Bike (racing) Insurance

rubs

Hi all,

I know this thread probaly gets an airing every so often but could not find latest edition....

Anyway, does anybody know of an organisation that is willing to insure bikes for all eventualities in relation to training and racing. I`ve bought a decent bike recently and, to be honest, could not afford to replace it if I got caught up in one of the many crashes that I have been lucky enough to avoid to date. I had previous bikes on house insurance but it does not cover racing and training.

Any pointers??

jdt101

rubs wrote: »

Hi all,

I know this thread probaly gets an airing every so often but could not find latest edition....

Anyway, does anybody know of an organisation that is willing to insure bikes for all eventualities in relation to training and racing. I`ve bought a decent bike recently and, to be honest, could not afford to replace it if I got caught up in one of the many crashes that I have been lucky enough to avoid to date. I had previous bikes on house insurance but it does not cover racing and training.

Any pointers??

House Insurance I'd reckon is the easiest.

"Of course I wasn't racing, the lawnmower fell on my bike in the shed..."

blorg

Cycling Ireland will apparently be coming out with insurance again this year to cover racing/training damage (crash etc.) Not going to be cheap, I have heard circa €300/year, but may be worth it.

fondriest

rubs wrote: »

Hi all,

I know this thread probaly gets an airing every so often but could not find latest edition....

Anyway, does anybody know of an organisation that is willing to insure bikes for all eventualities in relation to training and racing. I`ve bought a decent bike recently and, to be honest, could not afford to replace it if I got caught up in one of the many crashes that I have been lucky enough to avoid to date. I had previous bikes on house insurance but it does not cover racing and training.

Any pointers??

I insured mine through cycling ireland last year i think it was about 120euro for racing. It was just a matter of calling them they did't even ask the details of the bike, to be honest paying for bike once is enough so it was money well spent

Lumen

jdt101 wrote: »

House Insurance I'd reckon is the easiest.

"Of course I wasn't racing, the lawnmower fell on my bike in the shed..."

A broker told me recently that no underwriter in Ireland will insure bikes used for racing as part of a general household insurance policy, whether the bike is stolen or damaged when racing or not.

It would only take a quick Google of some Cycling Ireland race results to uncover (if you ever get placed of course).

As Blorg mentioned, CI cover will no doubt be much more expensive this year due to massive losses sustained last year.

The problem is that people wanting insurance are those quite likely to need it.

gman2k

I know someone working at the moment setting up a specific bike insurance scheme.
I'm of the understanding this would cover all eventualities.
Apparently it is very close to being finalized.
i can give no other info at the moment re same, so don't ask me - or no PM's please.
If I hear any more I'll post back up with this person's permission.

rubs

Thanks all for feedback. Was looking at deals other Assocations carry such as Tri Ireland...for a bike valued in the region of 3-5k it costs €160.....you get bike cover for training and racing....they have it broken down in relation to value of bike...sounds very good to me. Its only a few bob to join as an associate member of Tri Ireland:rolleyes:

blorg

That is interesting. Does it only cover you though training with a TI affiliated club and racing in a TI race. E.g. you would be covered in a du/triathlon but would you also be covered in a Cycling Ireland road race. As I might just become a triathlete if so

rubs

Looking into at a bit more at the moment but it seems that once your a member of Tri Ireland you are covered for all training etc...I suppose if you crash in CI event then you could consider that training for tri!!..ODON are the brokers so I`ve a few queries in with them...i`ll report back anything of note;)

Signal_ rabbit

rubs wrote: »

Looking into at a bit more at the moment but it seems that once your a member of Tri Ireland you are covered for all training etc...I suppose if you crash in CI event then you could consider that training for tri!!..ODON are the brokers so I`ve a few queries in with them...i`ll report back anything of note;)

Looking at the ODON website, the way I read it that you have to be training with the club, i.e out as a group to be covered. So individual spins don't count. Have I read that right?

blorg

Last time I looked at it that is what it looked like. Thing is, the probability of a crash writing off your bike is far lower in triathlon than it is in road racing.

