insurance companies again

[agentpineapple]

i had a chat with a mate of mine yesterday, he owns a 08 600 hornet, he's 38yrs old with 4 yrs ncb, he's just been quoted fully comp for £150 but he has to take off his crash bungs and fly screen because they are modifications and would invalidate his insurance, i can't believe insurance companies think crash bungs are a bad thing, and a honda retro fitted fly screen ffs .
this seems to be getting out of hand, sooner or later you won't be able to do anything to your bike, i reckon insurance companies in the future will only insure modified bikes if owners agree that in an accident they will only get payed out for standard replacements......
has anyone else come across this.
ultimately my mates happy with £150 fully comp, so he's agreed to do it.....

[BigVeeGrin]

this is a very grey area. A mate had a Ducati something exotic, forget what, and he was told to remove the bungs as at the time there was no evidence the bungs themselves wouldn't damage the frame and cause more expensive damage. I remember reading one of the BSB teams a couple of years ago wouldn't recommend them due to frame cracks, or the potential for.

[vtryorks]

My understanding is that no such modification could automatically invalidate insurance completely. The same goes for "illegal" exhaust pipes and such.

I have absolutely no proof of this but just based on my own knowledge over the years regarding insurance and law, an insurer cannot refuse to pay out based on an undeclared modification unless that modification has a direct bearing on the claim.

I suppose an example would be a claim against a fully comprehensive policy where the rider spilled the bike (with a race exhaust) on loose gravel. The exhaust ultimately would have little to no bearing on such a circumstance and even if a modification was not declared, such as fitting after the policy start date and forgetting to amend, it is unlikely they could refuse a claim entirely. Or imagine being hit by an uninsured driver but you are riding a bike with several undeclared modifications. The insurer refuses a payout for your health care. I doubt a judge would see this as reasonable providing your modifications did not in any way contribute to the accident.

Things are rarely clear cut in law, but crash bungs...its possible they could cause further frame damage I suppose, but I highly doubt if your friend fitted them after his policy commencement that the insurer could refuse to pay out entirely, perhaps only for the frame and only if they could prove the bungs were a factor in its demise.

Difficult one, I can see both sides of the equation. I do however think I am correct.

Its an interesting discussion nonetheless.

PS. My insurance on the 'Storm was only around £240 fully comp following a mad initial quote of over £500 TPFT from Bikesure. I only passed my test in July '11 and have 0 no claims. Which insurance company is your friend with, I'll make sure I avoid them? Or does he have 9 points and live in London?

[agentpineapple]

i'm not sure which compny he used, he's happy with the amount he's paid mind you. i just thought its odd that they said no crash bungs, i know modern bike frames are more rigid than ever before, but they do brake/crack/snap easier than older frames, so maybe thats why they don't like frame protectors, another friend of mine had a 50+mph spill at silverstone, and his bike spun 4 times on the crash bung, it did its job, only a couple of scratches to the fairing, so they do work, it just depends on the type of accident.....

[BigVeeGrin]

i'm not sure which compny he used, he's happy with the amount he's paid mind you. i just thought its odd that they said no crash bungs, i know modern bike frames are more rigid than ever before, but they do brake/crack/snap easier than older frames, so maybe thats why they don't like frame protectors, another friend of mine had a 50+mph spill at silverstone, and his bike spun 4 times on the crash bung, it did its job, only a couple of scratches to the fairing, so they do work, it just depends on the type of accident.....

and the type of bung I guess. Cheap crap and you're running a risk I would guess.