View Full Version : Do you actually keep your bike in the garage?
I've been getting some insurance quotes with theft cover. If i keep the bike in the garage its not a bad price. BUT if i keep it in the garden (off the road) the price is a lot more.
Keeping the Bike in my garage is not a possibility, and won't ever be.
If you have a garage, do you just say to the insurance company it's in the garage even if it's not?
tricky one
mine is always in the garage, unless im away for the weekend, overnight, and with my last ins company, my bike was not insured if it got stolen from outside my house........... as it should not be outside my house,it should be in garage....... even if it was just for 5 mins
so i used to park it outside the shop, which was 4 houses away, if i was just poping home
Gazza77
08-12-08, 01:42 PM
I've been getting some insurance quotes with theft cover. If i keep the bike in the garage its not a bad price. BUT if i keep it in the garden (off the road) the price is a lot more.
Keeping the Bike in my garage is not a possibility, and won't ever be.
If you have a garage, do you just say to the insurance company it's in the garage even if it's not?
Mine is kept in the garage and insured as such.
However, when I first got a bike, I got two quotes for comparison; one as bike in garage, one as bike in back yard. If the bike was stolen from my home address when not in the garage, the excess was an extra £250 on top of the standard policy excess. To insure the bike as kept outside was a standard excess and around £400 more for the policy itself.
If I had kept it outside, I know what I'd have been doing with the insurance....
Keep mine in the garage and its a real pain in the butt. There is a clause if bike is parked within 1/4 mile (ish) of house and stolen (i.e. not in garage) they won't pay.
This includes leaving bike outside for 5 mins while nipping in to get something I forgot when I set out.
Also, as my garage is only just big enough for car, can't fit both in, so car permanently sat in the drive now.
fizzwheel
08-12-08, 01:45 PM
Kept in the garage and the insurance company have it insured as such. One my house purchase requirements was for a house with a garage...
I think you'd be up sh*te creak with out a padel if you told them it was garaged and then it got knicked and they discovered that you dont even own a garage.
Ceri JC
08-12-08, 02:09 PM
Kept in the garage and the insurance company have it insured as such. One my house purchase requirements was for a house with a garage...
I think you'd be up sh*te creak with out a padel if you told them it was garaged and then it got knicked and they discovered that you dont even own a garage.
+1
My house's garage was in ruins when we bought it. I made it clear to the other half that we would need to factor in the money to completely renovate it as part of the "cost" of the house. I have garaged a bike over a mile away from where I lived (rented garage across town) in the past, but would never do this again. In future, I'll only move to a house that has a garage/planning permission for one to be built. In a way, I'd prefer the latter; I'd love to design/build a garage from the foundations up next time and just make it absolutely perfect.
madness
08-12-08, 02:10 PM
What exactly constitutes a 'garage'? I'm going to build a 'bike shed' in the near future. It will be purpose built to store the bike. Will I be able to claim the bike is garaged?
yorkie_chris
08-12-08, 02:13 PM
Depends. Some say brick built
What exactly constitutes a 'garage'? I'm going to build a 'bike shed' in the near future. It will be purpose built to store the bike. Will I be able to claim the bike is garaged?
insurance company will probably ask you what its made of?
if they dont ask, and you dont tell them and its made of wood/cardboard/etc, i dont think they will payout
madness
08-12-08, 02:19 PM
Depends. Some say brick built
Surely no matter what a garage is built of, anyone breaking in will more than likely break in via the door.
yorkie_chris
08-12-08, 02:21 PM
Ask the insurance company
_Stretchie_
08-12-08, 02:25 PM
I'm pretty sure there is something in the written that states you can have it outside your house but only for a short time (heaven knows how they would be able to determine if your bike had been there for an hour or a day, but that's what brought my attention to it..
Have a butchers..
AND DO NOT INSURE WITH MCE, non xs disclosing trucker mothers....
Gazza77
08-12-08, 02:29 PM
Surely no matter what a garage is built of, anyone breaking in will more than likely break in via the door.
My Uncle once had this conversation with whoever it was that he was insured with, as he kept his bikes locked together in a shed. After two hours of arguing, they decided to agree with him....
