3rd Party car insurance when towing !!

[andyp1]

I am sure this would have been covered before , however, my car insurance expires on the 3 Mar 2012 and i have been ringing around for new quotes , It would appear that 90 % of the quotes i have only cover me 3rd party for the car when towing ( fully comp solo ) and that a fitted towbar counts as a modification for which the premium goes up !.
I could have been towing for the last 20 years with third party only - my fault for not checking i guess !!
What insurance company do you use ? I have no accidents or convictions.

Thanks in advance
Andy

 

[marlot]

You've almost certainly mis-understood.
The car will be fully comp, bu the trailer will be third party. ie. if you hit something, your insurance will pay for the repairs to your car, and to the car you hit, but not for the repairs to your caravan.

 

[andyp1]

Hi , That is what I assumed !! but no - the car is only covered third party when towing.
They have sent it in writing !

Regards
Andy

 

[andyp1]

Hi , That is what I assumed !! but no - the car is only covered third party when towing.
They have sent it in writing !

Regards
Andy

 

[Surfer]

Find another insurance company as that is ridiculous. Your cover should not chane if towing. Try A-plan for insurance or even the CC.

 

[Dustydog]

Andy
They are pulling your chain!
A while back both Saga and Aviva said they didn't cover the third party road risk if the towed vehicle " caravan or trailer " caused the damage. That was absolute rubbish and both parties did apologise and confirmed TP cover was in force. Also your own car would still be Fully Comp.
I ended having a bit of ding dong with them . Sadly for them by the time a sensible human being who understood the Principles and Practice of Insurance corrected the "bum steer" I had moved my business to the Caravan Club who gave me and excellent cover and more importantly , at that time , guaranteed to beat any like for like quote.

 

[andyp1]

I have tried 4 companies and they all say the same !! third party only when towing - I will try the CC now !
Thanks for your comments
Andy

 

[Dustydog]

Andy
See this thread.
http://www.practicalcaravan.com/forum/insurance-security-and-storage/aviva-and-saga-car-insurance

Good luck and don't take the word of the call centre idiots who seem to know nothing.

 

[emmerson]

Andy, in over 40 years caravanning, I have never heard of that ruling.

 

[andyp1]

Nor me !! but i now have 5 companies saying the same - and the last one I tried stated that the "majority of insurers only cover the car 3rd party when towing" !!

Anyway I have tried the CC who have a competitive quote ( albiet with £650 compulsory excess ) and cover the car fully comp at all times - this is my best bet so far.

Thanks everyone

 

[emmerson]

Andy, I've just spoken to the broker I've been using for many years, and she says that she has never come across this. Any TRAILER being towed is only covered TP, ie, if the trailer hits something, the their damage is covered, but not the trailer.In all circumstances, to her knowledge (which is extensive), if the car has comp insurance, that's what it gets, towing or not.

 

[Dustydog]

Nor me !! but i now have 5 companies saying the same - and the last one I tried stated that the "majority of insurers only cover the car 3rd party when towing" !!

Anyway I have tried the CC who have a competitive quote ( albiet with £650 compulsory excess ) and cover the car fully comp at all times - this is my best bet so far.

Thanks everyone

Andy
Five Insurers talking rubbish is beyond belief!
Whilst I know you cannot name them on here may I sugest you tell the Association of British Insurers and The Financial Services Authority the identity of the Insurers who are clearly misleading you and other members of the public.
Actually if the Insurers think they are right , which they are not, you could always invite them to write to Practical Caravan explaining why they are correct in reducing your car cover to TP when towing.

 

[otherclive]

I am with LV+ and the document of insurance clearly states that the car is covered comprehensive when towing a caravan, trailer or broken down vehicle, but the towed vehicle are not covered. So If I hit any one when towing they have normal third party protection from my insurer and if the caravan were to be damaged in such an incident then it would be the caravan insurer that looks after that claim. I have always found LV+ to be very competitive and they come high up each year in various surveys for customer service. Thankfully we have not had to test that aspect of their service. For our XC70 (See below) we pay £223 fuly comp with up to 180 days in any one trip fully comp cover for Europe. This is with two named drivers, 15k mileage limit and £300 excess of which £200 is voluntary (windscreen £75). We also receive a 5% multi-product discount for two cars and house insurance on all LV+ policies.

