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Photo by Danielle Murdoch, riding to Uganda - Kenya border

The only impossible journey
is the one
you never begin

Photo by Danielle Murdoch,
riding to Uganda - Kenya border



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  #1  
Old 1 Oct 2012
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Free insurance,its not o.k.

Many riders on here probably know this,but for those who don't.
. . Free holiday insurance and generic ones from people like the post office etc. don't cover you on motorcycles. We are now lumped into an insurance catagory with bungy jumping skiing and skydiving. When I last looked only a couple of companies offer it and the premiums are rising fast.
. . . Anybody got any good or bad experiances with medical/holiday insururance?
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  #2  
Old 1 Oct 2012
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... is something of an oversimplification.

I know of examples in the recent past of insurers who will cover you if you're using your own vehicle that you've ridden from home and you are licenced for, but not if you fly to <insert island clubbing venue here> and hire a scooter on your car licence.


Better advice would be "read all the policy documentation".
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  #3  
Old 1 Oct 2012
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All the cheaper policies that come up on a "Meerkat" search are basically the same underwriter's product being sold by a myriad of different providers (the supermarkets, etc.). This policy only covers up to 125cc regardless of owner. The cheapest I've found that seems to cover all bases adequately is the AA at about £30 for 12 months muli-trip Europe cover.
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  #4  
Old 1 Oct 2012
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Further to my earlier post, an extract from Nationwide travel cover. You can't actually buy this from Nationwide any more, but it's still free to some account holders. The policy is provided by 'UK Insurance Ltd', so I presume you can buy the same cover elsewhere...

Quote:
Hazardous Activity
Flying, except while travelling in a fixed wing aircraft or helicopter as a passenger, not as a pilot or aircrew, nor for the purpose of undertaking
any trade or technical operation in or on the aircraft. Hang-gliding, ballooning, paragliding, parachuting, parascending or other aerial activities.
Motorcycling on machines exceeding 125cc unless you hold a full motorcycle licence and have done so for at least three years and are accident and
conviction free.
In all cases, whether using a motorcycle as a rider or a passenger a helmet must be worn. Quad biking of any form. Mountaineering
or cliff or rock climbing necessitating the use of ropes or guides or trekking on mountains higher than 5,450 metres. Potholing. Canyoning.
Engaging in or practising for speed or time trials, sprints or racing of any kind. Manual work of any kind. White water rafting, canoeing or sailing
outside territorial waters, unless undertaken under suitably qualified supervision as a pre-paid element of the trip. SCUBA diving unless you
are a qualified diver and you are accompanied at all times with another qualified diver or if you do not hold a SCUBA diving certificate, you are
accompanied at all times by a qualified diving instructor and in any instance SCUBA diving beyond a depth of 30 metres is excluded. Professional
sports. Bungee jumping. This list is not exhaustive. If you are participating in an activity that is not listed, please call us on 0845 246 1692, to
confirm if cover applies, in some cases, we may charge an additional premium. We reserve the right not to extend this policy to cover you.

To reiterate: It's not quite as simple as that.
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  #5  
Old 2 Oct 2012
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Well,there's one for you! Conviction and accident free,what a laugh really as just about everyone has had an accident. The wording doesn't say claim,just accident,the insurance equivalent of an ashtray for your handlebars!
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  #6  
Old 2 Oct 2012
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Petrol View Post
Well,there's one for you! Conviction and accident free,what a laugh really as just about everyone has had an accident. The wording doesn't say claim,just accident,the insurance equivalent of an ashtray for your handlebars!
Again with the assumption that true-for-you = true-for-everyone.
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  #7  
Old 2 Oct 2012
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Dash knows best.
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  #8  
Old 2 Oct 2012
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tourider View Post
Dash knows best.
Nah, I don't know much really, apart from that people who make definitive statements about how bad everything is nowadays are frequently wrong.
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  #9  
Old 2 Oct 2012
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While I hate to admit associating with such people the In-sewer-ants lawyers would latch onto two things in that policy:

1. "This list is not exhaustive. If you are participating in an activity that is not listed, please call us on 0845 246 1692"

Blog about your extreme-adventure-off road motorcycle trip and they'll claim that you knew this was more dangerous than just riding and should have called them. Same goes for pulling a 20 year old in the bar and jumping off the wardrobe, juggling chainsaws after Tequila slammers etc.

2. "...racing of any kind. Manual work of any kind..."

This one would require specific circumstances, but two bikes together or fixing a puncture?

The fact is every policy has sufficient get out clauses. What differs is the trigger points at which they call in the claims assesors and then the lawyers. They very simply have a target for not paying claims in order to defend their margins and will pick claims to defend that may work. Mr A falls down the hotel stairs in Shagaloof and claims for a night in hospital. They know the ward was full of people with similar claims who will compare notes so they just cough up, don't won't every holiday maker refusing to buy next year. Mr B falls off the Eiger and gets interviewed by the BBC afterwards, it's so clear they'll refuse point blank. Motorcylists are somewhere inbetween. Holiday insurers will want details before they decide and there will be an element of luck if the next case for review is Mr. B or not. Specialist insurers have a higher expectation of paying, so higher premiums but you'll only be competeing against the chainsaw juggler for the pay out pot.

