impounded car - quick question
Discussion
silentbrown said:
TwigtheWonderkid said:
Why are there so many company offering "out of impound" insurance if a normal policy covers it? 10 secs on google brings up loads of firms offering this cover stating that your average motor policy won't cover it. Are they allowed to lie like that to sell policies?
Probably because a: it's difficult to get cover if you've been caught driving without, and b: they have no qualms about selling 30-day cover to someone who will happily continue to drive once that cover expires?Are they lying? If not, all it needs is for someone to post a link or image of a policy document showing the clause you say "specifically excludes" you using it to retreive an impounded vehicle.
FWIW, the Met don't seem to mention that 'normal policies' aren't suitable.
http://content.met.police.uk/Article/Reclaiming-a-...
https://www.hastingsdirect.com/car-insurance/docum...
I bet this is a fraud and no car exists.
You go to buyer (or even better its all done via email and transfer) , buyer shows you pictures for car, fake paperwork relating to impounding etcc. You pay seller a fee for car, seller advises you to contact pound to release car.
...You contact pound to release car....they say what car..does not exist. You go back to seller...gone
I'd bet my second kidney on that
Even if it "seems" failsafe, as soon as you start negotiating the sale, the seller will move the goalposts and change things .."oh yeah I cant give you the number yet for the company holding it, as they have just moved it to a new site, pay me , by then it will be moved to a new site"
You go to buyer (or even better its all done via email and transfer) , buyer shows you pictures for car, fake paperwork relating to impounding etcc. You pay seller a fee for car, seller advises you to contact pound to release car.
...You contact pound to release car....they say what car..does not exist. You go back to seller...gone
I'd bet my second kidney on that
Even if it "seems" failsafe, as soon as you start negotiating the sale, the seller will move the goalposts and change things .."oh yeah I cant give you the number yet for the company holding it, as they have just moved it to a new site, pay me , by then it will be moved to a new site"
Edited by TwistingMyMelon on Thursday 26th May 17:16
TwigtheWonderkid said:
Hastings policy, see section 3, liabilities to third parties, exclusions, section e, bottom of page 10, top of page 11.
https://www.hastingsdirect.com/car-insurance/docum...
I thought you'd got me there, but that's - again - for the "Driving other cars" section. See two paragraphs above, and read (in particular) section d, which only makes sense for DOC.https://www.hastingsdirect.com/car-insurance/docum...
Hastings Policy said:
Where cover is provided by the effective Certificate of Motor Insurance, your insurer will indemnify you while personally driving, with the permission of the owner, any car not owned by you or hired to you under a hire purchase agreement or leased to you under a leasing agreement or provided to you as a courtesy car and not owned or hired or lent to you by your employer or partner.
...
Note: Cover is not provided:
...
...
Note: Cover is not provided:
...
- d) Unless a current and valid policy of insurance is in force for the vehicle being driven under this section of this Policy
- e) For recovery of any vehicle which has been impounded by any police or local authority
silentbrown said:
TwigtheWonderkid said:
Hastings policy, see section 3, liabilities to third parties, exclusions, section e, bottom of page 10, top of page 11.
https://www.hastingsdirect.com/car-insurance/docum...
I thought you'd got me there, but that's - again - for the "Driving other cars" section. See two paragraphs above, and read (in particular) section d, which only makes sense for DOC.https://www.hastingsdirect.com/car-insurance/docum...
Hastings Policy said:
Where cover is provided by the effective Certificate of Motor Insurance, your insurer will indemnify you while personally driving, with the permission of the owner, any car not owned by you or hired to you under a hire purchase agreement or leased to you under a leasing agreement or provided to you as a courtesy car and not owned or hired or lent to you by your employer or partner.
...
Note: Cover is not provided:
...
...
Note: Cover is not provided:
...
- d) Unless a current and valid policy of insurance is in force for the vehicle being driven under this section of this Policy
- e) For recovery of any vehicle which has been impounded by any police or local authority
Tom_C76 said:
And will any standard insurance offer cover on a car that is currently impounded at the inception of the policy?
Don't see why not. However, if you have a pending conviction for driving without insurance, that's going to make things difficult(=expensive) regardless of where the car is.
Tom_C76 said:
And will any standard insurance offer cover on a car that is currently impounded at the inception of the policy?
I've found insurers seem to specifically ask "has this vehicle been impounded?" when I'm askign for a quote, so they take it into account in some way, if not outright refusing cover. I've never had cause to say yes and find out what it does to the price.paulmakin said:
it does all sound a bit too risk prone in the cold light of day - thanks for the thoughts
regards
pul
I think there is a chance and probably quite a high one it is genuine.regards
pul
A car owner could have fallen on hard times and not have the cash to pay the car tax. Car then gets impounded so they then have the release fee, and tax to pay. If the car is worth something the only option may be to sell it and at least retrieve some value. Eventually the pound will take it to an auction where it will fetch peanuts and the owner will get nothing.
elanfan said:
What utter rubbish! That would mean that no car seized for no insurance would ever get released and they'd all get crushed. Insurers add clauses for good reason and I can think of no reason why their cover would be prejudiced insuring a seized vehicle. You do talk b
ks sometimes.
