Insurance issues

geoffnelder

Life has just become heavier.
I used to rely on the cycling clause in my home insurance for my bikes. However, recently some insurers don’t include bikes (possibly since their increased popularity) or only do for cheap bikes under £500. So I get mine from ETA, which handily includes return to home cover for when a chain breaks or an exploding tyre.
I noted that my ETA bicycle insurance would be invalid if I didn’t use an ‘approved’ lock when away from home. That means for my Dawes Super Galaxy a Sold Secure Silver rating lock. So I look them up and the lightest I could find is the Hiplok Original V1.5. Positive aspect is that it is wearable as a belt. Negative is it is just shy of 2kg ! Argh. It’s okay riding to the local shops but I can envisage all sorts of issues when I wear it on my 5 hours a day tours.
What do other cyclists do to comply with approved locks for their insurance?

effillo

Bike doesn't leave my side (or backside) away from home. Simples.

StillGoing

You should be able to add any bike to your house insurance. Whilst automatic cover may be restricted to certain value, you can specify a named higher value model with a small hike in premium cost. Both of my road bikes are named on my house insurance as is some of my wife's high value jewelry. The additional cost to the premium is negligible.

geoffnelder

That's good (for you) but it wasn't possible on my house insurance from Lloyd's Bank, Nationwide or Saga. Please whisper to me where you get your house insurance! And what TOC do they have relating to which type of lock they accept? Mine from all three mentioned above USED to just say 'locked to a solid object - eg railings' but not any more. Everyone is tightening up their conditions it seems.

plowmar

I currently have a SAGA policy which covers me up to £2500 on items outside of the home (and inside) so my bikes are covered, will yours?

Alternatively go to a comparison site to see which insurers are in the market for bike cover.

kingstongraham

Keep a lock at work, and otherwise don't leave the bike alone.

harry-s

Move your house insurance over to Pedalcover. They're brokers who will include any number of bikes at any value on your policy. No lock restrictions. Do a search, I think there's quite a few users on here, me included. Bizarrely, the premium was actually less than my previous insurer, and the underwriters were the same.

Flâneur

With Harry S on this.

Excellent and friendly service, Darren was my contact on it all.

You do need a lock just doesn't have to be a 5kg job. Best to let the company explain it all in case anything has changed with their underwriters

rozzer32

+1 for Pedalcover

geoffnelder

Plowmar, SAGA home insurance only covers bikes up to £500. If a bike costs more than that it isn't covered unless you let them know in advance as a specified item. Good news is that it only costs around £30 to add my Dawes Super Galaxy to that SAGA policy and they don't specify what kind of lock.
I am finding it hard to get my head around those here who say never leave your bike unattended. That's what I have to do when hiring a bike in Spain cos they have no insurance for hired bikes there and I've carried hired road bikes up 3 flights of hotel stairs! However, every week I cycle 100 miles just to visit pals in hospital. I enjoy the rides immensely but not being yelled at if I try to wheel a wet, muddy bike down hospital corridors or even in the many cafes I visit en route.

drlodge

I also got a quote from Pedalcover, with £13,000 worth of bikes the contents and buildings cover was £300/year. Not bad, although my present cover through direct line is only £120 but that doesn't cover the bikes when they're out of the house.

kingstongraham

GeoffNelder wrote:

I am finding it hard to get my head around those here who say never leave your bike unattended.

We're all different. The insurance isn't the only reason I wouldn't leave my bike without a decent lock on it. If I was 50 miles from home dressed for a bike ride, I wouldn't really want to suddenly be without it.

How do you carry a lock that would make a thief think twice? For a short ride I don't mind it, but bit annoying having that extra weight over a long distance.

drlodge

KingstonGraham wrote:

GeoffNelder wrote:

I am finding it hard to get my head around those here who say never leave your bike unattended.

We're all different. The insurance isn't the only reason I wouldn't leave my bike without a decent lock on it. If I was 50 miles from home dressed for a bike ride, I wouldn't really want to suddenly be without it.

How do you carry a lock that would make a thief think twice? For a short ride I don't mind it, but bit annoying having that extra weight over a long distance.

Any lock is better than no lock. For café stops I use one of these, fits in my back pocket

Man Of Lard

KingstonGraham wrote:

How do you carry a lock that would make a thief think twice? For a short ride I don't mind it, but bit annoying having that extra weight over a long distance.

Bracket on the frame and yes the weight is irritating (but lock weighs 1.5kg, I weigh a lot more than 1.5kg so it's a small percentage of my moving mass) - miles better than having to walk home (or having to get someone to come and pick me up) and crying over the lost bike...

fenix

The hospital thing is tricky - clearly you want the best lock you can get there.

When I'm out on Sunday rides the bike is always in sight and we choose places that we trust.

I'd not leave it unlocked in a city centre but I'd not lock my bike up at the local bike cafe either.

Flâneur

If you are going to the hospital on such a regular basis then I would probably leave a lock there (I do similar at my gym)

Then for cafe runs a smaller lock such as the one above or the hiplock cable (same thing essentially) if you are on your own/away from the cafes where cyclists leave their bikes unlocked but remove their Garmins.