Blasted caravan insurers
 

I thought I'd insure my 1997 Abi Ace Airstream since I've got most bits of it right, after a fair bit of fiddling.

I want to keep her on a farm near me - nice and cheap, only £5 per week. There are about 40 other tourers there and maybe 30 stationary vans. There are half a dozen little businesses, car mechanics, tree surgeons, etc. There is livery - and it is also a working farm mostly I think fruit trees.

The touring vans are behind a big row of tall thin trees, close-ish to the biggest car mechanic's. The only entry is up about half a mile or so of drive, then past the mechanic's. Orchards are behind. Because of the trees farm vehicles are not a collision risk.

But because of the stationary vans and the fact that it's a working farm, of course there is no permanently locked gate.

Flipping Adrian Flux refused cover because of the absence of that gate. Even though I'm not that bothered about theft, no-one's going to nick my van when there are better ones to be had. What I DO want is traffic incident cover.

So now every other insurer refuses me cover because Adrian Flux refused cover.

Effing useless.

Roger, have you tried the Caravan Club insurance, they only stipulate the minimum security of a hitch lock. Obviously the more security you fit and declare reduces the premium. I have my caravan at a storage site on the Hoo Peninsular, but it is a CASSOA registered site. As a result there is more security at the site, but the cost is more at £7.25 a week with a discount if paying in advance (£350) for a year. Access is permissible from 07:00 in the morning until 21:30 everyday except Christmas day.

David

Caravan insurance is strange. I once had huge difficulty insuring a tourer that was to be kept in a locked compound governed by CCTV, because it wasn't rated how the insurance companies wanted it rating. It wasn't rated because I owned it! ....yet there was no issue if the caravan was stored on my drive, which would have been less secure.

You should be covered by your tow cars insurance for anything that happens on the road to others, although your caravan itself wouldn't be covered for damage to it.

What is just as important regards caravan insurance is having your van insured when not hitched up ie you are pushing it backwards by hand and you run over say a person, or damage something on the caravan site. If you had no caravan insurance, you obviously wouldn't be covered for such eventuality.

Have a word with Flux to see if they can remove any 'marker', or remove their 'refusal to insure' (which you have to declare elsewhere) so you can insure elsewhere without risk of cover being void.

Regards

Another nod to the Caravan Club.

I'm with Caravan Club, but not for traffic cover. Once your caravan is hooked to the car, then it becomes part of the car from an insurance point of view. Just make sure you tell your insurers that you will be towing. Most won't care, but, at least you've let them know.

Got mine with caravan and camping club. Mines stored on a farm also, full cover £140 ish a year.

Paul.

I suspect that when the question is have you been refused cover you are saying yes.

My understanding of this and your situation is that you have not been refused cover, but have merely fallen outside the criteria that Adrian Flux (luck escape by the way) adopt when choosing to offer cover.

I've been told that this question is designed to catch those who have had cover cancelled mid-policy because of fraud etc.

I would suggest you ask them to check your circumstances with the underwriter as I suspect you are making life more difficult for yourself than you need to.

Phone calls!
 

Hmm, that looks like a morning on the phone! After I've finished modifying the towel rails and the spare TP2 battery packs. Then she'll be ready to go on site.

£ 140 per year is VERY cheap. I don't think I'm likely to be able to match that in Kent!

Hi,
Just because we might not be able to insurer you as you don't meet our scheme criteria doesn't mean you've had insurance refused with ourselves however if you wanted to PM me your details I'd be happy to take a look into it just to make sure there is nothing untoward.
Regards,
Dan.

Insurance
 

I have checked and discovered that it is quite true that I do not have to say that I have been refused. Funny language, Insurancespeak.

I found both the caravan club and the camping and caravanning club helpful, but to use the caravan club scheme I have to join the caravan club which doubles the cost, and since I mainly use the van for festivals I have not yet found anything that the caravan club would be useful to me for.

The camping and caravanning club does not have such a stipulation and s materially cheaper than the combined cost (and much cheaper than all the commercial people you find on google) so I will probably go with them.

Thanks all for your input.