Experience with Insurance Company
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- menzies3032
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Experience with Insurance Company
Hi All
Thought my experience might be of interest. I am documenting below my experience of a 3rd party claim what happened and how much time i have had to wait. I am posting this incase others have a similar decision to make to allow you to make an educated choice.
If you don't like reading a lot of text you might want to give the below a miss.
Back on 3rd July on a ride out my best mate didn't see me stopping and we had an accident. He went over the handle bars ended up in a ditch and wrote off his bike. But for me it was a very minor tap causing minor damage to a bit of plastic on the exhaust and damaging the mount on the right hand indicator. We jointly agreed that we would go the insurance company route and get everything sorted officially.
I have my insurance with Bennetts he had insurance with Motorcycle direct. Both companies moved the claim to a company called 4th Dimension to handle.
I tried going the route of getting the main dealer to asses the damage and getting them to repair it and then just send the bill to the insurance company and this would have been a total bill of just £175 fully fitted. However I was advised if i did this it would not be a 3rd party claim it would be a fully com claim and I would need to pay the excess (£350) so basically I would have to cover the cost of the accident, so i chose not to do this and let it run its course.
4th Dimension advised they need to come and collect the bike (£250) which they did on the 13th July they would then have their assessment team value the damage (£70) and the bike would then sit in storage (£50 per day) until the bike could be repaired and brought back to me (another £250). They then tried to sell me that I have helmet and leather cover and would I like to make a claim for the full amount. I advised no because nothing was damaged and this would be wrong (they seemed most upset) they then asked if I would like a hire bike for the summer whilst mine was being fixed. This really upset me as I realized they were now just money grabbing and I advised the work is going to take somebody 30 minutes tops so why would I want a hire bike so "NO"
A week after the bike was taken it was valued. They quoted the damage at £1800, when questioned they advised the whole exhaust needed changing (my ass it did) and also a rear grab handle was damaged (my ass it was) and also the seat had a rip in it and needed changing (no it didn't).
Several weeks passed and I was contacted to say that the 3rd party's insurance company had not admitted liability and there recommendation was for me to change this to a Comprehensive claim that way work could start immediately. I questioned about the £350 excess and they tried to say that i would not need to pay it, after pushing further it came clear i would need to pay it but if the other party admitted liability then I would be able to make a further claim to claim it back, oh and by the way it would then become a claim that was my fault so my premium would then go up. So I pasted and said thanks for the advise I will wait.
At this point contacted my friend and asked him to call Motorcycle Direct. Within 24 hours they admitted liability and communicated with 4th Dimension to proceed with the repairs.
The big wait then started as they ordered parts (from the slow boat from china) and then scheduled the work. I was contacted multiple times to basically say my bike would not be back until the end of September but i continued to push with them getting confirmation when the parts had arrived and why my bike was not being repaired and why 30 minutes work was going to take 4 weeks to complete.
I then saw on my GPS tracking app for the bike it had been started and taken on a test ride on the 6th September so i called back and asked why is somebody riding my bike, I had a call back scheduling the delivery of the bike to come back to me tomorrow (13th September)
This lot are a bunch of thieving b'stards that have a license to print money and my god aren't they just If you want to know why our insurance premiums are so high this is why......
Original bill to fix it myself= £175
- New Indicator
- New bit of plastic to go on the exhaust
- 30 minutes labor to fix at a main dealer
Bill for Insurance company to fix it = £5420
- £250 bike collection
- £70 damage evaluation
- £1800 bike repairs and parts
- £3050 for 61 days in storage (at £50 per day)
- £250 bike return
If i had taken a hire bike and also gone for the helmet and leather cover think the bike might have been written off as the bike is only valued at £10,500 brand new. 61 days of hire bike costs i'm sure would have pushed it over the top......
So tomorrow will let you know how the bike comes back, if it looks like it has been left in a forest for the last few months or if its been looked after and if they have actually repaired the bike or if it is worse then before it left.
Thought my experience might be of interest. I am documenting below my experience of a 3rd party claim what happened and how much time i have had to wait. I am posting this incase others have a similar decision to make to allow you to make an educated choice.
If you don't like reading a lot of text you might want to give the below a miss.
Back on 3rd July on a ride out my best mate didn't see me stopping and we had an accident. He went over the handle bars ended up in a ditch and wrote off his bike. But for me it was a very minor tap causing minor damage to a bit of plastic on the exhaust and damaging the mount on the right hand indicator. We jointly agreed that we would go the insurance company route and get everything sorted officially.
I have my insurance with Bennetts he had insurance with Motorcycle direct. Both companies moved the claim to a company called 4th Dimension to handle.
I tried going the route of getting the main dealer to asses the damage and getting them to repair it and then just send the bill to the insurance company and this would have been a total bill of just £175 fully fitted. However I was advised if i did this it would not be a 3rd party claim it would be a fully com claim and I would need to pay the excess (£350) so basically I would have to cover the cost of the accident, so i chose not to do this and let it run its course.
