Car Insurance Refusing Payout or Repair

L[Deactivated] on 24/08/2022 - 17:13

Hi OzBargain, long time lurker first time poster. Yes it’s another car crash insurance story.

The Story:

Insurance is refusing my claim. We live on a quiet street. Basically you don’t drive on it unless you live there or are visiting a property. It doesn’t really go anywhere. Ordinarily I park in garage. This one night I parked on the street because we had guests over and all spots taken when I got home from work. I had a few so didn’t think about moving my car onto property after they left. Car was parked perfectly legally with plenty of space on the street.

Lo and behold, someone sideswipes it causing major damage to rear and driver side. They do the bolt and no witnesses. Reported to police. Got an event number.

My Insurance: Comprehensive. Agreed value. Vehicle usually parked in garage but I pay a little bit extra and list it as parked on property.

The situation: Insurance is refusing the claim because my policy is for park on property and they are saying because I parked in front of my home on the street it is not covered.

I’m fairly peeved. Not sure what to do. Am I stuffed?

Poll Options

  • 13
    You are stuffed
  • 529
    Totally unfair - fight it
Automotive

closed Comments

  • Sterio on 25/08/2022 - 15:45
    +7

    My money says it’s Budget Direct.

  • [Deactivated] on 25/08/2022 - 15:56
    +3

    Can you just say which insurer you're with. So that we can avoid them.

  • [Deactivated] on 25/08/2022 - 16:09

    I’ve responded above to some messages. Below is the reason I’m not disclosing which insurer. Call me a nervous nelly or whatever name you want. That’s your call.

    ———-

    I saw what happened with the wombat and the lawyers where everyone from ozb (allegedly) did a pile on with reviews. What I’ve said is all true. No missing bits or conveniently excluded information to suit my argument. That’s literally as simple as it was in my story.

    I definitely don’t want to get accused of defamation and then having that to worry about as well

    • herecomestheoost on 25/08/2022 - 16:43
      +8

      When you win your claim and it's been paid out.. Can you tell us then? Pretty please?

    • SydBoy on 25/08/2022 - 18:28
      +2

      lol … defamation about what?

      you clearly making up in my opinion nothing else… !!

      • krozlink on 26/08/2022 - 18:45
        +1

        you don't need to be guilty of defamation to be accused of it. i'd be wary too after seeing some of the stories on here.

        • SydBoy on 27/08/2022 - 09:43

          in Australia legal system allows you to recoup cost of legal expenses if the other party lose the battle in my opinion…. and hence insurance company won't be taking any tom dick and harry to court else they have hundreds and thousands of claim against all those who are putting negative review comment on car insurer on product review website… lol :D

          defamation only counted if OP said that he/she used particular insurance and they didn't approve claim and hence that company is "XYZ" where XYZ is the defamation claim someone can lodge against but simply saying particular insurance company rejected my claim and what option i have to solve is not mounted to be as defamation case in my opinion sure take legal advise as i am not licenced to give one … !!!!!!

          look at this website https://www.productreview.com.au/c/car-insurance?sort=rating and see how many people openly put their frustration plus accusation on insurance company … and none said that they taken court for defamation… !

          OP simply making up in my opinion…. !

          • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2022 - 10:33
            -2

            @SydBoy: Thanks for your feedback input. Isn’t it nice that people with nothing to lose have the biggest opinions on a matter.

            I’m just not going to risk it until it’s sorted. I seriously don’t get why you can’t understand that.

            • ntt on 27/08/2022 - 11:21

              @[Deactivated]: you can't get sued for what you tell the truth and do all the things right.

              • [Deactivated] on 27/08/2022 - 11:48

                @ntt: You can get sued. And then you’re stuck in a legal battle until you win. I certainly don’t have the funds or time to stress about that.

                But that’s besides the point. I learnt through some OzBargainers that a company with more than 10 employees can’t sue for defamation.

                I’ve escalated my claim and it’s now being reviewed. So I’ll wait for that outcome and let you know what happens.

          • GrueHunter on 27/08/2022 - 10:51
            +1

            @SydBoy:

            in my opinion sure take legal advise as i am not licenced to give one … !!!!!!

