Bicycle Insurance -(Excluding Electric Bikes)

[clanjones]

Up until now I have always insured our bikes via our House Insurance. Total value of 3 bikes was about £5000. This year, the costs using our house insurance was in excess of £120.00. Did some hunting around came up with TSB Pick and Protect.

https://www.tsb.co.uk/home-insurance/

You don't need to take out their house insurance you can just pick what you like. Key thing is you only insure to the value of the most expensive bike and all other bikes are covered! There is also no need for a gold secure lock to be fitted. (you do need to lock the bike to an immovable object though, which a bike rack on a motorhome is deemed to be)

The maximum value of bike they will insure is £3,500 which just happens to be the cost of our current tandem for the princely sum of circa £32.00!

 

[Robin McHood]

Still don't get the differentiation between bikes and ebikes for insurance. Both our ebikes cost way less than £3500 yet are excluded from almost all contents policies??? There is no difference in how you secure such a bike and take away the battery and any attraction for nicking the bike disappears. So why the prejudice of insurers against ebikes??

 

[The Wino]

Still don't get the differentiation between bikes and ebikes for insurance. Both our ebikes cost way less than £3500 yet are excluded from almost all contents policies??? There is no difference in how you secure such a bike and take away the battery and any attraction for nicking the bike disappears. So why the prejudice of insurers against ebikes??

I can only think its the history of claims. I think a lot of them could be dammage when a theft is attempted or bikes that get nicked then dumped when they realise theres no battery. We have a couple of bikes so old its not worth insuring them but only use them for occasional baguette fetching

 

[clanjones]

That is an interesting point. I have never understood the insurance industry and what is and isn't covered. I always think of the film 'The man who sued god' when I look at insurance policies.

It will be interesting to see what happens WRT the investigation on lower policy costs for new policy holders (churn), as it is a real pain to review policies every year which I do.

Silver lining is that I wouldn't have found this new policy though!

 

[Minxy]

Still don't get the differentiation between bikes and ebikes for insurance. Both our ebikes cost way less than £3500 yet are excluded from almost all contents policies??? There is no difference in how you secure such a bike and take away the battery and any attraction for nicking the bike disappears. So why the prejudice of insurers against ebikes??

It may be that as it is able to self-propel to some extent (remember a lot were twist and go) rather than a user propelled one, it has a higher risk for such things as public liability, damage to bike etc.

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[Minxy]

Just read the policy details ... unfortunately it doesn't cover e-bikes or any bike with a 'motor' (petrol?).

Bike Cover insures your pedal cycles while in and away from the home, anywhere in the world. Insure your most expensive pedal cycle and all pedal cycles at the address shown on your schedule will be covered. We will provide cover for loss or damage to your pedal cycle, hire of a replacement pedal cycle and public liability. The most we will pay for loss or damage to each individual pedal cycle is the limit shown on your schedule

We will not cover • the excess(es) shown on your schedule; • loss or damage to tyres or accessories unless the pedal cycle is stolen or damaged at the same time; • theft unless the cycle is: a. in your immediate custody and control; b. securely locked to an object that cannot be moved; or c. in a locked building • any pedal cycle with a motor; • loss or damage caused by wear and tear, light, weather conditions, damp, rust, wet rot or dry rot or anything that happens gradually; • loss or damage caused by the process of cleaning, washing, repairing or restoring; • mechanical and electrical breakdown; • confiscation or detention by Customs or other officials; • loss in value; • any loss or damage covered by another policy; • any loss that is not the direct result of the insured incident itself; • theft by deception unless deception is only used as a way to get into the home; or • any loss or damage covered by another policy; • any loss that is not the direct result of the insured incident itself; • theft by deception unless deception is only used as a way to get into the home; or • anything set out in the General Exclusions section of the separate General Terms and Conditions home policy document.

 

[Robin McHood]

Just read the policy details ... unfortunately it doesn't cover e-bikes or any bike with a 'motor' (petrol?).

Bike Cover insures your pedal cycles while in and away from the home, anywhere in the world. Insure your most expensive pedal cycle and all pedal cycles at the address shown on your schedule will be covered. We will provide cover for loss or damage to your pedal cycle, hire of a replacement pedal cycle and public liability. The most we will pay for loss or damage to each individual pedal cycle is the limit shown on your schedule

We will not cover • the excess(es) shown on your schedule; • loss or damage to tyres or accessories unless the pedal cycle is stolen or damaged at the same time; • theft unless the cycle is: a. in your immediate custody and control; b. securely locked to an object that cannot be moved; or c. in a locked building • any pedal cycle with a motor; • loss or damage caused by wear and tear, light, weather conditions, damp, rust, wet rot or dry rot or anything that happens gradually; • loss or damage caused by the process of cleaning, washing, repairing or restoring; • mechanical and electrical breakdown; • confiscation or detention by Customs or other officials; • loss in value; • any loss or damage covered by another policy; • any loss that is not the direct result of the insured incident itself; • theft by deception unless deception is only used as a way to get into the home; or • any loss or damage covered by another policy; • any loss that is not the direct result of the insured incident itself; • theft by deception unless deception is only used as a way to get into the home; or • anything set out in the General Exclusions section of the separate General Terms and Conditions home policy document.

Yes, thats exactly the same as most policies I've found. Crazily enough our LV contents insurance will happily insure a racing bike up to £3000 at no extra cost anywhere (said bike capable of speeds far in excess of anything I'd dare do on my ebike) and yet despite me telling them this and explaining the limits on a pedelec, they refused to cover our bikes.

 

[Clarky]

May I ask who you ebike users insure with?
Haven't insured my £3k+ bike although I know I should, if only against third party claims/ accidental damage etc. Our home insurance won't cover it and some specialist bike insurance appears to cover things that are no use to me, racing etc.

Richard.

 

[clanjones]

As we ride a tandem I got the info regarding the TSB policy from UK tandem group. Another company mentioned was pedalcover who do cover electric bikes and house insurance. They could not cover over 60 days away from the home though.

Might be worth a look.

https://pedalcover.co.uk/get-insurance-cover/home-bike-insurance/electric-bike-insurance/

 

[Minxy]

A few companies here:

https://www.money.co.uk/bicycle-insurance/electric-bicycle-insurance.htm

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[stonflo]

There is an item on bike insurance on Bike Radar today.

 

[Minxy]

You sure that insuring your bikes via your house insurance is a good idea?

Yup, so long as the T&Cs are met and their value is covered why not?

 

[pagey]

our 2 ebikes are insured within or home insurance thats with c&mc when i added them this year there was no extra cost they are even covered for 60 days at a time in europe

 

[Geistguy]

Yup, so long as the T&Cs are met and their value is covered why not?

Perfectly safe but has to be under the "all risks" section and as a specified item if above a certain value. If relying on the blanket All Risks cover ( ie items up to £x value ) then just add a note saying "includes cycles"

 

[Minxy]

Perfectly safe but has to be under the "all risks" section and as a specified item if above a certain value. If relying on the blanket All Risks cover ( ie items up to £x value ) then just add a note saying "includes cycles"

It depends on the policy, some have bikes included to a certain value as standard, some exclude them unless specified regardless of value, as I sais you need to check the T&Cs and make sure you meet them.

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[carolyn]

On our Aviva home insurance our ebikes are insured under valuable items. They are described in detail and are then covered. They won’t cover them under normal bikes even though they cover road bikes up to £8000 each, barmy. The chap I spoke to agreed. Motorhome bike racks count as immovable objects with them whereas with some they’d have to be in a garage. It was a right old palaver.