The issue I now have is that it was nicked out of the garage by some poxy kids who managed to ride it around a local field and crash it into a ditch. Thankfully, it has been recovered but the insurer is refusing to pay out because it says I only insured it as a standard 916 and I didn’t keep it locked in the garage with an approved lock. Can I sue the insurer or something?
Answer
If it was a term of your policy to have the bike locked up with an approved lock and you didn’t then you are in breach of the policy. This means the insurer is within its rights not to pay out.
With regards to it being “tricked up” you are meant to go to the insurer with “clean hands” Therefore, if you have only paid to insure a standard 916 and you have “tricked it up” then you didn’t pay the right premium to insure the risk. This again means that in all likelihood it is within its rights not to pay out.
I do appreciate that some insurers are a pain in the proverbial (I deal with them everyday!) so you need to check the terms of your policy very carefully. If an insurer has got it wrong then you have a right of action against them.
Andrew ‘Chef’ Prendergast
Motorcycle Monthly
www.morebikes.co.uk