Mr Speirs
08-12-08, 03:06 PM
I have my bike insured as kept on public highway but in actual fact it spends most of it's time in a very secure warehouse where if they could break in my bike would be the least valueble item in sight and the hardest to steal. Tried telling my insurance co that but they insisted on bumping the price up considerably.
SoulKiss
08-12-08, 03:16 PM
I have my bike insured as kept on public highway but in actual fact it spends most of it's time in a very secure warehouse where if they could break in my bike would be the least valueble item in sight and the hardest to steal. Tried telling my insurance co that but they insisted on bumping the price up considerably.
I believe mine is just not allowed to be outside of the house overnight - I think it specifies that there is an extra excess if its taken from outside my house after 10 and before 6 (or something like that)
martianskippy
08-12-08, 03:28 PM
My friend got his '08 Blade stolen from in front of his house last week. He woke up to find his back wheel still chained to the lamp post with his expensive Abus chain :-( Surprisingly, the bike was recovered a week later by the Police with what looked like minor cosmetic damage (apart from the broken ignition barrel and block) The dealership's rwpir quote was close to £8,500! The problem started when he looked at his insurance policy's T's&C's. As the bike was insurred as garaged it meant that if it was stolen while parked on or off the street within 500 yards from home address it was not covered... Unless it was stored in another building that would fulfill the following conditions (and here follows a very detailed description of a suitable storage space - basically a brick garage) .. He was advised that if he tries to claim he will not only get nothing but they will also refuse to insure him in the future. As they were the only company who were willing to insure him for reasonable money (£1100 fully comp; compared to £3000 by other insurers) he ended up not claiming and instructing the dealer to get the bike on the road for the smallest possible value which turned out to be £1,900 from his own pocket...
yorkie_chris
08-12-08, 03:30 PM
£1900? Madness.
Moral of the story don't instruct a dealer to do anything except leave your fecking bike alone.
yorkie_chris
08-12-08, 03:30 PM
But did he get to keep the spare back wheel? :-P
martianskippy
08-12-08, 03:39 PM
But did he get to keep the spare back wheel? :-P
Yep, he says he'll use it for track days :D
martianskippy
08-12-08, 03:43 PM
£1900? Madness.
Moral of the story don't instruct a dealer to do anything except leave your fecking bike alone.
Well it is a +£10K h*nda chav mobile and the imobiliser, ignition barrel and wheel lock mechanism do cost a bit..
I think the biggest sham was dealer's initial quote of over 8K. Apparently it included a new exhaust at a cost of £1.5K which is ridiculous as he had an aftermarket 2 Brothers can on his...
mine is insured as on private property ie my front garden as thats what i told them.
i do have a garage it could go in, but one my car is in there and two im doing loads of work on the car so the car comes first for the garage, not working in the cold outside any more while i have a garage
i had the same questions from the insurance about if i left it parked in the street out side if i mentioned it was garaged and i was told i dont have theft cover while out side my house, hence the option to have it insured as on pribate property my garden, i havent even told them about extra locks ie chain and disc lock alarm etc as they were not intrested
fizzwheel
08-12-08, 04:02 PM
I think the biggest sham was dealer's initial quote of over 8K. Apparently it included a new exhaust at a cost of £1.5K which is ridiculous as he had an aftermarket 2 Brothers can on his...
Actually I think thats disgusting. But trouble is insurance would insist the bike is put back to how it was when it left the factory and OEM exhausts are damn expensive...
Ceri JC
08-12-08, 04:03 PM
Surely no matter what a garage is built of, anyone breaking in will more than likely break in via the door.
A mate who had an all wood garage operated on this principle. My advice to him was that whilst lots of "garages" had wooden doors and hence his garage wasn't really any more insecure than any of them, you could guarantee insurers wouldn't see it this way and would try to weasel out of paying out if you made a claim. Insurance contracts usually go into some detail on garages, often insisting they are brick/breeze-block built.
startrek.steve
08-12-08, 04:16 PM
Northern Rock are happy with my bike being in a wooden, alarmed triple locked shed.
