How Is Your Car Insured?

[McCardle 1]

just wondering how many people are being economical with the truth in relation to their insurance companies and occupations.

[Dave80s 0]

I found that "Nightclub DJ" was cheaper than "Mobile Disco".

[Dukesy 0]

I found that "Nightclub DJ" was cheaper than "Mobile Disco".

Not sure how this would affect insurance in the event of an accident, especially with mobile DJs 'maxing' out every possible space in the car on a domestic insurance policy!

I'd imagine that if details in the paperwork submitted were found to be far from the 'truth' in an unfortunate event, then it's not hard to figure the resulting course of action!

[spinner 0]

I don't use my car for work. Nor could I - it's a 2 + 2 sports coupe.

 

I use a Transit.

[NRG Roadshow 0]

I was 100% honest with my insurance company.....told them exactly what I was doing for business and what I would be using the vehicle for......

It made a couple of pounds difference to the cost of my policy.

 

I questioned this with her as I told her I was under the impression that a mobile DJ had to pay a lot more for their insurance than other businesses.........she didnt know the answer so went to check with her supervisor.

The answer that came back was this.....

 

"The only people who pay a lot more for business use are Taxi Drivers and couriers, everyone else just pays for business use, and it dont matter if your a mobile disco or a mobile hairdresser.....the cost is the same"

So I asked, and thats the reply I got, so I was happy with that.

[supersound dj 0]

I was 100% honest with my insurance company.....told them exactly what I was doing for business and what I would be using the vehicle for......

It made a couple of pounds difference to the cost of my policy.

 

I questioned this with her as I told her I was under the impression that a mobile DJ had to pay a lot more for their insurance than other businesses.........she didnt know the answer so went to check with her supervisor.

The answer that came back was this.....

 

"The only people who pay a lot more for business use are Taxi Drivers and couriers, everyone else just pays for business use, and it dont matter if your a mobile disco or a mobile hairdresser.....the cost is the same"

So I asked, and thats the reply I got, so I was happy with that.

 

 

Same here...bet u r insured with the same insuere I am........Mr Bulldog?

[Phil Cunnington 0]

Can't vote as I have an MPV

[Dream Catchers 0]

Can't vote as I have an MPV

I think that is why the final option is *other* :joe: .

 

Jim

[NRG Roadshow 0]

Same here...bet u r insured with the same insuere I am........Mr Bulldog?

 

errr......"ohhhhhh yes!" tongue out icon

[Norfolk DJ 0]

 

It made no difference in price to me having full business cover. Last year I paid £220 fully comp for a 57 plate 4x4.

[McCardle 1]

i must admit, that i am a little surprised in relation to the results, especially in light of so many posts here pushing areas such as public liability insurance. As far as i am led to believe, having pli is advisable but not something which is a legality, where as having motor insurance cover is a legal requirement and incorrect cover or cover being withdrawn after an offence / accident can not only be costly but also may result in criminal penalties!. Please don't think that i'm standing in judgement of anybody or that i blame anybody for trying to save a few pounds on their premiums, personally i believe that insurance companies are the modern dick turpins of the highway, but i would hate to see anybody penalised for making ill advised choices, and believe me, in the majority of cases like this, the insurance company will win.

 

First of all, insurance company assessors are not idiots and neither are the police and both will probably attend the vehicle shortly after a significant accident, or even in the case of a fatality or serious injuries - actually attend the scene. If you are using a car, and had equipment packed to the roof, or to a point where it exceeded the vehicle GVW then you can bet the police will also take an interest, and more so if the equipment caused injuries to any party or was a contributing factor such as affecting the stability of the vehicle or its camber or the driver's visibility. The amount of gear which will be scattered around the accident scene will also get a write up and feature in the scene photos, and its from information sich as this, that insurers will find out that you were carrying sound & lighting or audio visual equipment in a quantity suggesting some kind of business activity. Besides any insurance investigator probably won't need to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out that you are involved in entertainment - the yellow pages, google and the inland revenue will probably be all that will be required to confirm this!. Test an easy one by enterting your telephone number in google!, does you disco listing appear?, did you also use the same number to insure your car?. Of course an even greater giveaway is having your vehicle signwritten!.

 

If you do insure your vehicle under the general banner of business use, then you may want to check the automatic exclusions listed on your policy and the underwriters exclusions. For example, using a well known and much publicised K9 insurer, you will find that although they do offer business cover they don't touch any business to do with entertainment - and that is us.

