Car engine fire - should insurance pay up?

Sweep2013

My son had an engine fire in his car and the insurance company are saying he is not covered, even though he has fully comprehensive cover. Is this correct?

InsideInsurance

On what grounds are they saying he isnt covered?

You are not insured for electrical/ mechanical faults and so in the case of a "spontaneous" fire you will typically find that the root cause of the fire isnt covered but the resultant damage is.

I am no expert on cars themselves so no one shoot me if this isnt possible, but if the cause of the fire was found to be a split in the fuel line and the resultant fire destroyed the engine and the surrounding bodywork then the insurer would pay for the repair/ replacement of all of it excluding the cost of replacing the fuel line.

James_Lahey

I have no knowledge but II's post makes sense to me, this link would suggest the same -

http://carinsurance.about.com/od/CarInsuranceClaims/a/Car-Fire-And-Insurance.htm

jules888

My husbands car engine caught fire few years go and he got payout ok from insurance.

vaio

James_Lahey wrote: »

I have no knowledge but II's post makes sense to me, this link would suggest the same -

http://carinsurance.about.com/od/CarInsuranceClaims/a/Car-Fire-And-Insurance.htm

Think that link is from the US so can't be guaranteed to apply over here.

For the OP I'd have said that fire is a specific peril and should be covered under all circumstances.

Lodge a complaint with the insurer. To concentrate their minds you could mention any additional costs you will seek to recover as a result of their wrongly denying or delaying your claim.

If that doesn't resolve it then once you have their final decision or 8 weeks have elapsed you can refer to the FOS

jobdone1

they will try anything to get out of paying what would they say if he was THIRD PARTY FIRE AND THEFT o sorry your not covered, utter madness its a simple question they don;t want to make a loss well sorry is that not what insurance is for to cover your loss """"""""

weejonnie

I think the thing to do is to read the policy and find out what exclusions there are under the wording. The duty of proof lies with the insurer i.e. that they would have to establish that the cause of the fire was a policy exclusion. e.g. Direct Line have the following exclusions; (amongst others)

• loss or damage caused by wear and tear or loss of value;
• any mechanical, electrical or computer failure, breakdown or breakage;

Under this policy, if the fire was caused by electrical failure then they could avoid paying out.

vaio

Nah, I think fire is a specific peril that is covered not matter what the cause.

I think the exclusion you mention means they won't pay if your alternator fails

hugoshavez

vaio wrote: »

Nah, I think fire is a specific peril that is covered not matter what the cause.

I think the exclusion you mention means they won't pay if your alternator fails

You might want to rethink that one!

paddedjohn

hugoshavez wrote: »

You might want to rethink that one!

Looks right to me, the insurance will cover a fire but it wont cover failure of any engine components.

scheming_gypsy

A friend of mine had a similar problem a few years ago and didn't get a payout. 'Fire' seemed to be more a case of arson rather than a mechanical failure which caused the fire.