            Then stop commenting

            Sorry, I meant you stop commenting to solve not mounted in case in my opinion lol :D …..!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • Malik Nasser on 25/08/2022 - 16:41
    +6

    Tell them you drove to visit your neighbour, and parked in the nearest available car spot (which happened to be in front of your house).
    Your insurance company is total BS. Fight it all the way.

    • [Deactivated] on 25/08/2022 - 19:10

      Lol. My favourite answer so far

  • OzzyOzbourne on 25/08/2022 - 16:47

    Wth, that's ridiculous. So its not insured in the specific case it's parked in the few metres in front of your house. Either side of your house or anywhere else is fine! How about on the opposite side of the road but still in front of your house?

    Utter bs

  • 91rs on 25/08/2022 - 17:15
    +1

    Where its parked shouldn't matter in this case, this would be the same as them declining it as it was parked elsewhere if you went on holiday or were out for the night and had to street park the vehicle for a dinner, movie etc.
    Chase this up, make complaints etc.

  • Roney on 25/08/2022 - 18:36
    +1

    What happens if your garage needs a bulb change? Or some minor work in the driveway and you want your car ready in case of you need to dash to Bunnings? Where can you park then?

    • [Deactivated] on 25/08/2022 - 19:12
      +3

      Agree absolutely it feels absurd. I have escalated the claim through their internal process like was suggested here. Fingers crossed

  • Herbse on 25/08/2022 - 18:46
    +3

    Which company? I want to look up their PDS.

    Interested to know if this is actually the policy or if the operator is new and made a mistake.

    I'm with Shannon's and they always ask me where the car is "usually parked". And I just looked at my policy and it specifically says the car is "usually parked in the garage". Which would cover me if the car happens to be outside

    • SydBoy on 25/08/2022 - 19:05
      +2

      OP doesn't want to disclose insurance name as he/she/it fears that insurance company will sue him/her/it .. lol :D

      but OP is honest to say that "another car insurance STORY" .. lol :D

      it is a story … ! !

      • [Deactivated] on 25/08/2022 - 19:13
        -4

        They/them thanks.

    • akyeeeahdude on 26/08/2022 - 21:38

      Whilst I'd rate Shannons as an excellent insurer, I'd tread with caution. You should be alright but back when I had my modified car insured by Shannons, they were quite open in telling me at the time of the quote process, the vehicle had to be kept on the property at night and they were unable to offer cover if parked on the street. Unsure if they've loosened their guidelines now as that was over 10 years ago - my location/suburb wasn't high risk either.

  • john_conner on 25/08/2022 - 18:50

    Just ask them to verify with your neighbours that you usually park off street…
    I hope you are friends with your neighbours

    • [Deactivated] on 25/08/2022 - 19:13

      I am. Tops idea

  • Shame on 25/08/2022 - 19:57
    +2

    Drive your car to another suburb and "accidentally" low speed crash into a parked Bentley (20km/h should do it). Leave your details on the Bentley's windscreen. Insurance company then up for $200k repair.

    • jedimaster on 26/08/2022 - 13:19
      +2

      and the OP's premium will rise a lot next year

      • Shame on 26/08/2022 - 15:32
        +1

        One problem at a time. Besides, then OP can launch a new post titled "I crashed my car into a luxury vehicle and now my insurance premium is insane"

  • AustriaBargain on 25/08/2022 - 20:57

    If you told them it is parked in your garage when at home then that probably lowered you risk and premiums all these years. You probably shouldn't have told them you were at home when it happened, you should have lied and said you went to visit a neighbour or were stretching your legs or something.

  • BreezyPalms on 25/08/2022 - 21:29
    +6

    When dealing with insurance companies for a claim, my advice is carefully read your policy first then prepare your claim using the same terminology and keep it very simple.

    E.g. I lost a back pack in Thailand and my policy covered lost items. In my claim I essentially used the dictionary definItion of “lost” as the basis of my claim. I repeated this definition “it was lost, I could not locate it” every time the claim assessor called and tried to poke holes in my story, asserting that I left the back pack unattended and was careless. I held my line and said nothing more and eventually they gave up and approved the claim.

    I think your best argument here is the definition of the word normally.

