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How long does it really take get for the total loss insurance claim? The full story.
As many of you know, my much loved K3 Gixer thousand was stolen from my home late January and I thought now that the claim has settled that it would be appropriate to tell you all how it works and how long you could be expected to wait for a payout or new bike in the unfortunate event it happen to any of you.
Fraud is an unfortunate thing and the insurance industry is full of it. We all know it happens, it’s a reality of the insurance world. People making false claims saying their bike was stolen just because they cant sell it, or people saying they damaged their bikes on a public road when really that just flipped it at the Kwinana drags happens. We all pay for it. It’s a fact of life. Insurance companies know it, and this exposure to them is covered by the enormous premiums that we pay each year to insure our trusty steeds. In the end it is me and the other law abiding non fraudulent ones amongst us that are the ones that ultimately pay for it.
It is therefore a fact that every stolen bike claim that comes through will at some stage thought its processing be considered as to whether it is a fraudulent claim or not. They will look into your insurance claim form , any history they can find on your and your financials and make your life difficult should they consider you a risk.
It is in an insurance companies best interests to delay your claim as much as they can without you issuing a complaint. Why? The longer the money is in their bank and not yours the better off they are and the longer they delay it, the better the chance of your bike being recovered and their exposure reducing.
Here is a blow by blow account of the process. In looking at this consider these things:
(1) The bike was only 8 months old and insured from new with Swann Insurance.
(2) The bike had traveled approximately 5,000 k’s.
(3) There was no finance on the bike.
(4) The bike was properly secured behind locked gates and bolted to the wall with an appropriate motorcycle lock. The insurance company had photographs of this from day one.
(5) The bike had an alarm system. The insurance company had a copy of the installation receipt from day one.
(6) I did not hesitate in following up the insurance company at any reasonable opportunity and request a deadline or estimated time on each process in settling the loss.
(7) All correspondence from me was sent via courier. Some correspondence from them was collected by courier.
( 8 ) The bike was stolen in the peak of the riding season, not the middle of winter.
In considering the above, a person could reasonably assume that firstly, there is not much point in the insured wanting his bike stolen intentionally because of it being too old, having traveled too many k’s, having mechanical problems, having trouble with loan repayments ect. There is also not a lot of room for the insurance company to say that they had not received any documentation or that the bike was improperly secured.
What I am trying to say is, this claim went through as fast as any claim of this nature could ever be expected too. If it were to happen to another person whose circumstances were different than the above, then I would add days and perhaps weeks to the total time frame for payout.
With that picture in mind, here goes:
DAY 1: Bike is discovered stolen and reported to Police.
DAY 4: Occurring at the start of a long weekend, the insurance company is contacted by phone at the first opportunity on the next business day. They advised that a claim form would be sent in the mail.
DAY 6: Claim form received.
DAY 7: Claim form completed by me, witnessed by a Justice of the Peace and returned by courier to Swann’s Perth Office.
DAY 10: Swann contacted me by telephone and advised me of my claim number and requested I send them both ignition keys to the bike.
DAY 11: (after franticly pulling my house apart to find my spare key), Forwarded both ignition keys, two alarm fobs and the pillion seat to Swann by courier.
DAY 17: I contacted Swann to find out the progress. After probing them several times for an estimated timeline, their unhelpful claims rep said they could not say, not even when I prompted “a day?, a month?, a year?”.
DAY 25: I contacted Swann again to find out progress. They advised that the file had been sent to their ‘Investigations Unit’ and they returned it on day 20 but it can take a few days to get back to their section. They advised that the file will be reviewed by their manager and if in order they will proceed to settlement.
DAY 33: I contacted Swann again to find out the progress. They advised that a ‘Release Form’ had been sent to my PO Box on day 32.
DAY 34: Having not received the Release Form in the mail, I requested they reprint and I would send a courier to collect it. Courier received.
DAY 35: Signed Release Form and Subrogation Notice returned to Swann by courier. (Form they said they sent on day 32 arrived in mail.)
DAY 41: I contacted Swann again to find out progress. They said that the settlement was being signed off today and that the cheque had to come form Melbourne and will be two days.
DAY 46: I contacted Swann to find out where the cheque was. They said that the cheque was being drawn today could be expected within a few days.
DAY 49: Cheque received.
49 days from go to woe. 14% of the riding year. If I had of sent documents by mail and not courier, it would be a good two months. If the claim was a little tricky, I doubt that three months would be out of the question.
Protect your bike guys. 14% of the riding year it may be, but it really is 50% of the best time of year to be riding. Do everything you can to make sure that it doesn’t get nicked and always reject an opportunity to buy sus bitts from the backyard Joe and try and stop the demand for these things to be nicked in the first place.
Now........... when are those 04 modles due out again?