Chill.ie (Conor)

Hi Guys. We are now offering a deidcated bicycle insurance product. Check out our site for more...

mloc123

Chill.ie (Conor) wrote: »

Hi Guys. We are now offering a deidcated bicycle insurance product. Check out our site for more...

Policy does not cover the bike when it is being used for racing

Lumen

Chill.ie (Conor) wrote: »

Hi Guys. We are now offering a deidcated bicycle insurance product. Check out our site for more...

Does it cover bicycles used for racing when they are not being raced?

mloc123

Lumen wrote: »

Does it cover bicycles used for racing when they are not being raced?

It does seem to

Chill.ie (Conor)

The policy currently does not include cover for racing, although it does have benefits such as;

Personal Accident Cover
Replacement Bicycle Hire
Accidental Damage Cover

Lumen

Chill.ie (Conor) wrote: »

The policy currently does not include cover for racing, although it does have benefits such as;

Personal Accident Cover
Replacement Bicycle Hire
Accidental Damage Cover

Again, does it cover bicycles used for racing when they are not being raced?

Ryaner

Chill.ie (Conor) wrote: »

Hi Guys. We are now offering a deidcated bicycle insurance product. Check out our site for more...

Total value of all bicycles may not exceed €5,000.
Please enter bike details (click add)

Em:rolleyes:

rubs

@conor.chill.ie........So its not really a dedicated insurance plan is it??:mad:

blorg

Not sure what the point is here, MOST people would not have a bicycle collection worth over €5,000. There are of course exceptions.

Ryaner

blorg wrote: »

Not sure what the point is here, MOST people would not have a bicycle collection worth over €5,000. There are of course exceptions.

I would have expected a dedicated product to have a higher limit and less restrictions. Wasn't the CI insurance higher? And cheaper with less restrictions?

blorg

CI insurance was up to €10,000 for multiple bikes with any single bike €7,500. Very little in the way of theft protection (only if locked INSIDE a car and not visible) but it did cover damage from crashes racing. It was cheaper and was discontinued because it suffered massive losses last year.

Cipher

The brokers I work for ODON.ie had a scheme for cycling up until recently.

It was underwritten by an Irish insurer who decided to drop the scheme.

We will have a new scheme in place hopefully by the end of this month. It will be underwritten by a major sports insurer.

As far as I am aware you will need to be a member of Cycling Ireland or Triathlon Ireland and have an active membership number to apply for the scheme.

I'm not in the insurance area but if you have any questions, send them on and i'll try and get them answered.

rubs

.......hopefully by the end of this month.


as in the month of May?....really, how likely is this?, not being cheeky but its just always seems to be something in a months time with Insurance companies...

thanks

Cipher

rubs wrote: »

.......hopefully by the end of this month.


as in the month of May?....really, how likely is this?, not being cheeky but its just always seems to be something in a months time with Insurance companies...

thanks

Hi rubs,

from what i have been told, the policy will be in place by the end of May.

I can't see this being a big issue as we have a lot of business with this insurer and schemes generally get put in place very quickly.

When the scheme is in force i'll put up a thread to let people know.

From our perspective, we don't want to be waiting a few months as the market is there at the moment.

As for costs and levels of cover I haven't heard anything yet but i'll enquire today and let you know.

rubs

Thanks Cipher

Cipher

rubs wrote: »

Thanks Cipher

No problem, i've asked for more info so whenever i here anything i'll let you know.

penexpers

Chill.ie (Conor) wrote: »

The policy currently does not include cover for racing, although it does have benefits such as;

Personal Accident Cover
Replacement Bicycle Hire
Accidental Damage Cover

I put my three bikes in (value about 4,800).

Quoted me 509.55. That's more than my house insurance costs in total (including the bikes named on the cover).