 

http://www.churchill.com/motor/car_assumptions.htm

 

Most of the other high street companies have the same type of exclusions, so its wise to check.

 

This means that in the event of an accident serious enough to warrant an investigation, you may find your cover being withdrawn, or voided and you could be liable for not only your own expenses but those of any third party or street furniture if your business was one of those excluded. Worse still, if you ever have a policy refused or withdrawn on this basis, you may also find it difficult or impossible to get insurance in the future, hence the question

 

have you ever had a policy refused or withdrawn

 

asked by most, if not all insurance companies - most will not even progress with the quote if the answer is Yes.

 

There is a possible solution which may give you the best of both worlds, and may be more effective than simply taking the risk. I'll post the information when i've got a little more time.

Edited April 27, 2008 by McCardle

[NRG Roadshow 0]

If you do insure your vehicle under the general banner of business use, then you may want to check the automatic exclusions listed on your policy and the underwriters exclusions. For example, using a well known and much publicised K9 insurer, you will find that although they do offer business cover they don't touch any business to do with entertainment - and that is us.

 

Ok, if thats true (which it appears to be as I have just read it)......why when I asked the question directly about if I needed extra insurance to cover me being a mobile DJ I was told I didnt....it was just business use.

I even gave them a rough idea of the kinds of equipment I would be carrying, basically I told them everything.

The lady went away and checked with her manager as she wasnt sure, came back and told me it didnt matter that I was a mobile DJ.

Surely I should have been told "we dont insure anybody involved in the entertainments business".....

 

And why oh why oh why do they penalise people in the mobile entertainments business.......ok heavy equipment could cause injuries in the event of an accident etc.....but whats the real reason behind it?

 

But if I was a builder, I could insure my vehicle for business use and put half a ton of bricks in the back of my motor and that would be ok?

 

[McCardle 1]

With insurance companies you need to get everything in writing, unfortunately the onus is always on the policy holder in the event of a claim, and for stating all of the material facts - so think of it as covering yourself and asking the right questions in order to be informed. I don't doubt that the person you spoke to, did indeed accept your occupation in order to win the business, however unless it is specifically stated as Deejay or entertainer on your policy then you may become victim of convenience, when they quote the exclusions in order to wriggle out of a claim. Personally, in this situation, I would be on the phone to the company in order to check that your occupation is indeed covered, and get it in writing from them as a statement of fact - rather than just putting faith into a standard business policy which may exclude your occupation, and a point of which may come back to haunt you at a time when you need it the most, and least need the hassle.

 

Surely I should have been told "we dont insure anybody involved in the entertainments business".....

 

Yes, they should but then again its an imperfect world, and in accepting the policy, you are expected to read several pages of exclusions and terms and conditions and if the policy isn't suitable then time to move on elsewhere. Quite possibly the no entertainment stipulation is possibly levied from the underwriters rather than an exclusion added by the actual insurance company. It does seem to effect the majority of high street and 'known' names.

Edited April 27, 2008 by McCardle

[NRG Roadshow 0]

Well guess whos gonna be on the phone to the bulldog first thing monday morning!

 

I have tried to do everything leggit and told them exactly what Im doing and what Im using the vehicle for......and if theirs a loophole that they could wriggle out of a claim I want to know about it!

 

My policy says "business use"....no mention of "entertainment"......so I best check Im actually covered!

[McCardle 1]

If your policy / Bulldog don't specifically list Entertainment as being excluded then you will probably be okay - the companies whom I am refering to are the ones which clearly state no entertainment within their policy documents or on their sites. It is possibly good advice to still contact them, and ask for clarification in writing, that your occupation is indeed covered, as is the carriage of own goods, then you can relax.

 

I suspect that there are going to be quite a few entertainers (not just deejays) who are using general business / private car policies and are not aware of the specific exclusions, which could leave them wide open for problems and worst still, cover being withdrawn in the future or during a claim, because it is so easy to be overlooked or just make assumptions that business includes all businesses, when clearly, as the link proves, it does not.

Edited April 27, 2008 by McCardle

[TonyB 0]

If you are involved in an accident and your cover is invalidated due to non disclosure, cover will be restricted to third party only cover as required by law (Road traffic Act) and the insurers have an obligation to deal with.

 

But once any third party claim is dealt with, they will then pursue you for any payments they have made.

 

So in the event of an accident, you will receive no payment for damage to your own vehicle/property and you will have to pay out for the third party damages which, if it involved personal injury, could mean an awful lot of money.

Edited April 28, 2008 by TonyB

[VectisVibe 0]

 

I'm totally honest when it comes to these things.

 

Mind you, the van is only used for the disco, covers on average 1200 miles per year (yes that's 2 tanks of fuel!!) and never leaves the island.

 

Shall I really hack you off? My insurance for this year, fully comp, to include full breakdown recovery service? £118. Great place, this tongue out icon

[Paul Smith 0]

Gocompare.com has Mobile Disc Jockey as one of the occupations. Be aware though that some of the cheaper quotes (eg Tesco) have in their T&Cs that the quoted price doesn't apply to anyone involved in 'Entertainment'.

 

So if you are a Mobile DJ who doesn't entertain at your functions then you could get cheap insurance and some points on your club card (oh and a free power washer worth £100 tongue out icon ).

 

Seriously though I have just used the site - found a company to re-insure me as a mobile DJ, use my vehicle in the course of my business, free hire car if mine is damaged, windscreen cover, protected no claims, free legal advice all for £300 (no free power washer though). This compares to a renewal premium of £465 with my existing insurer which doesn't have all of the extras listed above.

 

The Tesco quote was £240 but in the event of a claim they would have an out via their small print.

[Dream Catchers 0]

I've just taken out my new insurance, the van is now insured as mobile dj rather than the trade insurance I've had for the past couple of years.

It has come down to just over £350.

 

Jim

[big mac 0]

hi , i wasnt sure what to put as i drive a Merc 4x4 lwb

so i put medium van 1 must be plenty of other out there using 4x4, especially for marquee work ?

big mac

[Andy Westcott 0]

Ford Transit 280 SWB, diesel.

Correctly insured for business use, and the insurers know that I am using it in connection with a mobile disco business.

[davemoody 0]

Have a Fiat Scudo and its insured for business use. They never asked what the business was and it costs me just £180 fully comp!

[NRG Roadshow 0]

Have a Fiat Scudo and its insured for business use. They never asked what the business was and it costs me just £180 fully comp!

 

As said earlier in the thread, check your policy to make sure it does not exclude the entertainment industry, some do apparently.

 

Insurance companies will try and find any excuse not to cough up, just because they didnt ask what the business was it does not mean that entertainment business is included with your policy.

 

Although quite why some exclude the entertainment business or why some charge a premium rate for this is a mystery to me.

[McCardle 1]

Regardless of the specific questions they ask, I think you're going to fall foul of the general principle that insurance contracts are formed on the basis of 'utmost good faith', meaning that the insured must fully disclose all material facts relating to the risk. A material fact is one such as might influence the insurer in either accepting the risk or not, and part of those facts are declaring any full or part time occupation which may be excluded from their underwriters' cover or carry weightier premiums.

 

Forget arguing over not having pli, pat and the myriad of other certificates needed to be a "proper" deejay, what about before we even get to the gig?, namely the legal responsibilities of being correctly insured?. I'm told that having insurance withdrawn due to non disclosure of facts can effectively make it difficult, if not impossible to obtain any insurance cover from any company in the future. Still worth the risk of saving a few quid?. It can also be prohibitively expensive if your insurer decides to persue you through the courts for what they have had to pay out to any 3rd party or street furniture damaged during any claim.

 

If you insurer has no interest in knowing what your self employment is, then fine. However my exprience is that most will ask what your full time occupation is, and their terms will also state that you disclose any part time occupations to them as well, even if there isn't a little box for it on the quote engine. Unfortunately comparison sites don't always ask for all of the material facts, when providing a quote, just the basic ones, but you are still contractually obliged to disclose other material facts under the terms of insurance, if you decide to take out a policy.

 

Like NRG says, also look out for exclusions relating to employment, usually they'll specifically exclude occupations relating to leisure and entertainment.

 

 

[urby 0]

I run the disco along with my wife ( You know what they say about working with Children and animals ?? They should also add the Mrs to that !! ) But seriously, in the band if I was ever stopped, I would say I have been practicing with fellow members and for the Disco, well its all in her indoors name, which means I am helping out a third party by transporting their gear ?

On both occasions fully insured in my estate car on standard fully comp insurance.