 

[andyp1]

The situation only came to light when i was looking for alternative quotes and I was asked if my car was modified and i jokingly said well i have a towbar - they then said that is classed as a modification if not factory fitted ( and the quote they were giving me went up £24 ) then they 'reminded' me that i would only be covered third party when towing !!

I have the quote from the CC , which is OK - so i might just try LV to see what they say.

Many thanks
Andy

 

[ProfJohnL]

What is covered by any insurance is defined in the policies terms and conditions. The law requires that all cars insured for use on the road must have a minimum of third party cover, so all car policies must include TP.

As for other elements of cover such as "fully comp" to know what is covered in your policy you must refer to your policy documents. You cannot assume you policy is the same as anyone else's, with teh same company as each policy is an individual contract, and there may be extra limitations due to your risk group or on your claims history.
You certainly must not assume that just becasue one company offers a particular benefit, that other will offer the same.
Read your policy documents carefully, Do not sign until you are happy with your arrangements.

 

[colin-yorkshire1]

The situation only came to light when i was looking for alternative quotes and I was asked if my car was modified and i jokingly said well i have a towbar - they then said that is classed as a modification if not factory fitted ( and the quote they were giving me went up £24 ) then they 'reminded' me that i would only be covered third party when towing !!

I have the quote from the CC , which is OK - so i might just try LV to see what they say.

Many thanks
Andy

hi Andy, I am with the LV this is the 3rd year, last 2years I have tried all the quotes available internet, direct, ect and even though the premiums go up every year, there always within £25 of the cheapest quote, as an aside I did tell them at the outset that I had a towbar, and towed a caravan. "yes" the towbar is listed as a modification but nowhere on the schedual does it mention any alterations to the car insuarance while towing in fact it does not mention trailers anywhere,

 

[emmerson]

OK, we all seem to be in agreement that Andy's insurers are talking rubbish. So the trailer/caravan is covered for TP risks whilst attached to the car, which is itself covered for comprehensive risks.But what happens if the 'van becomes detached, and causes damage? Who pays then? I would guess that the 'van insurers would have to pay, but what about the vans which are not insured, and there are some about.The guy who parks his van next to my paddock, for instance. The van only cost him £850, and the cheapest quote he's had was £180. I've not asked my friendly broker, but I will when next I see her.
Discuss.

 

[Surfer]

The situation only came to light when i was looking for alternative quotes and I was asked if my car was modified and i jokingly said well i have a towbar - they then said that is classed as a modification if not factory fitted ( and the quote they were giving me went up £24 ) then they 'reminded' me that i would only be covered third party when towing !!

I have the quote from the CC , which is OK - so i might just try LV to see what they say.

Many thanks
Andy

I do not know of any car that comes with a factory fitted towbar even if you have ordered one and this includes 4 x 4s. It is the dealer who gets a local fitter to do the job, so again the insurance companies are talking nonsense when they refer to a factory fitted towbar as such an animal probably does not exist!

 

[Wendy-Norfolk]

The situation only came to light when i was looking for alternative quotes and I was asked if my car was modified and i jokingly said well i have a towbar - they then said that is classed as a modification if not factory fitted ( and the quote they were giving me went up £24 ) then they 'reminded' me that i would only be covered third party when towing !!

I have the quote from the CC , which is OK - so i might just try LV to see what they say.

Many thanks
Andy

I do not know of any car that comes with a factory fitted towbar even if you have ordered one and this includes 4 x 4s. It is the dealer who gets a local fitter to do the job, so again the insurance companies are talking nonsense when they refer to a factory fitted towbar as such an animal probably does not exist!

Yes it does!

If you have a Discovery 3 or 4 with a detachable hitch, the "towbar" forms part of the chassis - thus factory fitted!!

 

[Dustydog]

OK, we all seem to be in agreement that Andy's insurers are talking rubbish. So the trailer/caravan is covered for TP risks whilst attached to the car, which is itself covered for comprehensive risks.But what happens if the 'van becomes detached, and causes damage? Who pays then? I would guess that the 'van insurers would have to pay, but what about the vans which are not insured, and there are some about.The guy who parks his van next to my paddock, for instance. The van only cost him £850, and the cheapest quote he's had was £180. I've not asked my friendly broker, but I will when next I see her.
Discuss.