Crazy price.

gman2k

I got a quote emailed to me from Chill.ie for 500e+
Jokers.
How can it cost more to ensure a push bike than a motor car - fully comprehensive, first and theft etc, with a value higher than my bike?
I think it's some form of elaborate internet pi$$take.

Blah, blah blah - we listen to your concerns, blah blah blah customer experience blah blah blah we take on all of the feedback.
Rip off artists.

Lumen

gman2k wrote: »

How can it cost more to ensure a push bike than a motor car - fully comprehensive, first and theft etc, with a value higher than my bike?

Because your car is practically impossible to steal?

Presumably the underwriter believes that the only people likely to buy bike-specific insurance are those who have a high risk of making a claim, or even a high risk of making a false claim. On a household policy people are more nervous about losing NCD than on a more specific class of insurance.

What we (I) really need to know is: of the household/travel insurers, which offers the best rates and terms for bike cover, excluding racing use but including reasonable cover for everything else.

I'm not sure security limitations are workable, other than requesting receipts for "sold secure gold" locks. Providing evidence of the broken lock after the theft could well be impossible.

Bluefoam

Sorry, I forgot. Cars are rarely stolen and hardly ever effected by crash damage

Lumen

Bluefoam wrote: »

Sorry, I forgot. Cars are rarely stolen and hardly ever effected by crash damage

I don't have any stats on bike theft vs car theft, but modern cars are rarely stolen. Engine immobilisers have made casual theft impossible. Many car thefts are now aggravated - they have to break into your home for your keys.

gman2k

Lumen wrote: »

I don't have any stats on bike theft vs car theft, but modern cars are rarely stolen. Engine immobilisers have made casual theft impossible. Many car thefts are now aggravated - they have to break into your home for your keys.

Any car can be stolen, no matter what the alarm / immobiliser etc.
High end cars in particular are stolen to order, and are rarely recovered if taken.

I had a car stolen from me back about 9 years ago, properly alarmed etc, and never seen again.

Now, back to bike insurance..... - why so high? And don't forget, car insurance is all about the third party risk, there is very little of the premium cost directed against theft.
There is not any third party risk with cycling - nor is it ensured with these policies mentioned above (but you do with your racing licence)

Best piece of advice I can offer is, don't spend 500 yoyos every year giving it to some insurance boyos, but invest in €500 of security equipment for your pride and joy(s) - locks, alarms cctv etc - a once off investment.

Lumen

gman2k wrote: »

Any car can be stolen, no matter what the alarm / immobiliser etc. High end cars in particular are stolen to order, and are rarely recovered if taken.

Just to close this off with some actual stats, according to the CSO survey in 2006 (latest available, percentage of respondents):

Car theft: 0.9%, down from 1.2% in 2003.
Bicycle theft: 3.5%, down from 3.6% in 2003.
Burglary: 3.2%, down from 3.4% in 2003.

I'm not sure what this proves, but thought since I found the stats I'd post them.

Beasty

With all insurance is you are paying someone to minimise your risk. However not only do you have to pay the insurer for taking on the risk, you also have to pay for the insurer's overheads, and let the insurer make a profit. Add to this the fact that some "insured" are less careful than others, if you are a "good" risk, you will typically end up far paying more for your insurance than you get out of it.

For these reasons I only ever insure things I am legally required to (eg car insurance), or where the loss would be catastrophic (eg house and contents). This way, over time I save myself significant amounts (indeed I cannot recall making any insurance claims over the past 10 years or so, or suffering any significant loss where I would have made a claim if I was insured)

Ultimately insurance does give you peace of mind, but at a cost! I personally am happy to not have the peace of mind, but save money to squander on extravagant pasttimes;)

Chill.ie (Conor)

@ Lumen. Bicycle theft has in fact increased significantly since the 2006 figures you have quoted.There were 2,233 bicycles reported stolen in the first nine months of 2008 according to the CSO. In the same period last year, immediately after the tax incentive scheme started, 3,136 bikes were reported stolen - the actual number is thought to be significantly higher however as bicycle theft is among the most under-reported of crimes.