Insurance company want me to pay for Crime Report

duffpaddy

Hi,

I had my bike stolen from the basement of my building at the end of January which I reported to the police and subsequently my insurance company. The bike was D-locked to an immovable bike stand however they still managed to steal it somehow. The building I live in is a new build and, although I wasn't aware of this at the time, when I showed the police around it was found that some of the doors that give access to the communal areas of the building do not lock properly or can be yanked opened (thanks developers!). The police sent round a forensics unit however there was no evidence for them to determine how it was stolen (i.e. no method determined - liquid nitrogen, power tools, saw) or how they gained access to the building i.e. no forced entry, neighbours stole the bike etc..

I reported all this in my insurance claim and after 4 weeks of them trying to process my claim, they have asked for the following:

=====================================

Dear Mr duffpaddy

We can confirm receipt of your correspondence received into our offices 22nd March 2010, the contents of which have been duly noted.

Please find attached a form to be completed, signed and given to the relevant police station. Please note they may charge a small fee and the person who reports the theft must be the person who completes the form.

Once we are in receipt of this report we will be able to finalise your claim.

=====================================

They've not stated what this form is and when I looked at it, I wasn't clear where it came from as the form was sent to me as two jpeg images. See below.

I phoned the insurance company to find out what the hell was going on and they told me that they were trying to get access to my Crime Report and that I would have to pay the insurance company £75 for the pleasure!

I phoned the police and they said that I didn't need to do anything other than give my consent to access my data. They said the insurance company should pay for the cost of accessing the data.

Who is right?? And what should I do as my insurance company said they won't process my claim unless I pay them!!

They state that I should pay for the crime report because of the following condition in my insurance policy:

"All loses must be backed up by receipts for the insured property or for any costs incurred. The receipts must show the date, price paid, details of the item and name and address of the seller. You must provide valuations, reports, evidence, information etc. at your own expense if we request them."

This seems bonkers however as this condition clearly applies to information directly related to the insured item not the administration fee they are trying to avoid paying??

Anyone know what the correct procedure is here? I would have thought that as the insurance company has my crime reference number they can liase with the police directly......I'm not sure why I have to be involved or why I have to write to the police station??

Thanks in advance,
duffpaddy

duffpaddy

Sorry I can't attach links of the forms.

Try these instead.

flickr.com/photos/7948204@N04/4473306599/

flickr.com/photos/7948204@N04/4474083802/

FlameCloud

You need to give your specific consent by filling in the forms they sent you.They are standard police release forms agreed between ACPO and the ABI. The only issue you have is who pays for them and as per your quote it appears you do.

duffpaddy

So are these definitely standard forms then?

I understand that they require my consent to access my data I just don't understand why I have to do all the leg work. I would have thought I sign a SAR so the insurance company can access my information and liase with the police directly. Afterall they are the ones who require the information to verify my version of events. Is this typical of insurance companies?

Also where does this figure of £75 come from? Is this how much a subject access request for a crime report costs? They wouldn't put it in writing after I asked them to them which makes me have my doubts.

Is there not standard industry practice about how insurance companies obtain crime reports as it would seem a very common thing for insurance companies to need to do?

FlameCloud

This is standard industry practise.

Essentially, over the last 5 years the police have given less and less information to insurers unless they were forced to do so. Gone are the days when you could phone up and be told anything you wanted from them.

Then, the ACPO (Police) and ABI (Insurers) got together and decided on a set of questions and signatures that the police were happy with and these are the end result. They are occasionally branded for each insurer but the questions are identical.

The £75 fee is set by the Home Office for the polices time, the insurers do not set it.

Unfortunatly you have do do all the leg work because without it, the police will not release the information insurers need to settle the claim.

geri1965_2

I've never heard of the policyholder having to pay for a police report before - I've had a number of bikes stolen and all I've ever had to do is report it to the police and give insurers a crime reference.

I deal with motor claims for an insurance company and they pay for police reports themselves.

Which insurer is this?

dacouch

geri1965 wrote: »

I've never heard of the policyholder having to pay for a police report before - I've had a number of bikes stolen and all I've ever had to do is report it to the police and give insurers a crime reference.

I deal with motor claims for an insurance company and they pay for police reports themselves.

Which insurer is this?

They probably want the police report in this case as the bike has been stolen from inside a communal building with no signs of a forced entry so they want to look at the whether the bike was inside the building and whether it was locked (In the police's view). The claim being covered by the policy could be dependent on the circumstances the police declare

If it was stolen in different circumstances they may not have required it.

stevemarsh1976

Its common practice to have to pay for a police report these days. As has been stated in previous posts long gone are the days where you can phone the local bobby for a bit of info, set proceedures have to be followed and 9/10 that entails the individual obtaining such information

geri1965_2

stevemarsh1976 wrote: »

Its common practice to have to pay for a police report these days. As has been stated in previous posts long gone are the days where you can phone the local bobby for a bit of info, set proceedures have to be followed and 9/10 that entails the individual obtaining such information

Yes, it's common practice to have to pay for them - I accept that. I do not accept that the policyholder should have to pay for them. Surely insurers should pay the cost of investigating their own claims? What next, insurers ask policyholders to pay loss adjusters fees or other disbursements?

stevemarsh1976

geri1965 wrote: »

Yes, it's common practice to have to pay for them - I accept that. I do not accept that the policyholder should have to pay for them. Surely insurers should pay the cost of investigating their own claims? What next, insurers ask policyholders to pay loss adjusters fees or other disbursements?

The arguement ive had from some insurers is its up to the policyholder to prove forciable or violent conduct (which is normally the clause on theft they are trying to establish) and a police report goes someway to providing that evidence.

I dont necessarily agree with it but I understand the concept.

As for other costs loss adjusters etc, well in essence the policy holder does. Spiralling claims costs is seeing a rise in insurance premiums right accross the board, loss adjuster fees are part and parcel of the claims costs. Not what you were getting at I know but its something many people dont take into consideration.

Torby

make sure you add it was an expensive bike lock/anchor, you know the type, they cost around £75 and claim for it as well...