No Fire cover on car insurance !!

dannyboybath

Thanks for your responses
Asking around it appears that it is the claims handler interpretation of electrical failure.
There is no doubt there was a fire , my partner parked the car goes into a friends & 5 mins later 2 blokes are banging on the front door going on about the cars on fire . It was them that called the fire brigade first .
What the insurance people are saying is Yes there was a fire BUT it was caused by an electrical failure or breakdown so they do not have to pay out in anyway , either to repair the fire damage or the part or parts that caused the fire.
They also state that this is common practice in ALL insurance policy's both vehicle and Homes .
Still seems a bit harsh , and totally defeats the point of having a comprehensive insurance policy against accident , fire & theft if when you claim they bring out all reasons not to pay out

dannyboybath

AdrianC wrote: »

Seems like an open-and-shut case. Your car suffered an electrical failure, the damage from which has rendered it beyond economical repair.

The fact that one of the symptoms of that electrical failure was a fire, and that fire damage is what is expensive to repair, doesn't affect the cause.

If your car engine died, would you expect insurance to pay out?
If your car electrics failed in a less melodramatic way, would you expect insurance to pay out?



They would pay for the third party claim, but not for the damage to your vehicle.

That defeats the object of having a comprehensive policy against accident , fire or theft. No car will catch light on its own accord, it will always be a failure of something , so therefore they don't have to pay out for any fire claims . Seems pointless having insurance then .
And as for that policy on house insurance , you could be left homeless

Hintza

If you suffer an electrical fault do not be in a rush to put the fire out as this is what will happen. Let it burn!

londonTiger

dannyboybath wrote: »

That defeats the object of having a comprehensive policy against accident , fire or theft. No car will catch light on its own accord, it will always be a failure of something , so therefore they don't have to pay out for any fire claims . Seems pointless having insurance then .
And as for that policy on house insurance , you could be left homeless

nooo.. because things just spontaneously burst into flames biblical style. That's what the insurance covers. Oh but not act of God which makes biblical fires null and void.

AdrianC

There's no such thing as "act of god" exclusions on insurance.

maddogb

During a weekend of family visiting my wife parked her car on the ground at the side of the house, at some point a rodent had crept up under the hood and chewed through a fuel line.
I'm pretty sure this could be the cause of many vehicle fires and would want evidence from any insurance company on how they are certain of the cause, if they can't provide that not very fair is it?

dacouch

Could you post up the exact wording of their letter rejecting the claim so we can make give more informed advice

AdrianC

Just looking at the Ts & Cs doc for my own car insurance...

Exceptions which apply to Sections B, C, D (C - Fire and Theft)

What is not covered...
* Any mechanical, electrical or computer failure, breakdown or breakage.

I don't know who you're with, OP, but mine is a major brand of a major insurance chain.

Quentin

The OP could train his sights on the car manufacturer.

AdrianC

Quentin wrote: »

The OP could train his sights on the car manufacturer.

Do we have the first clue how old this car was?