4th Dimension advised they need to come and collect the bike (£250) which they did on the 13th July they would then have their assessment team value the damage (£70) and the bike would then sit in storage (£50 per day) until the bike could be repaired and brought back to me (another £250). They then tried to sell me that I have helmet and leather cover and would I like to make a claim for the full amount. I advised no because nothing was damaged and this would be wrong (they seemed most upset) they then asked if I would like a hire bike for the summer whilst mine was being fixed. This really upset me as I realized they were now just money grabbing and I advised the work is going to take somebody 30 minutes tops so why would I want a hire bike so "NO"
A week after the bike was taken it was valued. They quoted the damage at £1800, when questioned they advised the whole exhaust needed changing (my ass it did) and also a rear grab handle was damaged (my ass it was) and also the seat had a rip in it and needed changing (no it didn't).
Several weeks passed and I was contacted to say that the 3rd party's insurance company had not admitted liability and there recommendation was for me to change this to a Comprehensive claim that way work could start immediately. I questioned about the £350 excess and they tried to say that i would not need to pay it, after pushing further it came clear i would need to pay it but if the other party admitted liability then I would be able to make a further claim to claim it back, oh and by the way it would then become a claim that was my fault so my premium would then go up. So I pasted and said thanks for the advise I will wait.
At this point contacted my friend and asked him to call Motorcycle Direct. Within 24 hours they admitted liability and communicated with 4th Dimension to proceed with the repairs.
The big wait then started as they ordered parts (from the slow boat from china) and then scheduled the work. I was contacted multiple times to basically say my bike would not be back until the end of September but i continued to push with them getting confirmation when the parts had arrived and why my bike was not being repaired and why 30 minutes work was going to take 4 weeks to complete.
I then saw on my GPS tracking app for the bike it had been started and taken on a test ride on the 6th September so i called back and asked why is somebody riding my bike, I had a call back scheduling the delivery of the bike to come back to me tomorrow (13th September)
This lot are a bunch of thieving b'stards that have a license to print money and my god aren't they just If you want to know why our insurance premiums are so high this is why......
Original bill to fix it myself= £175
- New Indicator
- New bit of plastic to go on the exhaust
- 30 minutes labor to fix at a main dealer
Bill for Insurance company to fix it = £5420
- £250 bike collection
- £70 damage evaluation
- £1800 bike repairs and parts
- £3050 for 61 days in storage (at £50 per day)
- £250 bike return
If i had taken a hire bike and also gone for the helmet and leather cover think the bike might have been written off as the bike is only valued at £10,500 brand new. 61 days of hire bike costs i'm sure would have pushed it over the top......
So tomorrow will let you know how the bike comes back, if it looks like it has been left in a forest for the last few months or if its been looked after and if they have actually repaired the bike or if it is worse then before it left.
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Living in Teignmouth and riding a BMW F900R SE (in Suzuki blue colours )
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
These kinds of insurance shenanigans are a disgusting joke aren’t they? No wonder we pay so much. Unless my bike was comprehensively totalled, I think that I will always try to fix it myself.
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
Rob,
This has become standard practice with every claim now, f@ck knows how they get away with it….Have you submitted an official complaint to the insurance company? If so, you then can submit a complaint to the insurance ombudsman. The more we highlight this the better the chances are for it to cease. Well, one can always dream right?
This has become standard practice with every claim now, f@ck knows how they get away with it….Have you submitted an official complaint to the insurance company? If so, you then can submit a complaint to the insurance ombudsman. The more we highlight this the better the chances are for it to cease. Well, one can always dream right?
- MellowYellow
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
When my RS was nicked a little while ago, I too was referred to 4th. dimension.
They collected the bike 2 days later. I was given a decent price for the bike (which was written-off). The insurance company paid out a couple of days later.
A seamless and speedy matter throughout when I was expecting aggro.
Happy as Larry I was.
They collected the bike 2 days later. I was given a decent price for the bike (which was written-off). The insurance company paid out a couple of days later.
A seamless and speedy matter throughout when I was expecting aggro.
Happy as Larry I was.
Have you noticed that anyone going slower than you is an idiot, and anyone going faster is a maniac ?
Re: Experience with Insurance Company
These are people who have got mine and they have had it a month longer than yours Rob
So that's £1500 more in storage so far, just getting the weekly email saying waiting for parts
So that's £1500 more in storage so far, just getting the weekly email saying waiting for parts
MV 1000 brutale rs
MV 800 turismo veloce luso
MV 800 turismo veloce luso
- Robbo87
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
Yup, that just about sums it up, except it's no joke. There's a lesson in this somewhere, like doing minor repairs yourself or, maybe if you have to involve an insurance company, to do some research before committing. Also, I'd be following Chris1's suggestion and getting the Ombudsman involved.
