Car stolen, what next?
Discussion
Bit new to me all this, logged a ticket with the police (but no crime ref yet, 24 hours apparently) and logged online with the insurance company.
What happens next , do they ring to discuss value and then send me a cheque ? How long does this take as currently i'm carless.
CCTV footage of 4 blokes, 2 with bulky bags, they tried my neighbour first then you can see in the periphery them starting on my car and i think the neighbours on the other side (he has an L405 albeit LHD)
2013 BMW 530D in dark grey, we've been down a few local side roads to check if it's being left whilst they make sure no tracker. it's 9 years old so i would suspect they assume the subscription wouldn't be active.
I appreciate it could've been alot worse but it's a massive faff i don't need right now, a few personal bits in the car i'm going to have to replace which i doubt will be insured (glasses, car seat, daughters scooter, some clothing)
TL:DR : how long until i get the money for replacement, will stuff inside be covered, what is considered market value ?
What happens next , do they ring to discuss value and then send me a cheque ? How long does this take as currently i'm carless.
CCTV footage of 4 blokes, 2 with bulky bags, they tried my neighbour first then you can see in the periphery them starting on my car and i think the neighbours on the other side (he has an L405 albeit LHD)
2013 BMW 530D in dark grey, we've been down a few local side roads to check if it's being left whilst they make sure no tracker. it's 9 years old so i would suspect they assume the subscription wouldn't be active.
I appreciate it could've been alot worse but it's a massive faff i don't need right now, a few personal bits in the car i'm going to have to replace which i doubt will be insured (glasses, car seat, daughters scooter, some clothing)
TL:DR : how long until i get the money for replacement, will stuff inside be covered, what is considered market value ?
It’s not going to be as quick as you want I’m afraid.
Most insurers will want to give it a period of time to see if it’s recovered. In the meantime get prepared to send them all the docs relating to service history, ownership etc.
An offer will come at some point, be prepared for this to be lower than you want and have some ‘equivalent’ examples to hand to argue your case. They should offer you market value, ie, the amount you need to replace it, less your excess.
Good luck.
Most insurers will want to give it a period of time to see if it’s recovered. In the meantime get prepared to send them all the docs relating to service history, ownership etc.
An offer will come at some point, be prepared for this to be lower than you want and have some ‘equivalent’ examples to hand to argue your case. They should offer you market value, ie, the amount you need to replace it, less your excess.
Good luck.
Do you have courtesy car cover on your insurance? Have a look through your policy as you might be suprised what's on offer.
Sadly though, like with any insurance claim, you're going to be out of pocket. You'll pay an excess and you'll get offered a basic value for the car but will probably end up having to put more money in than you otherwise would have done as you'll likely buy a newer car.
Sadly though, like with any insurance claim, you're going to be out of pocket. You'll pay an excess and you'll get offered a basic value for the car but will probably end up having to put more money in than you otherwise would have done as you'll likely buy a newer car.
When I last worked in motor claims in the 80s/90s there used to be a specified time before they would settle in case the car got recovered, but that may have changed. You'd need to check the policy to find out, but I'm sure the insurer would know if you asked!
Insurers definition of "Market Value" seems to be a black art these days so it's worth doing some research of your own to find adverts for cars similar to yours, and maybe try to get them to talk numbers even before any time limit - although they may not be keen.
Most Comprehensive policies give cover for "Personal Effects" in the car, albeit with a fairly low limit like £100 or £150. If that isn't enough try your Household Contents insurer if you have "Personal Possessions" Cover for contents away from the home as that typically has a higher limit.
Hope you get a good outcome.
Insurers definition of "Market Value" seems to be a black art these days so it's worth doing some research of your own to find adverts for cars similar to yours, and maybe try to get them to talk numbers even before any time limit - although they may not be keen.
Most Comprehensive policies give cover for "Personal Effects" in the car, albeit with a fairly low limit like £100 or £150. If that isn't enough try your Household Contents insurer if you have "Personal Possessions" Cover for contents away from the home as that typically has a higher limit.
Hope you get a good outcome.
AudiMan9000 said:
Was the key left physically near the car? If so, the insurer may not pay out.
I'm pretty sure this is not true, as long as the key was behind a locked door and the car itself was locked they'd have no grounds to reject.
also I believe most companies wait approx 30 days before they will consider paying out.
Mr Tidy said:
Insurers definition of "Market Value" seems to be a black art these days so it's worth doing some research of your own to find adverts for cars similar to yours, and maybe try to get them to talk numbers even before any time limit - although they may not be keen.
When my car was written off last year (yes, my fault, I was driving like a tit) the assessor specifically said 'market value is not the same as list price, don't come back to me with autotrader adverts as that's not representative of a car's value'. They initially used Glass' Guide and upon being challenged they added CAP, Cazana and Parkers. All four 'valuations' were significantly less than what the car was worth when I'd bought it six weeks prior - and that's before they deducted the excess.AMC243 said:
Mr Tidy said:
Insurers definition of "Market Value" seems to be a black art these days so it's worth doing some research of your own to find adverts for cars similar to yours, and maybe try to get them to talk numbers even before any time limit - although they may not be keen.
When my car was written off last year (yes, my fault, I was driving like a tit) the assessor specifically said 'market value is not the same as list price, don't come back to me with autotrader adverts as that's not representative of a car's value'. They initially used Glass' Guide and upon being challenged they added CAP, Cazana and Parkers. All four 'valuations' were significantly less than what the car was worth when I'd bought it six weeks prior - and that's before they deducted the excess.If you aren't happy argue with the insurer, and if you still get nowhere read the complaints procedure in your policy and get the case referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
Mr Tidy said:
That's the problem - the whole point of insurance is to indemnify you, i.e. put you back to the position you were in before the incident! So the settlement you get should allow you to buy a comparable car to what you had regardless of the nonsense the assessor said. He may know about assessing damage but probably knows very little about insurance.
If you aren't happy argue with the insurer, and if you still get nowhere read the complaints procedure in your policy and get the case referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
That's exactly what I did and the Ombudsman said that the insurance company was in the right, unfortunately. I'm not sure how they came to that conclusion because there was no way I could have bought an identical replacement for the settlement figure. When you insure a car, you have to state its value, and if it's fraud to overstate the value and misrepresentation to understate it, what's the point of giving it at all if it's seemingly not taken into consideration when paying out?If you aren't happy argue with the insurer, and if you still get nowhere read the complaints procedure in your policy and get the case referred to the Financial Ombudsman Service.
timberman said:
AudiMan9000 said:
Was the key left physically near the car? If so, the insurer may not pay out.
I'm pretty sure this is not true, as long as the key was behind a locked door and the car itself was locked they'd have no grounds to reject.
also I believe most companies wait approx 30 days before they will consider paying out.
We don't know who the above posters were with, but our direct line claim was handled really well. Hire car after a day or two up till the point of settlement, and a very fair payout for the car. They actually asked me what I thought it was worth and told me i was undervaluing it, paying out a bit more in the end.
Only two issues were: the contents - they gave us Halford vouchers, who couldn't supply like for like, despite asking for cash and the hire car had to go back the day after we received payment, which does leave a bit of limbo as you arrange your new one.
Think it was all done and dusted within 3 weeks.
Only two issues were: the contents - they gave us Halford vouchers, who couldn't supply like for like, despite asking for cash and the hire car had to go back the day after we received payment, which does leave a bit of limbo as you arrange your new one.
Think it was all done and dusted within 3 weeks.
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