The Lex-Man
Have you got a question regarding scooter insurance that you need answering?
Whilst we at Scootering always try our best, we thought it easier to give a few column inches to an expert in such matters. Andy Goodson of Lexham Insurance Consultants owns an electric start Lambretta LD and a Vespa SS90 amongst others, which include a Vespa P200E for regular use, and he’s the man for this job!
Feel free to drop us a line at the usual address (please keep it concise and mark the envelope ‘The Lex Man’) and we'll pass it on to Andy. We can't promise to publish each and every one, but we'll do our best. We would also advice that should your enquiry be urgent your current insurers should be your first point of call, and if you are still not satisfied, the Financial Ombudsman,
www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk.
Andy’s advice & comments are offered in good faith, but they can be based only on the information we pass on to him & are given on the basis that neither he nor Lexham will be liable for any consequences.
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Can I get insurance just for theft, as I am not using my scooter yet for the roads?
P Murton,
Manchester, Lancs
This is something that’s not uncommon, but some insurers aren’t very helpful in offering suitable cover. There are several possibilities.
1 The most convenient solution can be to cover it under your household contents insurance. The problem is that all contents insurances exclude ‘mechanically propelled vehicles other than garden implements’ (or some similar wording). Household insurers aren’t keen on insuring vehicles, but it’s worth a try – if you’ve been with an insurer for some time they may be willing to insure the scooter as a specified item. This is often the cheapest solution and doesn’t need a separate policy. It’ll then be covered against all the usual household risks such as fire, theft, storm, flood etc, unless the insurer restricts cover.
2 If this doesn’t work or if you haven’t got contents insurance, try for a ‘fire & theft only’ or ‘laid-up’ motor policy. Not many insurers will give this to a new customer, so you may have to hunt around; but if you’re already insured, your insurer may be willing to reduce cover to this level. You can’t normally do this for short periods such as during the winter if you’re just a summer rider, and you don’t earn no claims discount during such cover.
3 As a last resort, you may have to take out ordinary third party fire & theft cover, though you’ll be paying for cover you don’t need. However, you should earn no claims discount and you’ll already be insured to ride your bike as soon as it’s roadworthy.
If the vehicle is garaged elsewhere – eg at a lock-up – make sure you tell the insurer; this isn’t normally a problem, but it might be in a different rating area and the insurer won’t pay a claim if they didn’t know where the bike was kept.
Regards,
Andy
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