Dogs etc etc?

Personally I feel that if it happens it hapens.

I've got other things that occupy my time.

I don't want to turn into a paranoid android as some seem to be here!

My 2p worth.

KJ

 

[barryj]

Why is it that as soon as some paper or other highlights a particular problem, it becomes ' negative " reporting ?
Is Britain really a country populated by Ostriches who hope that by keeping their heads in the sand, everything will go away ?

My quotes are actually from a Yorkshire Evening paper that reacted to numerous Police reports relating to stolen cats. ' Fleet News ' , a non political magazine for fleet owners carried more tales of cat stealing from large fleets . Hardly regard Fleet news in the same light as SearchLight .

Because the majority of the politically biased daily reads only highlight negatives as that is what sells, the folks like you start googling it and decide we have a crisis on our hands.

I am off to cut the grass, play footie with the kids, then relax with a glass of wine in the sun, you know generally enjoy life! Glass half full (of red wine!)...................................

Do you know what I think the trouble is Dave, because we aren't winging about it on an INTERNET car forum you say that my kind is sticking its head in the sand. But in all honesty what does your head out of the sand attitude achieve? I concentrate on being the best parent, neighbor, employer etc.... I can be, I think thats the best I can give by trying to make sure that the people around me are as decent as I can help them to be.

What are you doing about the cats being stolen? apart from posting on here? so what gives you the right to say that you are better than others for not having your head in the sand? By your definition having your head out of the sand is reading somthing in your local paper, googling it, then posting your negative findings on here! Your hardly setting the world on fire are you?

 

[Biscuit]

I would hate to have a claim for a stolen cat rejected because it was decided I didn't take the appropriate steps to safe guard it

I'm sure all of us would. Is there any evidence from insurance companies that this is going to happen?

 

[DaveK]

There was no prior warnings from them when the number of cars stolen with keys taken from dwellings started to increase. Next thing several insurers are telling victims that they should have taken the car keys to bed with them or put them in a more secure place when this sort of occurrence started to increase.

 

[barryj]

Sorry Dave I am honestly not picking on your posts........................but insurers have never paid out when the keys have been stolen to take the vehicle.

I can personaly tell you of two instances from at least 20 years ago (a Metro and a Porsche 911 SC!) where this has happened. I suggest that it only became main stream knowledge when the Daily Mail got hold of it!

 

[Biscuit]

Sorry dave I must also take issue with you here. I have had my house broken into twice and the car stolen.

CLK gone in 2004 and now a month ago VW toureg. same insurance company never even asked if i would be changing my key habits. Once in a drawer by the front door, once in my bag in the kitchen. asked for the crime reference number and paid out.

had a friend who had his keys fished off the table in the hall _ again and he was completely up front with the insurance company full payout ensued.

 

[DaveK]

And there was me, setting off to bed with my keys, my catalytic convertor and my car stereo under my arm.........