Motorhome Insurance through the club.
I have been insured through the club for a good number of years both with the caravan and lastly with the motorhome. I have just sold the motorhome after nearly 7yrs of ownership, through Motorhome Depot and had a very good experience with them.
However, today the van went and I thought I must phone up and cancel the insurance, which had until 7th November to run, I was gobsmacked to be told that it would incur a £35 cancellation fee. I had never thought of asking other insurance companies if they apply a charge such as this, obviously I will in the future.
I will be at the NEC on the 16th October looking for a new motorhome but, will not be re-insuring with the Caravan Club again. Please be aware of this ridiculous charge.
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Hi, yes all insurance completed through the club. The phone number given on the club site is direct to Devitt Insurance and not (as I thought) the caravan club.
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Is it not quite common to pay a cancellation fee when you prematurely cancel an insurance policy, your home broadband, mobile phone contract etc? As to whether you reinsure with the Club is a different matter. Surely you will go for the best policy which might happen to be one by the Club or it could be with another insurer. To completely rule out the Club might mean you pay more (than £35) elsewhere.
David
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Agreed. NFU also have a hassle free and efficient claims service. An office I can visit staffed by real people is worth a lot as well.
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Regrettably I had already said I had sold the van and you cannot have a vehicle insured twice. Many years ago when we had a caravan and stored on a farm, the only company that would insure it was the NFU. We found then very helpful and good to deal with however, when changed to the motorhome they were not competitive.
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"Regrettably I had already said I had sold the van and you cannot have a vehicle insured twice."
In my view where a vehicle is not owned by a person who happens to have a "live" policy on it that policy does not insure it because the insured does not have an insurable interest or indeed any interest.
Fees for variations and cancellations are the norm nowadays. It may be that they help keep premiums down or if you are cynical profits up.
I sold a motorhome in 2011 before delivery of a replacement.
I informed my insurers who said that they would charge a cancellation fee. The amount of the return premium was less than the fee so they wanted me to pay them. So I said OK don't cancel. They said this would cause difficulties because the vehicen"would be insured twice" however in my view since I did not own the vehicle I could not receive the benefit of insurance (technically I had no insurable interest) but I could not see any legal obligation for me to cancel as opposed to informing the insurance company.
Matters ended there for me and AFAIK the new owners had no difficulties either. However in most cases where the return premium is more than the fee this approach won't work.
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Not quite that simple I'm afraid but as you say pointless !!
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I thought i would share with Members my frustration, on our way back from Holiday in August a Van Clipped our Motorhome Drivers side Mirror. The road was slightly narrow , the Van came into my lane hence the Damage. Unable to stop and was unable to get the Vehicle Number i stopped when it was safe to do so and taped the Mirror.The other damage was a chunk taken out of my side window and some scuffs on the paintwork.
We had Insured the Motorhome through the Club and our Broker is AXA. We reported the incident the same day gave them all the information etc.
This was on the 24th of August the Motorhome was not collected untill the 6th of October . I receive a text Yes you heard it right each week.To let us know how far they have got .
Today was the last straw they tell me the Window is being picked up today and then the Motorhome will be in the Paint shop and i will get another text next tuesday.
My frustration is this, the Mirror has been fitted as far as i know , the Window had to be specially made and molded to the correct specification . And still the paintwork has not been touched . I told them i do not want another text and i want a telephone call on Tuesday from them.
The repairers are not too far from where i live so on Saturday i will be giving them a visit .Two months to sort this out is not on , and when i do finally get my Motorhome back i will be sending a complaint to the club. I have been unable to use it for two months as it stands today . Not good enough in my opinion ..So if anyone is thinking of insuring with AXA be aware.
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I'm afraid cancellation fees are becoming something of a bind with most companies asking for them.
When we changed a vehicle earlier this year the company we were with wanted £50
however they did say that when we got our new car if we re-insured with them within 3 months the £50 would be refunded.Now the cynic's amongst you would think their quote would be more expensive to cover the cost, however they were the most competitive so got the new business.
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I've just phoned the club's motorhome insurer, Devitt, to clarify some points after doing an online quote. Chap I spoke to was so offhand and disinterested I have completely dismissed any notion of going ahead with the policy. I'm thinking ahead of how helpful (or unhelpful) the staff might be should I have to deal with making a claim.
He might just be having a bad day - but I'm going with my instincts!
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I had a totally different experience today. The quote I received for renewal of my Motorhome insurance from the Club was very competitive compared with my current policy.
The online chat and subsequent phone conversation were both very helpful.
The policy document clearly states charges you will incur for early cancellation or amendment. My current policy required an admin charge to be paid in addition to the policy premium. There was no additional service charge with the CMC policy.
When buying any insurance, it pays to read the small print before taking out the policy. I'm very happy with my renewal with the Club. If not, I wouldn't have taken it out in the first place.
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