Insurance quirks - beware

Brodie Allen · Guru

Insurance quirks - beware

Craig1 · Guru

If panels are fixed to roof, or to rear of an OKA, they would form part of the van, same as an awning.

Are We Lost · Guru

Are you talking fixed panels or portable? Surely fixed panels would not come under contents. Your post refers to the cost of labour (fitting cost?). Then the policy should be "per incident", and pay like a car with mutlple dented panels.

If they are portable panels, then $700 for "the set" rather than per item may be arguable. The PDS may clarify this. But $700 for three works out to $233 each. Does not seem far off the cost of normal panels and the difference would not be enough for me to lose sleep over. Pretty unlikely to get 3 portable panels damaged by hail anyway. Theft, maybe.

Knightrider · Senior Member

If you have concerns with regards to Insurance Cover, you should ALWAYS contact your insurer and ask them the question. ALWAYS read your Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) as it will give you the answers - if unsure of interpretation, then contact your Insurer or Broker. I can inform you that in the CIL Caravan Insurance PDS, they list Solar Panels as Fixture & Fittings, similar to refrigerators & Stoves. Of course, that would be solar panels fixed to the caravan. The NRMA Caravan Insurance PDS do not mention Solar Panels at all.

watsea · Guru

If the panels were portable, unless the camp site was unattended during a heavy weather event with hail or severe wind, would not the owner camper make some attempt to dismantle the panels and make safe so they were not damaged? Saves a the panels and all the other inconveniences.

Hitting the road · Senior Member

Generally any addition to a vehicle, including a caravan, that is not a standard fitting needs to be listed on you policy. If the van came with one solar panel and you added an extra one or two then you do need to have them noted on your policy. The majority of motor type policies are "market value" and this value is based on a stock standard caravan or car or what ever.

Once you add to or modify the original vehicle it is good sense to have those mods or accessories noted on your policy. Some Insurers will replace what ever is damaged if "attached" as a fitting, but don't ever rely on that. Eg, you have spotlights fitted to your 4wd and they are damaged by a kangaroo misadventure. You make a claim, but the insurer is within their rights to refuse to pay for the spotlights because they were not noted as an accessory on the policy.

Excesses or the "self insured" portion are based on "per event". A hail storm for example would be a single "event" so only one excess. In the scenario mentioned above, it would be highly unusual for an Insurer to require an excess payment for each damaged insured item, Especially unlikely if attached to the van as they would not be insured separately anyway.

Bottom line, if you have modified the van, added any non standard items, always list the mods or additions on your policy...

Brodie Allen · Guru

Thats a good sense post Hitting but its not quite as it was put to me. Virtually if anything is added to the base van as purchased then it will not be covered unless listed particularly. I phoned him and that was the clarification that he made. Insurance is one of the blights of modern society imho with the uncertainties and reluctance of some Companies at times. Need to be double dilligent and dont take a conversation as any sort of confidence building - email them and get written answers back. I intend to just that since already I have two versions of liability. I reckon that once something is bolted or otherwise attached it becomes part of the whole and is included in the basic premium arranged. In the event of total loss the payout is the whole amount and is not discounted for individual items since the insured amount is estimated with the items included.

Hitting the road · Senior Member

"I reckon that once something is bolted or otherwise attached it becomes part of the whole and is included in the basic premium arranged. In the event of total loss the payout is the whole amount and is not discounted for individual items since the insured amount is estimated with the items included"

You are right in saying once an item is attached it becomes a part of the whole...Thing is the Insurer still has to know what they are insuring...the financial "risk" they are holding. When insuring your van you will usually be asked to nominate an insured value, you'd discuss the accessories fitted at the time and the values of same so they would be recorded by the Underwriter, and listed on your policy.

The premium will then be calculated according to the value you nominate, including accessories listed.

What I wrote was; "Once you add to or modify the original vehicle it is good sense to have those mods or accessories noted on your policy."

If you later added 6 solar panels to the roof and didn't inform your insurer you had added another 6 panels worth $3,000.00 to the roof, and the lot were damaged in a hail storm and you lodge a claim. The Insurer will likely come back to you and say, there is only one solar panel listed on the policy.

An Insurer calculates premium based on risk, if the van was insured for $65k that is what the insurer based the premium on, including the single solar panel that came with it. The additional 6 panels they didn't know about they would be within their rights to decline the claim. The Insurer may not too...but who wants to risk that.

Lets go back to the 4wd scenario, same thing, you go out and buy a Toyota Hilux Dual Cab ute and insure it as you leave the Dealership...stock standard Hilux Dual Cab ute.

From there you wheel in to ARB on your way home and have a new Canopy fitted, a Bull Bar, Spotlights and a winch. Then across to Bob Jane T Mart and have a new set of mags and All Terrain tyres fitted and new springs to lift it.

A few months later the ute is stolen...you call your insurer and ask to lodge a claim for the theft. Do you reckon the Insurer will pay for the Canopy, Bull Bar, Winch, Spotlights, Mags and new tyres on top of the market valu8e you insured for?

Nope...if they didn't know the total of the risk they were insuring you are on your own unfortunately...

-- Edited by Hitting the road on Friday 6th of May 2022 04:21:54 PM

Are We Lost · Guru

I just had that conversation with APIA, my vehicle insurer. My policy renewal stated "no options" (or modifications). But I do have a canopy fitted.

So I contacted APIA via chat. The helpful, and hopefully knowledgeable young woman said there was no problem because accessories are all automatically included. She asled if I wanted a higher sum insured to reflect any increase in value. I asked how much for an extra $2,000 cover. Just $8 extra for the year. The payback period on this would be 250 years without a total loss, so I thought that was a great deal.

I kept a copy of the transcript so it proves that I told them of the canopy. It is still not shown on the policy.

Modifications (e.g. raised height, bigger exhaust, etc) are a different story as they are changes to the design, and these would typically increase the premium.

Peter_n_Margaret · Guru

Are We Lost wrote:
Modifications (e.g. raised height, bigger exhaust, etc) are a different story as they are changes to the design, and these would typically increase the premium.

Our OKA motorhome is highly modified and the camper is completely home built. It has GVM and GCM increases and is fully insured at an agreed value.

The gross premium is a tad over 1% of the insured value.

Cheers,

Peter

ConsumerMan · Senior Member

You need to find a new insurance agent. An excess is applied per event and not per damaged item. Unless of course the policyholder is trying to sneak through previous damage and new damage as one claim/event. Insurance assessors are pretty clued up when it comes to spotting old/previous damage.