Would you trust a bookie who reserved the right to declare the horse that crossed the line first wasn't the winner? Treat insurers like bent bookies and you'll be less dissapointed.

Andy
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  #10  
Old 3 Oct 2012
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Petrol View Post
Many riders on here probably know this,but for those who don't.
. . Free holiday insurance and generic ones from people like the post office etc. don't cover you on motorcycles. We are now lumped into an insurance catagory with bungy jumping skiing and skydiving. When I last looked only a couple of companies offer it and the premiums are rising fast.
. . . Anybody got any good or bad experiances with medical/holiday insururance?

There is only 1 good experience possible with travel insurance, and that is not making a claim on it :-)

The only claim I have ever had to make was a non-motorcycling one. Snowed in in Andorra, needed to get to Carcassone.
Had to go via Spain. Missed flight (to Liverpool)

Managed to get Ryanair to transfer us to next flight to Luton. (for only 60 euros).

Hired car, drove to Liverpool from Luton.

Insco paid claim in full with no quibble. (It was less than £200).

Ok, probably already on here but Navigator are covering "overland" motorcycling at the moment.

Cheap Travel Insurance UK, Best Holiday Insurance Cover Online, Navigator Travel

Rates are due to go up in Nov, but you can prepay now for a trip next year.

If people want companies to keep on covering overland travel, who ever is making the big claims, can they stop it please ? :-)

I only have 1 desire of the insurance. Fix me up, pay the hospital fees and get me home (or is that 3 :-) ).


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  #11  
Old 3 Oct 2012
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post office travel insurance DOES cover motorcycling. i specifically asked when i took mine out, and travel by motorcycle is classed the same as car travel. the usual caveats about motorsport use like trackdays or motocross are there, but touring is covered.
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  #12  
Old 4 Oct 2012
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DAVSATO View Post
post office travel insurance DOES cover motorcycling. i specifically asked when i took mine out, and travel by motorcycle is classed the same as car travel. the usual caveats about motorsport use like trackdays or motocross are there, but touring is covered.
These things change, but did you explicitly check for "overland" motorcycling, many policies exclude that or put limitations on the cc of the engine.

I'm not saying it does not cover it, but the last time I checked it didn't.

One other difference could be Europe V "rest of the world". Some policies allow for riding a bike all over Europe, but as soon as you mention zones outside that it becomes Overland.

I find it is always best to query exactly what they cover.

I've just had a good look through the Post Office policy, and it does say it covers motorcycles. A quote is comparable to what I have just got with Navigator. But I would still advise that anyone taking the policy explicitly asks about overland travel.
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Last edited by BruceP; 4 Oct 2012 at 10:39.
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  #13  
Old 6 Oct 2012
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i asked the post office about motorcycle touring around western europe, which was fine. 'mooching around', same sort of thing as backpacking, car or camper touring, and they were fine about it. there is nothing in the specific exclusions about any of those. basically if youre in/on your legal vehicle on legal roads doing legal regular stuff, you would have nothing to worry about. just make sure you get cover that repatriates you, thats the expensive bit they skimp on sometimes.

'overlanding' is a term i dont think they would understand, if i was on a big trip i would want specialist cover anyway, not tourist travel insurance!

edit; just read my PO policy, "motorcycling[not competing or racing]" is specifically mentioned in the sports and activities covered.
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  #14  
Old 7 Oct 2012
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DAVSATO View Post
i asked the post office about motorcycle touring around western europe, which was fine. 'mooching around', same sort of thing as backpacking, car or camper touring, and they were fine about it. there is nothing in the specific exclusions about any of those. basically if youre in/on your legal vehicle on legal roads doing legal regular stuff, you would have nothing to worry about. just make sure you get cover that repatriates you, thats the expensive bit they skimp on sometimes.

'overlanding' is a term i dont think they would understand, if i was on a big trip i would want specialist cover anyway, not tourist travel insurance!

edit; just read my PO policy, "motorcycling[not competing or racing]" is specifically mentioned in the sports and activities covered.
If they don't understand the term, they should not be offering insurance :-)

It is good that they are covinging it though, personally I get my Europe cover through Carole Nash.

It would have been interesting (and useful) if you had asked (The PO) them about cover for the rest of the world
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  #15  
Old 7 Oct 2012
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Insurance, ins brokers, ins underwriters, ins companies

I specifically avoid the kind of "all inclusive" insurance offers that remain available/on offer from banks and similar financial institutions; I do this as a principle for the type of reasoning that has been expressed here in earlier posts.
I know lots of people who are happy to take such products but I don't know any who have actually made a claim.

There is quite a bit of good discussion about medical insurance in the thread "staying healthy on the road" and vehicle insurance causes a lot of input to "trip paperwork".
The sticky threads in there can capture issues that are timeless and unlikely to go away any time soon.
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