  • Tree Fiddy on 25/08/2022 - 21:38
    +2

    Definitely take it up with the AFCA if you can't resolve it through your insurer's internal dispute resolution process. These policies are underwritten and priced based on where the vehicle is "normally" parked (among other factors). However, it's completely unreasonable for the insurer to assume that the vehicle won't "on occasion" be parked elsewhere. Coming from someone who works in the industry, this sounds like lazy claims handling.

    If it helps, there's plenty of similar stories out there which have been resolved through the AFCA. This one is a good recent example - https://www.insurancenews.com.au/daily/you-parked-where-vint…

  • bulletbill88 on 25/08/2022 - 21:45
    +1

    What a nightmare. Agree with others - unless your policy says the car is always to be parked on your property overnight then denying the claim on the grounds stated seems complete BS.

    And if they do end up sticking on this line please let OzB crowd know which insurer it is so we can all avoid. I occasionally park my car on the street overnight too if I get home and the driveway is full from visiting friends/family.

  • WaterMark on 25/08/2022 - 22:04
    +8

    OK. I am going to have a crack at this but keep in mind I am not providing legal advice. In particular, I can only provide general information only to what is only provided.

    I would suggest you look at Insurance Contracts Act 1984 (Cth).

    In respect to your claim in general, your insurance company is bound by legislation to act to good faith in considering your claim pursuant to section 13. With that said, they may be relying on the information you have provided that you park your car inside your garage in accordance to section 21(1). This is because you have a duty to disclose to the insurer every matter that you know will be relevant to the insurer accepting the risk. In addition, per subsection (1)(b) this includes what a reasonable person in your circumstances is expected to have known (i.e. someone in your situation would have done the same thing). As such, because parking on the street most likely would have increased your risk, then you must disclose it.

    Alternatively, your insurer may claim you have misrepresented them by stating you kept your car inside your garage. In such instance, pursuant to section 26(2), the insurer can only claim misrepresentation if such statement would have been relevant to the insurer's decision of whether to accept your original insurance proposal or not. The onus lies on the insurer in proving that they would not have accepted your insurance proposal had they known you parked your car on the street. It is unclear from the facts how much you insured your car for as you said agreed value as it could be a Bentley for example, to which an insurer would deem it high risk. On the other hand if it is like a Toyota Corolla, then the risk of parking on the street is significantly less.

    With all that said, regarding to both 'duty of disclosure' and 'misrepresentation', you may rely on the remedies under section 28(1) and claim you 'innocently failed to disclose' or 'innocently misrepresented' the statement that you always parked your car in the garage. As such, the insurer is not entitled to avoid the contract. However the insurer can reduced the amount of your claim according to what they would have charged your premium had you disclosed you 'sometimes' park on the street pursuant to section 28(3). Your insurer however may claim under section 28(2), that you had 'fraudulently failed to disclosure' or 'fraudulently misrepresented' (i.e. deliberate withholding of information). The onus is on them to prove fraudulent behaviour but may be rebuttable by sufficient evidence to the contrary. I suspect an example of 'innocent' would be in your situation, whereas 'fraudulent' would be claiming private use but using it for UBER.

    If you are unable to resolve your issue through the insurer or through their internal dispute resolution procedures, I would suggest contacting Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) in regards to your complaint. As mentioned in the first paragraph, they must act in good faith in relation to your insurance claim. Good luck.

    • Littlevu on 25/08/2022 - 22:23

      +1 very informative and factual. If I was the OP I would thank you so much for helping me go to bed with far less stress and actually get some decent sleep in.

    • [Deactivated] on 26/08/2022 - 14:39

      Thanks so much.

      While I usually park in garage, On the policy i pay a bit extra to say its parked on property (not under carport).

    • akyeeeahdude on 26/08/2022 - 21:44

      EDIT - sorry, re-read all of your post thoroughly and essentially what you're saying, is directly linked to section 54.

      http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/ica198…

  • Littlevu on 25/08/2022 - 22:15
    +3

    Whenever you call the insurers the calls are recorded and stored. So next time I speak to them I will ask them how I should answer where the car is parked overnight if it is usually in the garage but could be in the driveway if another car is parked in garage (and i don’t have keys to move it) or parked on the street because someone parked in driveway blocking access to garage (and I don’t have keys to move it).

    Whatever answer they tell me to use will probably work against them to use that reason to deny.