As many of you know, my much loved K3 Gixer thousand was stolen from my home late January and I thought now that the claim has settled that it would be appropriate to tell you all how it works and how long you could be expected to wait for a payout or new bike in the unfortunate event it happen to any of you.
Fraud is an unfortunate thing and the insurance industry is full of it. We all know it happens, it’s a reality of the insurance world. People making false claims saying their bike was stolen just because they cant sell it, or people saying they damaged their bikes on a public road when really that just flipped it at the Kwinana drags happens. We all pay for it. It’s a fact of life. Insurance companies know it, and this exposure to them is covered by the enormous premiums that we pay each year to insure our trusty steeds. In the end it is me and the other law abiding non fraudulent ones amongst us that are the ones that ultimately pay for it.
It is therefore a fact that every stolen bike claim that comes through will at some stage thought its processing be considered as to whether it is a fraudulent claim or not. They will look into your insurance claim form , any history they can find on your and your financials and make your life difficult should they consider you a risk.
It is in an insurance companies best interests to delay your claim as much as they can without you issuing a complaint. Why? The longer the money is in their bank and not yours the better off they are and the longer they delay it, the better the chance of your bike being recovered and their exposure reducing.
Here is a blow by blow account of the process. In looking at this consider these things:
(1) The bike was only 8 months old and insured from new with Swann Insurance.
(2) The bike had traveled approximately 5,000 k’s.
(3) There was no finance on the bike.
(4) The bike was properly secured behind locked gates and bolted to the wall with an appropriate motorcycle lock. The insurance company had photographs of this from day one.
(5) The bike had an alarm system. The insurance company had a copy of the installation receipt from day one.
(6) I did not hesitate in following up the insurance company at any reasonable opportunity and request a deadline or estimated time on each process in settling the loss.
(7) All correspondence from me was sent via courier. Some correspondence from them was collected by courier.
( 8 ) The bike was stolen in the peak of the riding season, not the middle of winter.
In considering the above, a person could reasonably assume that firstly, there is not much point in the insured wanting his bike stolen intentionally because of it being too old, having traveled too many k’s, having mechanical problems, having trouble with loan repayments ect. There is also not a lot of room for the insurance company to say that they had not received any documentation or that the bike was improperly secured.
What I am trying to say is, this claim went through as fast as any claim of this nature could ever be expected too. If it were to happen to another person whose circumstances were different than the above, then I would add days and perhaps weeks to the total time frame for payout.
With that picture in mind, here goes:
DAY 1: Bike is discovered stolen and reported to Police.
DAY 4: Occurring at the start of a long weekend, the insurance company is contacted by phone at the first opportunity on the next business day. They advised that a claim form would be sent in the mail.
DAY 6: Claim form received.
DAY 7: Claim form completed by me, witnessed by a Justice of the Peace and returned by courier to Swann’s Perth Office.
DAY 10: Swann contacted me by telephone and advised me of my claim number and requested I send them both ignition keys to the bike.
DAY 11: (after franticly pulling my house apart to find my spare key), Forwarded both ignition keys, two alarm fobs and the pillion seat to Swann by courier.
DAY 17: I contacted Swann to find out the progress. After probing them several times for an estimated timeline, their unhelpful claims rep said they could not say, not even when I prompted “a day?, a month?, a year?”.
DAY 25: I contacted Swann again to find out progress. They advised that the file had been sent to their ‘Investigations Unit’ and they returned it on day 20 but it can take a few days to get back to their section. They advised that the file will be reviewed by their manager and if in order they will proceed to settlement.
DAY 33: I contacted Swann again to find out the progress. They advised that a ‘Release Form’ had been sent to my PO Box on day 32.
DAY 34: Having not received the Release Form in the mail, I requested they reprint and I would send a courier to collect it. Courier received.
DAY 35: Signed Release Form and Subrogation Notice returned to Swann by courier. (Form they said they sent on day 32 arrived in mail.)
DAY 41: I contacted Swann again to find out progress. They said that the settlement was being signed off today and that the cheque had to come form Melbourne and will be two days.
DAY 46: I contacted Swann to find out where the cheque was. They said that the cheque was being drawn today could be expected within a few days.
DAY 49: Cheque received.
49 days from go to woe. 14% of the riding year. If I had of sent documents by mail and not courier, it would be a good two months. If the claim was a little tricky, I doubt that three months would be out of the question.
Protect your bike guys. 14% of the riding year it may be, but it really is 50% of the best time of year to be riding. Do everything you can to make sure that it doesn’t get nicked and always reject an opportunity to buy sus bitts from the backyard Joe and try and stop the demand for these things to be nicked in the first place.
Now........... when are those 04 modles due out again?
???
Atlas Performance, dyna pumps, " your name goes here"
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