If the van becomes detached from the towing vehicle, the car's motor insurers will pay because the "incident arose out of the use of a motor vehicle".
The same is true of a roof rack coming off, or even the trailer of an artic detaching. The operative words are "arising out of the use of.." and this is what is quoted in the Road Traffic Act. Every ABI Insurance policy issued in the UK has to fully comply with the RTA and in effect the minimum cover now given will be in respect of damage to third party person, including pasengers, and third party property, whether that be a vehicle or house or whatever.
Looking at my own CC Policy Section 5A Liabilty Exclusion 4 says:-
What is not covered.
Liability when the caravan is attached to the towing vehicle or if it becomes detached when being towed. Please note that this cover should be provided by the Insurers of the towing vehicle.

I've had a quick look at some other caravan insurers wordings on line and they say the same. Hence why Aviva and Saga both in the end confirmed they did insure the caravan for it's RTA liability risk whilst being towed.
Strangely enough I cannot find one motor policy that reduces Comp to TP when towing!!
Hope this helps.

 

[otherclive]

Colin-Yorkshire wrote:


hi Andy, I am with the LV this is the 3rd year, last 2years I have tried all the quotes available internet, direct, ect and even though the premiums go up every year, there always within £25 of the cheapest quote, as an aside I did tell them at the outset that I had a towbar, and towed a caravan. "yes" the towbar is listed as a modification but nowhere on the schedual does it mention any alterations to the car insuarance while towing in fact it does not mention trailers anywhere

If you look in the LV= Document of Car Insurance under Definitions on page 5 "Your Car" it gives details of what constitutes Your Car and this includes "trailer, caravan or broken-down motor vehicle". In Section 3 under What is not Covered is the fact that the LV= insurance does not cover loss or damage to the caravan whilst being towed or attached to the car.

One thing with LV= you have to include the Foreign Use Option to have comprehensive cover when overseas otherwise you just get the legal minimum third party. But their overseas use cover costs very little.

 

[weejock]

I think one of the issues here is that the op maybe taking to call centres or looking on the internet. I have been down this road before myself and after wasting a few hours of my life talking with clowns on telephones I now employ a good brooker for all my motoring needs. I am frightened to say what is correct and what is not due to a phrase I often get from my broker which is "well we will have to use so + so for that then. My main current car has 20inch wheels, Factory (yes) fitted towbar and a few other extras that due to them being fitted at time of manufacture the insurance company does not seem to care about although they do actually note the items on the policy. Other items such as ICE they do charge extra for.
When I switched to using a broker on avarage each car cost me around £40 more to insure but for the peice of mind and hassle free experience to me it is worth everypenny. Think about this like booking a holiday. If a site pitch is not booked for the correct number of nights and you have done it yourself on the internet then sort it out yourself. If however you gave all the correct details to a holiday company then phone them and let them sort it out. Yes you can save the odd pound or two but you will be the only person to blame if it is wrong.

 

[Maric]

I do not know of any car that comes with a factory fitted towbar even if you have ordered one and this includes 4 x 4s. It is the dealer who gets a local fitter to do the job, so again the insurance companies are talking nonsense when they refer to a factory fitted towbar as such an animal probably does not exist!

I've got one on my car (thanks to the previous owner). No idea what it cost for my model but it's now an £825 option on the new A6.

 

[SteveW77]

It may well be an option, but the chances are it will still be fitted at the dealers,either by them or more likely an independent specialist.

Steve W

 

[Surfer]

The situation only came to light when i was looking for alternative quotes and I was asked if my car was modified and i jokingly said well i have a towbar - they then said that is classed as a modification if not factory fitted ( and the quote they were giving me went up £24 ) then they 'reminded' me that i would only be covered third party when towing !!

I have the quote from the CC , which is OK - so i might just try LV to see what they say.

Many thanks
Andy

I do not know of any car that comes with a factory fitted towbar even if you have ordered one and this includes 4 x 4s. It is the dealer who gets a local fitter to do the job, so again the insurance companies are talking nonsense when they refer to a factory fitted towbar as such an animal probably does not exist!

Yes it does!

If you have a Discovery 3 or 4 with a detachable hitch, the "towbar" forms part of the chassis - thus factory fitted!!

Are you saying that all you need to do is to add the towball hitch and set off and that the electric socket is a standard fit?