    If they tell me to use the answer parked in the street, I’d ask them how often does it need to be in the street to be considered street parking. Is it 1-2 times a week, 1-2 times a fortnight, 1-2 times a month, 3-4 times 6 half yearly or less than 10 or 20 times a year.

    Whatever the answer is you can say in the recorded call that another answer is better (and one that doesn’t add loading to premium) because that is more accurate to your situation. That should give you some cover if a denied claim goes to court. Pretty sure any magistrate or judge will not rule that parking outside your own home invalidates the insurance cover because you have stated it’s usually/normally parked in the garage or off street parking. Unless it can be proven you lied (eg claim to be parked in garage when you don’t have one).

    • evilcheese on 26/08/2022 - 09:46
      +3

      The last time I had a problem with insurance - I started off the third call stating that I am recording the call (I did)- they had a problem with that and I said that they are recording the call as well so there is no issue - when they asked why I was recording I stated that first call agreed that I was not at fault and the second was lying about what their policy covered and if this was to go to court I had all the proof - I was immediately transferred to someone else and my claim was approved and they offered me more than what I was expected.

      • Hangryuman on 26/08/2022 - 10:21
        +1

        dirty bastards - did you read about WalMart in the US - that took out multi-million dollar insurance cover in case of worker injury

        and when workers did get injured at work, and permanently disabled, and thrown into poverty, and asked WalMart about the insurance payouts, they were told by WalMart 'oh no, that's not for you, that's for US !!!'

        so … gee golly - hard-working WalMart employees getting injured on the job - could be good for WalMart's bottom line ? far canal.

        • [Deactivated] on 26/08/2022 - 14:47

          Don’t their full timers have to rely on food stamps or something because their pay is so bad

          • Hangryuman on 27/08/2022 - 19:38

            @[Deactivated]: Yes - I think I read this is actually part of Amazon's business model - that their workers need food stamps to survive.

            And also that many workers in the US, maybe WalMart work for 99c/hour which seems ridiculously unacceptable, but do so because they get health insurance coverage, which in the US typically is paid for by your employer.

            So - in order to have health insurance in the US where bankruptcy and homeless can result from a single uninsured medical emergency, workers may work for 99c/hour.

            Appalling - and that's how Capitalism works, folks !

      • Littlevu on 26/08/2022 - 10:33

        Never has there been a time more appropriate to say “This is the way”.

        Good job.

  • Edgecrusher on 26/08/2022 - 07:50

    What does your pds specifically state around this?

    I know you’ve stated you pay extra for parking in your property, but does it state anywhere that your claim will be denied if you park elsewhere?

    • [Deactivated] on 26/08/2022 - 14:41
      +1

      It doesn’t. I’ve escalated internally and will go to acfa if they say no. Some good advice from ozb

  • 7ekn00 on 26/08/2022 - 08:29
    +1

    Most insurance is a scam, they wiggle out of it any way they can, and they are experts at the wiggle :/

    • Hangryuman on 26/08/2022 - 10:17
      +3

      US insurers are famous for 'delay, deny, defend' - to first make it difficult to communicate with slow response, lots of questions and endless go-arounds and demands for difficult to obtain documentary evidence, then try to refuse payouts, hopefully until the customer dies first, so they DON"T HAVE TO PAY YOU !!!

      https://delaydenydefend.com/
      https://www.amazon.com/Delay-Deny-Defend-Insurance-Companies…
      https://www.tellrobert.com/the-three-ds-of-the-insurance-ind…

    • Littlevu on 26/08/2022 - 10:42

      Don’t completely agree with this otherwise the industry would’ve have collapsed ages ago. It’s probably more likely people have gone for the cheapest or have not even read or understood the PDS which will outline everything. There are insurance brokers just like mortgage brokers who can recommend not only type of policy but various providers too that have a proven track record for claimable events. They should be able to explain duty of disclosure and the like if you don’t want to read the PDS.

  • apple2016 on 26/08/2022 - 10:40
    +1

    Am I stuffed?

    no you are not, you probably will have to fight with you insurer, but will work out in your favor.

  • JuryWheel on 26/08/2022 - 11:25
    +1

    Side note - what happened with that Lawyer thread? Has it been deleted?d

  • IanC on 26/08/2022 - 13:27
    +3

    Out of interest I rang RACQ,
    Their policy does not use normally. etc.
    Their underwriter advised that no one can be expected to park in garage EVERY night.
    If legit reason they would pay out after investigation.
    I would not tell them you had a few that night.
    Any number of reasons you could not fulfil the condition.