Steve
Dicky Ticker
08-12-08, 04:32 PM
My bike is garaged along with 2 lids and two sets of riding gear reason being that my wife doesn't like dirty/soggy/ leathers/textiles in the house and I get changed in the garage which I don't find to be a hardship. The rear garage door is direct into the house.
My insurance does state that the bike must be garaged if within 440yds of my premises
Dangerous Dave
08-12-08, 04:40 PM
The 800 is kept in the garage but isn't insured to be specifically kept in the garage along with a track day TLR, and the 650 is either in the shed or down the side alley.
Mine is garaged, but just told insurers that it's kept in garden, as I decided that if I ever got back late and tired and didn't want to put it away (it's a bit of a fiddle) then I wouldn't have to worry about insurance.
I wish i had a garage, if i did, the bike ouwld be in there for sure.
Northern Rock are happy with my bike being in a wooden, alarmed triple locked shed.
SteveYeah, but they are owned by you,(the tax payer) so why shoudl they care anymore ;)
I really wish I had a garage. Would be out there tinkering now instead of reading about tinkerage and looking at photos of said tinkerage. Plus the barsteward would start in the morning....
We keep our bike in the front room, which Footman James are more than happy with. It does have to be 'garaged' between 10pm and 6am though, or the insurance in invalid, unless the bike is more than a mile away from our house.
dirtydog
08-12-08, 06:56 PM
All 3 bikes are insured to be in the garage and that's where they're kept. The excess for the RS doubles if it's stolen from my address and not in the garage
northwind
08-12-08, 08:12 PM
If you have a garage, do you just say to the insurance company it's in the garage even if it's not?
No, because if they find out, they won't pay out (or alternatively there may be a penalty, with mine if the bike's stolen from within a quarter mile of my house and wasn't garaged, the excess is 4 times normal) So, if it does get stolen, you either have to suck it up, or break into your own garage and hope you don't get caught and possibly get the jail for fraud. Not clever...
kwak zzr
08-12-08, 08:31 PM
bike in garage and insured so, cage on the drive in the rain :)
daytona will be garaged over winter down at treacles
Littlepeahead
09-12-08, 01:12 PM
How about asking around if any neighbours have spare garage space they can rent to you - most people only keep a load of old junk in theirs anyway. I had a friend's bike in my garage over the summer and just gave him a key. The insurance was fine with this as he told them it was in a garage but at a different address. He then winters it in his parents garage on F&T only.
By August I had accumulated my SV, a mate's Honda, a BMW Dakar and a 200cc Vespa in the garage. There was hardly any room left for the random bits of junk that are the requirement of any UK garage.
daytona will be garaged over winter down at treacles
Excellent, i need a winter hack, dont mind if i borrow it do you ;)
Keeping it in the garage can't ever be an option. The side doors of the garage are completely sealed and barracaded to keep the mountain bikes secure. There isn't enough room for a motorbike in there with the mountain bikes and tool benches. I can't use a neighbors garage either, i think thats taking the mick anyway, they wouldnt want their property broken into.
Insurance if i kept the bike off the road is just over £250 more than if i kept it in the garage.
It's ridiculous how much i would have to pay for theft cover. I'm 17 and i've got a £588 quote TPO, which i'm reasonably happy about. Theft cover is £1000 (£1300 if kept in the garden). I know being a new rider insurance will be more because im 'more likely to crash' but being a new rider doesn't make the bike any more likely to get stolen!
I'm considering just getting TPO since the garden is quite secure, and the only time it will be left alone outside the house is at college in a guarded car park.
What exactly constitutes a 'garage'? I'm going to build a 'bike shed' in the near future. It will be purpose built to store the bike. Will I be able to claim the bike is garaged?
My insurance company are happy with a garage/shed of metal or wood construction. The qualifying criteria is that it has a concrete base.
SoulKiss
09-12-08, 02:25 PM
. I know being a new rider insurance will be more because im 'more likely to crash' but being a new rider doesn't make the bike any more likely to get stolen!
I'm considering just getting TPO since the garden is quite secure, and the only time it will be left alone outside the house is at college in a guarded car park.
Yes AND No.
The amount they quote for the theft cover is probably a fairly fixed amount based on your home postcode, and if you got a quote based on being 21 with 4 years NCB on TPO and then on TPF+T you would probably find the difference to be similar.