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- ptolemyx
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
Rob, were you first talking to Bennetts, your insurance broker or your actual insurance underwriters? Could you have insisted that repairs be done the old fashioned way and not via 4th Dimension, who are known rogues? The storage fees are an astronomical rip-off and the usual hire bike offer can end up with you having a huge unexpected bill to pay while you try to get that cost off the third party. And did your mate report the accident details to his insurers promptly, which would have quickly sorted the question of liability?
old and disgraceful so doing what I can while I can before I can't
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- Jay
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
Rob, that is just outrageous !! I can remember you telling me about this on our way to Brands!
Well my fingers are crossed for you that you get your bike back today.
I guess they are call 4th Dimension for a reason...... as they take your bike to another dimension and rip off the insurance companies and at time resulting in bikes being written off due to the outrageous storage charges !!
Well my fingers are crossed for you that you get your bike back today.
I guess they are call 4th Dimension for a reason...... as they take your bike to another dimension and rip off the insurance companies and at time resulting in bikes being written off due to the outrageous storage charges !!
2020 CBR1000RR-R
2008 FJR 1300A
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2008 FJR 1300A
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- menzies3032
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
I have a repaired bike back home again.
Talking to the delivery driver even he was shocked at what they did.
Thank you all for your comments. Was not actually expecting anybody to respond after my war and peace post
Will take time to answer your comments below
Talking to the delivery driver even he was shocked at what they did.
Thank you all for your comments. Was not actually expecting anybody to respond after my war and peace post
Will take time to answer your comments below
Living in Teignmouth and riding a BMW F900R SE (in Suzuki blue colours )
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- menzies3032
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
Learnt my lesion will be doing the same in the future
Living in Teignmouth and riding a BMW F900R SE (in Suzuki blue colours )
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- menzies3032
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
I will now, I didn't want to do any complaining until the bike was back in my hands and the work was complete. But will now complaint to both my insurance company, the 3rd party (who also wanted to use 4th Dimension) and 4th Dimension themselves.chr1s wrote: ↑Sep 12th, '22, 12:36 Rob,
This has become standard practice with every claim now, f@ck knows how they get away with it….Have you submitted an official complaint to the insurance company? If so, you then can submit a complaint to the insurance ombudsman. The more we highlight this the better the chances are for it to cease. Well, one can always dream right?
Living in Teignmouth and riding a BMW F900R SE (in Suzuki blue colours )
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- menzies3032
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
This was actually the experience of my mate that hit me. Once 4th Dimensions assessor wrote the bike off (the one that hit me) the insurance company paid out the claim very quicklyMellowYellow wrote: ↑Sep 12th, '22, 14:59 When my RS was nicked a little while ago, I too was referred to 4th. dimension.
They collected the bike 2 days later. I was given a decent price for the bike (which was written-off). The insurance company paid out a couple of days later.
A seamless and speedy matter throughout when I was expecting aggro.
Happy as Larry I was.
Living in Teignmouth and riding a BMW F900R SE (in Suzuki blue colours )
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- menzies3032
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
Alan, im so sorry
My only advise is to push them a bit. I think i started to make a difference when i was telling them that my local BMW garage had the part on the shelf would you like me to purchase them for half the price that your purchasing them for and ship them to you next day rather then your supplier who takes months...... they didnt like that and things started to hurry up after that one. I also let them know that the bike has a GPS tracker on it and be careful as I know everything that is happening to the bike including anybody who test rides it..... they didn't like that either. Have the test rider tracked at doing 35mph in a 60
Living in Teignmouth and riding a BMW F900R SE (in Suzuki blue colours )
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- menzies3032
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
Brian, this is something i am now going to follow up. I did indeed go to Bennetts first and tried to have the conversation about doing it myself and sending them the bill. They did not want to know and advised if we are doing 3rd party claim it has to go to 4th Dimension if i go fully comp claim i could do the option of local garage repairing and then i send in the bill however my £350 excess would kick in and as the claim would have been for less then £200 was no point.ptolemyx wrote: ↑Sep 13th, '22, 04:21 Rob, were you first talking to Bennetts, your insurance broker or your actual insurance underwriters? Could you have insisted that repairs be done the old fashioned way and not via 4th Dimension, who are known rogues? The storage fees are an astronomical rip-off and the usual hire bike offer can end up with you having a huge unexpected bill to pay while you try to get that cost off the third party. And did your mate report the accident details to his insurers promptly, which would have quickly sorted the question of liability?
Living in Teignmouth and riding a BMW F900R SE (in Suzuki blue colours )
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- menzies3032
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Re: Experience with Insurance Company
That about sums it up JayJay wrote: ↑Sep 13th, '22, 07:34 Rob, that is just outrageous !! I can remember you telling me about this on our way to Brands!
Well my fingers are crossed for you that you get your bike back today.
I guess they are call 4th Dimension for a reason...... as they take your bike to another dimension and rip off the insurance companies and at time resulting in bikes being written off due to the outrageous storage charges !!
Living in Teignmouth and riding a BMW F900R SE (in Suzuki blue colours )
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