I posted last week about having a 2007 Stumpjumper + 2 other, stolen from my shd in Widnes. A few things have happened now with the insurance company that are worth knowing.
My 2 cheaper bikes Zurich have offered equivelent bikes, no problem. However, with the Stumpjumper they are refusing to offer 'new for old' as the policy should be. When we took out the policy we were asked for the value of the bike, in my eyes this is the purchase price of the bike. Everytime we've renewed the policy we have never been asked about their current value. As the bike ages, in my eyes the 'value' would diminish anyway. Now we've come to claim, they are refusing to pay out the full replacement cost of the bike, stating that because we have told them the value is only £1200 (orig. purchase cost) this is all they will give us. At no point were we asked for the current replacement cost. They have misrepresented the level of cover given so I've challenged this and we'll see how we get on. The Financial Ombudsman is quite clear on what should be offered and because of the misrep I should be offered more.
It's worth highlighting that if you have insured your bike make sure you insure the replacement cost and not the original purchase price. My bike have gone from £1200 in 2007 to £2300 today, ignoring any of the upgrades added, leaving me at least £1100 out of pocket.
Bcause of this I've now read all the small print on the policy, apparently if the bike is stolen while out after being left unlocked i wouldn't have been covered at all. I mention this because 2 bikes were stolen this week from the decking at Llandegla.
Thanks
Neil
