Caravan insurance for 3 rd party claims when towing on the Continent with a hire car

[BigTim]

his is rather a theoretical question but one which I thought I would ask as there are a lot of knowledgable people on this forum!

A couple of years ago our car broke down in Italy and Red Pennant sent a replacement towcar from Germany which we used to continue our hols and to tow the 'van back through Austria, Germany and France to Dunkerque. As I believe that in Germany caravans and car are insured seperately I asked RP if, when towing, the hire car's insurance would cover the caravan for 3rd party claims as car insurance does in the UK. The 'van itself was covered by my own Caravan Club policy but that does not include claims by 3rd parties for any damage caused by the caravan as that is covered by the car insurance in the UK.

RP were never able to give me a definitive answer on this other than to advise me that my caravan policy did not cover me for 3rd party claims - I already knew that. In the end I had to "hope for the best" that I was covered. Fortunately we got home without further incident.

I hope that I'm never in this situation again but obviously many others are. SO if the caravan caused 3rd party damage whilst being towed by the hire car would that be covered by the hire car insurance??

Tim

 

[Lutz]

You have raised an important issue because it is easily overlooked but can have very serious consequences. What makes it more difficult is that one would not normally arrange third party insurance for the caravan only before leaving the UK (because such separate coverage isn't necessary in the UK so long as the car and caravan remain together as one outfit), but as soon as a UK towcar is replaced a foreign registered one, this third party coverage is no longer present. To arrange the necessary coverage through a UK insurance company while already touring abroad following an accident or breakdown of the towcar, is going to be difficult.
However, if such an incident happens in Germany there is a solution. At least in that country one can obtain a temporary German number plate for the caravan at any local vehicle licensing office as a replacement for the UK plate and that automatically includes third party insurance. This temporary plate is valid even once you have left Germany, so there would not be any need to repeat the process when you cross into France, for example. I cannot say whether similar provisions exist in other Continental countries.
What you did, i.e. to tow the caravan with a foreign registered car and hence without valid third party insurance, is highly illegal and you can be lucky that nothing happened and you weren't caught.

 

[BigTim]

Thanks Lutz
I thought I might get a definitive reply from you.
This is a very worrying situation as the Caravan Club's Red Pennant Insurance are presumably doing this on a regular basis with other UK caravanners who are unfortunate enough to break down in Continental countries.. I did query the situation with the Caravan Club several times when this occured as I feared what you say might be the case. The CC never gave me a definitive answer but implied that I was covered. They certainly did not suggest the solution that you suggest of a temporary number plate although I could not have got one at the time as I was in Italy. The CC arranged for a hired VW Passat to sent from Stuttgat to Rome where we had broken down and exchanged this for a hired VW Touareg when we reached Germany. The Passat was a little underpowered for our 'van but I was told that the hire company were not prepared to send a larger, more expensive, car into Italy because of car theft problems.
From what you say I was driving both hire vehicles without full insurance cover for the caravan and illegally.
Tim

 

[Lutz]

On the face of it your case would appear to be even more complex because it involves a UK caravan being towed by a German registered car in Italy, but maybe the Italians have a similar temporary licence plate scheme which includes third party coverage. If so, it is immaterial that the towcar has German plates and the caravan an Italian one.
This is common practice on the Continent among haulage companies which have the tractor unit registered in one country and the articulated trailer in another.

 

[NickinFrance]

I cannot say whether similar provisions exist in other Continental countries.

While you can obtain temporary registration in France, you need to be a resident & it doesn't include insurance.