Valet Parking and Insurance

martindow

There is an article in the Guardian today which suggests that damage to your car caused by some valet parking services will not be covered by insurance. Apparently valet parking is specifically excluded in the small print of some policies and the valet company may not have adequate cover.

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/nov/09/valet-parking-car-insurance-damage

I thought I would post it here for comments about how much of a worry this really is.

photome

I am surprised that any policys provide cover when using valet parking

Obviously_the_best

Surely it should be up to the valet company to have appropriate insurance, otherwise they'd be legally responsible for damage they cause to you car whilst they have it, no?

Tojo_Ralph

Naturally we all like to think that those we entrust our vehicles to have their own insurance, however how many of us bother to check?

I work on the basis that life is too short to read all the small print all the time but insurance takes on a whole new meaning when "valet" parking involves a hire car as the Ts&Cs invariably cover use ONLY by named drivers. Thereby, by allowing the vehicle to be driven by a hotel valet, you breach the Ts&Cs of your agreement with the Hire company.

businka

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/nov/09/valet-parking-car-insurance-damage#start-of-comments
I like the comment for an article, I feel it's fair (NOT MY comment)
"I work for a meet and greet parking company at Gatwick called Help Me Park and would like to set the record straight.
We have worked hard to establish our business and feel that your article does nothing but cause mistrust of the whole meet and greet parking industry.
Your car is covered by our insurance while it is being driven on public roads and being moved in our car park. While it is parked, it is covered by the customer’s insurance, in the same way it would be if it were parked in any other car park, multi-storey, supermarket etc.
Rather than just focusing on the negative side of the industry, your article should be advising people about what to look out for and how to choose a meet and greet parking company.
There are as many as 50 meet and greet parking companies operating at Gatwick, and anyone that hasn’t been put off meet and greet parking by your article, should look to book with a Gatwick Approved Operator.
At other airports, where there isn’t an approved operator scheme in place, they should look for a meet and greet parking company that holds the Safer Parking ParkMark award, which ensures that the company has planning permission for a registered car park and adequate security in place. Trading Standards’ Buy With Confidence scheme has now been extended to cover meet and greet parking companies, so your readers would be well advised to book with a meet and greet parking company that has also been approved by Trading Standards."

We parking often in different airports, and only had minor problems/complaints, but customer service was ever so friendly and helpful, and would resolved the situation efficiently. Never needed to involve our insurance company.