    • akyeeeahdude on 26/08/2022 - 21:45

      This is generally the view that FOS and now AFCA approach disputes with, provided the insurer isn't permitted to decline the claim, under Section 54 of the Insurance Contracts Act.

  • FareEvader on 26/08/2022 - 14:23
    +2

    Name and shame the insurer please?

  • prhino on 26/08/2022 - 14:34

    I always think about this very scenario on the rare occasion that I park on the street outside my home.

  • [Deactivated] on 26/08/2022 - 14:36
    +9

    Update. The escalations team is reviewing the decision

  • 50cent on 26/08/2022 - 14:38

    Which insurance company?

  • Roney on 26/08/2022 - 19:01
    +3

    I think it's about time the state govt should mandate a standardised matrix table for every insurer to fill in. That would make it easier to decide rather than getting lost in the PDF.

  • Kranbone on 26/08/2022 - 19:45
    +1

    You can fight it and you may win, however if you did answer "I park my car inside" you're going to have to fight hard for that win.

    Remember, insurance companies are there to generate money for shareholders, not to help you. Lately, they've had to pay out a lot of claims, so any chance they can legally deny a claim, they will.

    Good luck.

    • [Deactivated] on 26/08/2022 - 20:09
      +2

      Fingers crossed. I’ve escalated

      • Kranbone on 29/08/2022 - 19:11
        +2

        Can you keep us posted. I've heard of a case where someone's claim was denied because their window tint was too dark. I guess from a technical and legal point of view, the insurer can do this.

  • lansi23 on 27/08/2022 - 08:33

    I've had a conversation with budget direct in the past, maybe 2 years ago now. They asked how often do you park in the garage, and I asked what is their definition. The agent said 51% of the time.

    So as long as you park your car in the garage 51% of the time, you can say your car is garaged.

    Happy to be proven wrong.

    • IanC on 27/08/2022 - 20:27

      lol..the agent said so.

      Forgot to add .. "so long as you can prove you are garaged 51% of time".

      Hope you are recording it each night

  • yokel on 27/08/2022 - 08:43

    What is the best value dash cam solution for capturing this scenario? Pretty much seems no video, no leg to stand on with these insurers. I fully get that in this instance the insurer is arguing about where the car was parked.

  • Herbse on 27/08/2022 - 13:54
    +1

    Still want to know which insurance company it is so I can avoid it myself. Not defamation if it's true.

  • imurgod on 27/08/2022 - 15:42

    It's impossible to help unless we know the insurer because it's based on the applicable PDS.

    All insurers are different.

    Is it a luxury car? If so, I imagine I know the insurer and the parking conditions you agree to are very strict.

  • MandMs13 on 27/08/2022 - 17:43
    +1

    On the upside, you probably saved $260 by trying your luck with a small insurer. Lesson learnt for all, stick with the big guns only!

    I'm with NRMA, I said to them at the time my car is normally under cover, and she specifically told me car will still be covered if parked elsewhere.

    • RobotWizard on 28/08/2022 - 01:23
      +4

      I don’t think I will ever insure my car with anyone else, when I had my first turbo car in p’s no one insured me but NRMA it was bit expensive but still better than paying tens of thousands to someone in case of accident.

      I drive a fairly modified car currently and have made few claims in past few years, most recent one being 2 years ago roughly, I hit a kangaroo and my front bar, radiator and intercooler got damaged. I had aftermarket intercooler installed and NRMA rang me to ask me where I purchased it from so they can replace it with like to like.
      After reading so many horrible insurance stories I was bit hesitant thinking they might knock it back but IMO NRMA has to be one of the best around.

  • payless69 on 05/09/2022 - 16:03
    +1

    NEVER buy Suncorp! Most useless company.
    Found other party to be Cominsure covered, they are also not paying!

  • Whatisthatvelvet on 05/09/2022 - 17:09
    +2

    So what's the update OP?

  • Sterio on 24/09/2022 - 11:48
    +1

    And the latest is?

    • kerfuffle on 24/09/2022 - 11:50
      +2

      Never going to find out because OP disabled their account

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