You are half incorrect on this one. I couldn't release one of my cars that a friend kindly impounded with Bedfordshire police for me until I had specific impound release cover. The copper behind the desk even called the insurance company to check that it had and was valid for at least 30 days! This 30 day policy cost £300 and was for third party only.ks sometimes.Edited by elanfan on Thursday 26th May 09:14
When he then got it impounded again with the Met (don't ask) they didn't seem to care and just checked the dates on the certificate and released it.
Pdelamare said:
I couldn't release one of my cars that a friend kindly impounded with Bedfordshire police for me until I had specific impound release cover. The copper behind the desk even called the insurance company to check that it had and was valid for at least 30 days! This 30 day policy cost £300 and was for third party only.
£300! I think these policies are the insurance equivalent of payday loans!Did you have a valid 'normal' certificate of insurance for that vehicle in your own name? That's all the law requires. http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2005/1606/regul...
Oh, and it sounds like you need to pick friends more carefully
silentbrown said:
Did you have a valid 'normal' certificate of insurance for that vehicle in your own name? That's all the law requires. http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2005/1606/regul...
I turned up at the station the first time with a normal certificate for 1 week's cover of normal insurance in my name. The police office said immediately that it was insufficient as they require at least 30 days cover, he then asked if it had impound release cover to which I replied that I had no idea as nothing in the documentation received from the police mentioned anything about 30 days or impound release cover. He then called the insurance company and confirmed that it didn't cover impound release and he wasn't going to process it. I asked why none of this information was in the letter which had lots of detail about everything else, he just shrugged his shoulders. I wasted £50 on the temporary cover and half a day off work to drive to Bedfordshire police station.
So having returned home I googled impound release cover and also used one of the comparison sites to search for such cover, I got quotes back for £500 etc for just the one month 3rd party cover. I then spent the rest of the day calling all the other companies offered it, including brokers like Adrian Flux, and eventually got cover for £300. I was blue in the face explaining that it want me that impounded it and that I has zero points, decades or NCB and was really old. Made absolutely no difference.
Attending the station the next day and seeing a difference police officer, asked the same questions, called the insurance company to confirm the impound release. I got the car back.
Maybe it's just something that Bedfordshire do? Certainly the Met didn't care. But that there are so many companies offering it and even being searchable on the comparison sites must mean there's something to it.
Pdelamare said:
I turned up at the station the first time with a normal certificate for 1 week's cover of normal insurance in my name.
... which I guess you applied for after the car was impounded? But that's not a normal policy, it's a short-term one. Aviva (as an example) don't offer them for impounded vehicles.
https://quote.dayinsure.com/aviva
When the car got impounded by the Met did you have a conventional annual certificate, or just try another seven-day one?
TwigtheWonderkid said:
silentbrown said:
TwigtheWonderkid said:
Why are there so many company offering "out of impound" insurance if a normal policy covers it? 10 secs on google brings up loads of firms offering this cover stating that your average motor policy won't cover it. Are they allowed to lie like that to sell policies?
Probably because a: it's difficult to get cover if you've been caught driving without, and b: they have no qualms about selling 30-day cover to someone who will happily continue to drive once that cover expires?Are they lying? If not, all it needs is for someone to post a link or image of a policy document showing the clause you say "specifically excludes" you using it to retreive an impounded vehicle.
FWIW, the Met don't seem to mention that 'normal policies' aren't suitable.
http://content.met.police.uk/Article/Reclaiming-a-...
https://www.hastingsdirect.com/car-insurance/docum...
All that is needed to release the vehicle is a valid certificate of motor insurance (and any payment etc); as the vast majority (if not all) DOC policies have this clause, the only realistic means to release a vehicle is with a policy specific to that vehicle. If the OP was to take out such a policy, it would be sufficient.
swampy - it's just a saab aero ss but it's the model and spec i'd been looking for.
seems the owner's taking some kind of interest in it's fate as the ad's been updated to reflect that it's now accruing storage fees. as suggested above, the ad now states that they're trying to recoup some of their costs to date (which will now include the driving without insurance fine i guess). there's a lot of detail about alleged mix-ups and omissions with the insurer but that might just be padding.
vendor states payment to (her?) once the car is released and has listed what appears to be a plausible procedure for getting it out of the pound.
it was the insurance i had wondered about - the intention would have been to buy it and use it as my main driver on it's own policy until it died. almost a years MoT so i would (as usual) just have rolled the dice on any catastrophic mechanical failure
it's shed money even with all current fees paid so it could end up at around half price but only a few hundred in it now that storage is kicking in tbh
regards
paul
seems the owner's taking some kind of interest in it's fate as the ad's been updated to reflect that it's now accruing storage fees. as suggested above, the ad now states that they're trying to recoup some of their costs to date (which will now include the driving without insurance fine i guess). there's a lot of detail about alleged mix-ups and omissions with the insurer but that might just be padding.
vendor states payment to (her?) once the car is released and has listed what appears to be a plausible procedure for getting it out of the pound.
it was the insurance i had wondered about - the intention would have been to buy it and use it as my main driver on it's own policy until it died. almost a years MoT so i would (as usual) just have rolled the dice on any catastrophic mechanical failure
it's shed money even with all current fees paid so it could end up at around half price but only a few hundred in it now that storage is kicking in tbh
regards
paul
Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff