Wheelies Insurance replacement bikes?

jacko123

Wasnt sure where to post this one but ive just had my Trek 4500 stolen and my insurance company are using them to supply me with a replacement.

Ive read mixed reviews about them was wondering if anyone here has used them for stolen replacements, it seems like they dont stock Trek so do they usualy get one anyway or offer you an alternative make spec etc.

Any comments appreciated

Monkeypump

Not used them for theft replacement, but our company use them for Cycle to Work.

To be honest, I wasn't that impressed - misinformation about stock levels, delivery times, etc. Also poor advice from their online sales staff (i.e. recommending what they happen to have in stock, rather than what might be ideal). Only good point was the guy doing the demo day at our office, who was well-informed and enthusiastic (not that this helps you!).

With regard to Trek, they can't get them. This seems to be a directive from Trek, only supplying to shops who don't mail-order the bikes out to customers and only offer them ready-to-ride from the shop. Apparently protecting themselves from claims in cases of poorly assembled mail-order bikes.

There may be a way round it now, but Wheelies couldn't find a solution when I was asking about 18months ago.

#7rider

Hi

Had to use Wheelies some years ago to replace stolen Ridgeback hybrid and was able to purchase a Trek 7.6. Service was OK at the time and also had offer of 20% discount on other goods. Only negative was not having usual free 6 week service from LBS.

jacko123

Ive heard mixed reports about them so il just have to see what they come up with, Im actually interested in the Cube Attention so if they can get Cube great, if not they do Scott and Specilaized so i should be able to get a decent/similar spec to my old Trek 4500. Im a bit of a sceptic so im kind of expecting to get messed about by them

Adam_DT3

I had a great experience using them. My genesis core 30 was stolen and they added up this cost plus the price of all the accessories stolen. They offered me the total fund to spend on anything in the store I wanted so I asked them for an orange g3 with the upgraded fox shocks as only available on the orange website. They managed to source this for me no bother, and although took a few weeks to arrive they called every week to give me an update. Also got 18% off everything over the total value so keep that in mind. Delivery was super quick once it arrived in stock and was built up.

BoydD

I had my old Scott comp racing '96 stolen from my premises last year. Insurance company directed me to Wheelies, I wanted to use the LBS but insurance informed me that I would have to get a purchase order for them to pay and with administration this would add six weeks.

Ordered a Spesh RH from Wheelies and was fully prepared to strip and rebuild it once it arrived but to their credit it was well built. No problems dealing with them really.

apreading

If you want to shop elsewhere ask your insurance company. When I claimed on esure they wouldnt send me a cheque made out to me but were happy to send a cheque made out to another bike shop for the same amount they would have been paying Wheelies. The lady had to go and ask but came back quickly and said it would be OK.

pilsburypie

I used wheelies for my stolen replacement bike. The nicked bike was a Trek ex8 which they said they could replace no probs - but I chose a Zesty and paid a bit extra for the 514.

No probs - took 2 weeks to order in but arrived without issue

Sure it's over the net cos I think they are in Wales, but heegh, they did alright.

stubs

You dont have to accept a bike from Wheelies tell your insurance company you want the money. They will kick and scream because they get a big fat commision from Wheelies but if you persist they will eventually with bad grace send you a cheque.

I had a bike nicked in 2006 and my insurance company sent me to Wheelies the bike stolen was a GT worth new about £600 they wanted me to accept a Giant worth about £450. Told them to do one and got a cheque off the insurance for what I paid for the GT.

cooldad

Just because they get a discount doesn't men they can force you to use that shop, or even accept the price they can get an different bike for.
If it's the same make and comparable model that's different, but not any random make just because they can save a bit.
You didn't own and insure a generic bike', you owned a specific bike.
If you are not happy go through the insurer's complaints procedure then mention the financil ombudsman.
http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/p ... e-cash.htm

jacko123

ill see what they offer me, it wont be a Trek 4500 but i dont mind another make as long as the specs match up but its hard to find another brand with exact same specs. the closet thing they do is the Scott Aspect 20 which now sells for £50 more than the Trek 4500. More than likely i would have to stump up some cash for the differecne as the single limit on my policy is £500 a bike.

Others they do are

Specilaized Hardrock Disco Pro £599.00

Giant Talon 3 - £600 only has Simano altus shifers and front derailleur

Others they do are Cannondale Trail SL 4 £599 , Genesis Core 10 £649.00, Lapierre Tecnic 400 £649 (dont know much about them).

The closest in terms of specs are the Specialized and Scott, Cannondales and Genesis are reknown for the frames but the trade of is the not so good components in some areas.

Much prefer to use my LBS as you get the service after 6 months and you know the bike set up is spot on.

See what Wheelies try and palm me off with

jacko123

Just settled up with Wheelies and they offered me the Specilazed Hardrock Pro Disc which is almost identical in spec to the Trek 4500 apart from the rear Derailleur, The fork is better as well. Could of gone for the Cannondale Traiil SL4 but ive heard some bad reports on the RST forks so decided to go with the above.

Only thing im gonna loose out on is the LBS 6 month service but i think thats a fair replacement to my Trek

timpop

I used Wheelies for my replacement. I found them quite helpful and delivery was pretty quick. The bike was set-up properly and has been fine so far.
Have fun on your new bike.

Anonymous

Nevere heard of Wheelies until now, gonna check them out!!

welshkev

if you search for user 'silversladey' he's just had his insurance through from wheelies, he'll be able to help you out.

FYI: wheelies and tredz are the same company

jacko123

Got the delivery of my Specialized Hardrock Pro Disc to replace my stolen Trek 4500 today from Wheelies.

Bike was set up spot on but its surprising how different the bike is to the Trek to ride, think the seat was a bit low for a kick off but first impressions are not great, it feels heavy to ride in comparison. The spec is very similar but the Trek had the Deore rear derailleur as opposed to the Alvio on the Specialized. The right ups where good on Bike Radar but im kind of wishing id of gone for the Cannondale SL4 which was an option.

I might get used to the Specialzed but im half tempted to sell it and fork out some more cash for a Cube LTD Comp. Highly unlikely Wheelies will take the bike back

welshkev

jacko123 wrote:

Got the delivery of my Specialized Hardrock Pro Disc to replace my stolen Trek 4500 today from Wheelies.

Bike was set up spot on but its surprising how different the bike is to the Trek to ride, think the seat was a bit low for a kick off but first impressions are not great, it feels heavy to ride in comparison. The spec is very similar but the Trek had the Deore rear derailleur as opposed to the Alvio on the Specialized. The right ups where good on Bike Radar but im kind of wishing id of gone for the Cannondale SL4 which was an option.

I might get used to the Specialzed but im half tempted to sell it and fork out some more cash for a Cube LTD Comp. Highly unlikely Wheelies will take the bike back

i doubt very much they'll take it back...learn from this and always try before you buy. i know that wheelies is probably a long way from you but there's probably a spesh dealer close to you where you could have tried one, a bit of useless info now though

i'd give it a go a bit longer personally, most bikes feel different from others, even if it's just the width of the handlebars or stem length it can throw what you were used to out the window

theMagician

Hi,

I know this post is a bit out of date, but just had my week old canyon stolen from work and insurance (M&S) are passing my details on to Wheelies.

What are the chances of me saying that I want a new canyon and therefore need the cash to order direct from canyon.

cooldad

Insurers have to offer indemnity, so equivalent spec - if Wheelies can't do it, and I doubt they can, just push the issue, if they don't agree, go through their complaints process, and if they still don't agree, use the ombudsman.

And read your policy.

IDave

You've really pulled out an old post here!

I recently had an insurance payment through AXA who also go through wheelies/tredz/bikereplacement.

I spent weeks pointing out to the person at wheelies that the 'equivalent value' bike they were offering me was of a far lower spec than the bike they were replacing. I held out and eventually the insurance company gave me a cheque for the rrp of my bike minus the excess.

What Canyon bike did you have? What are you being offered as a replacement?

Although I can tell you right now that wheelies won't be able to get close to the spec of any Canyon bike for a similar value.

theMagician

Wheelies haven't been in touch yet. I wanted to prep myself for the sort of rubbish they'd try to pass my way.

This was the bike

http://www.canyon.com/_en/mountainbikes ... tml?b=3282

IDave

Report back and let us know what they offer you.

If they're trying hard they'll probably offer you something like this:

http://www.bikereplacement.co.uk/p66948 ... -Bike.aspx

If they don't offer this, you should easily be able to negotiate up to it.

theMagician

If they did offer me this, I wouldn't have to accept it would I? I know that the Scott is more expensive than the Canyon, but specification wise isn't it a lot worse?

I believe that the fork on the Canyon is better, the XT group set is better than the SRAM X9/X7 combination and the Canyon is also lighter.

I just want them to tell my insurance company that they can't match it and M&S give me the full amount in cash so that I can order another Canyon as soon as possible as they are already on waiting list of early August or early September depending on the colour.

I've given Wheelies the specification of the bike and they are meant to be getting back to me on Monday. I just don't know what to expect.

IDave

No you don't have to accept the replacement they offer.

You need to decide if you want cash to buy a new Canyon or if you are willing to accept a replacement bike from their list.

Either way the idea is to negotiate them up to a bike which closely matches the spec of your lost bike. If you play it smart you could actually end up with some extra cash over and above what you need to replace it.

Whatever you do, don't rush into a decision or be pressured into accepting a quick offer.

edit: just to be clear, you can ask for the cash value of what ever replacement they are offering, minus your excess.

chrisw333

theMagician wrote:

Hi,

I know this post is a bit out of date, but just had my week old canyon stolen from work and insurance (M&S) are passing my details on to Wheelies.

What are the chances of me saying that I want a new canyon and therefore need the cash to order direct from canyon.

I was with M&S and got a new bike through Wheelies. I was offered £1,500 cash (what my old bike was insured for) or (I think) £2,000 to spend at Wheelies. I opted for the latter.

Some people knock Wheelies, but they were great. Yes the bikes are at RRP and yes you can get a lot cheaper from elsewhere with cash. But for me I certainly couldn't do better than the deal I was offered at the time.

theMagician

Wheelies have been good. Was offered a Scott Scale 910 as a replacement (with a small contribution due to max insurance value) which I was more than happy to take, but they didn't have any stock.

That seems to be the problem with most bikes, the 2014 range is fading away and the 2015 hasn't been released yet.

So do I take a reduced cash sum which is still enough to purchase another canyon or should I wait until the 2015 range has been released. Liked the Canyon I had, although I never got chance to ride it off road, but the 2014 Scott is a lighter bike.

At the moment stock is short on the canyon so I'd have to wait sometime anyway.

IDave

I don't see the Scale 910 on the website, what value are they putting on that? Also how much cash are they offering you?

On the subject of whether to wait - I guess it depends on how soon you want to ride again.

stubs

I had a GT Zaskar stolen in 2005 and the insurance said I had to go through Wheelies. They rang and offered me a POS Giant Terrano which was worth about as much as I paid for the Zaskar frame on its own. Got straight back on to the insurance company and told them I wanted a cheque pronto they ummed and aahed and spouted all sorts of small print so I got Citizens Advice Bureau involved. CAB read the small print and rang the Insurance company and hey presto a cheque landed on the mat a couple of days later.

theMagician

I've just seen a picture of the 910 for 2015. Decided to wait until then. Mate has lent me one of his bikes so got something to ride until then.

chrisw333

stubs wrote:

I had a GT Zaskar stolen in 2005 and the insurance said I had to go through Wheelies. They rang and offered me a POS Giant Terrano which was worth about as much as I paid for the Zaskar frame on its own. Got straight back on to the insurance company and told them I wanted a cheque pronto they ummed and aahed and spouted all sorts of small print so I got Citizens Advice Bureau involved. CAB read the small print and rang the Insurance company and hey presto a cheque landed on the mat a couple of days later.

He's been offered the cash to the full amount the Canyon was insured for, or a replacement of a higher value.

Seems M&S and Wheelies are offering a decent service to me?

welshkev

chrisw333 wrote:

stubs wrote:

I had a GT Zaskar stolen in 2005 and the insurance said I had to go through Wheelies. They rang and offered me a POS Giant Terrano which was worth about as much as I paid for the Zaskar frame on its own. Got straight back on to the insurance company and told them I wanted a cheque pronto they ummed and aahed and spouted all sorts of small print so I got Citizens Advice Bureau involved. CAB read the small print and rang the Insurance company and hey presto a cheque landed on the mat a couple of days later.

He's been offered the cash to the full amount the Canyon was insured for, or a replacement of a higher value.

Seems M&S and Wheelies are offering a decent service to me?

exactly! some people (not necessarily the OP) are greedy "you can have back the cash to replace the bike like for like or you can have a more expensive bike from this limited list"

they go for the more expensive option and then bitch! :?