The Yes part comes in as you are statistically more likely to forget to lock it up/not be bothered to.
You also regard the security afforded by the College Car Park to actually be worth something - it wont stop your bike being nicked - it will help catch whoever tho - but thats not much use when they have already stripped/trashed the bike.
As for whether you should use the garage - well whats more important - the motorbike or the pushbikes.
Ansd cant the mountain bikes not be hung on the wall/winched to the roof above the motorbike?
The theft insurance may see expensive - but is your bike only worth £400 ?
We keep our bike in the front room, which Footman James are more than happy with. It does have to be 'garaged' between 10pm and 6am though, or the insurance in invalid, unless the bike is more than a mile away from our house.
Exactly the same as mine.
Not sure if mine has to be in a garage regardless though! Didnt read anywhere about the 1 mile bit. I think if mine is not garaged between those times the my excess may be abit more.
Yes AND No.
The amount they quote for the theft cover is probably a fairly fixed amount based on your home postcode, and if you got a quote based on being 21 with 4 years NCB on TPO and then on TPF+T you would probably find the difference to be similar.
Someone i know lives in a really rough area. He's over 40 and pays £100 for fully comp.
The Yes part comes in as you are statistically more likely to forget to lock it up/not be bothered to.
Surely if the bike is left unlocked then it wouldn't be covered anyway?
You also regard the security afforded by the College Car Park to actually be worth something - it wont stop your bike being nicked - it will help catch whoever tho - but thats not much use when they have already stripped/trashed the bike.
The car park is surrounded by a spiked fence and the guards need to manually lift the barrier to get in, after showing the college ID card.
As for whether you should use the garage - well whats more important - the motorbike or the pushbikes.
As far as my dads concerned, his £2500 mountainbike is very important, so are the other two bikes kept in there.
Ansd cant the mountain bikes not be hung on the wall/winched to the roof above the motorbike?
There isnt sufficient room to mount them on the wall and even if there was, they would not be able to be clamped to the floor like they are now.
The theft insurance may see expensive - but is your bike only worth £400 ?
I was considering getting TPO for one year, then upgrading to theft cover after a year of (fingers crossed) NCB. I know it's a risk, but at the same time i don't think i can justify paying double the insurance amount.
.
northwind
10-12-08, 07:27 PM
.
Couple of things... post codes are a total lottery, I'm in a nice area here but the postcode changes about 50 feet away on my street and that post code's considered "high risk" because there's a bit of a council scheme in it with higher crime, while my bit mainly has, well, nothing in it at all, a river and stuff. So we're low risk despite being the same street and no closer to the pikeys.
Similiarly, the last owner of my SV lived in a weird gated compound with 15 foot high walls and all night security guards, but right on the edge of a sink estate. The chance of it being nicked from its manned underground garage were basically 0 but their theft quote was enormous because of the neighbours.
Really good mtbs are always going to be a better target than bikes- the value is high, the parts easy to shift and there's no useful frame number, no datatag, etc. Plus with interchangability of parts, once a bike's broken up you can't trace where most of the bits came from- it's not like motorbikes where you can tell, for instance, exactly what bike a fork came off, one Reba or whatever is indistinguishable from another.
I'd leave the motorbike outside, personally. But luckily I've got space for all my crap in the garage.
My insurance company are happy with a garage/shed of metal or wood construction. The qualifying criteria is that it has a concrete base.
Well I can understand that.
We have a lot of trouble up here in Lincolnshire with people tunneling in from the street and dragging 300Kg Motorbikes back down the hole behind them :D
vardypeeps
11-12-08, 01:09 PM
Even though I have loads of locks to put on my bike I insure mine as if it has no security in case it gets nicked when I have forgotten to put them on.
Just cover your back. If you have a garage but don't use it you should insure it as being kept on a private drive etc. Then they don't fleece you when it gets nicked (sorry if)
I've decided to go for TPO and pay the £588, rather than £1300 for theft cover.
I can limit the chances of it getting stolen to a large enough extent for me to be happy risking it.
yorkie_chris
11-12-08, 02:21 PM
Realistically with a cheap bike like the SV it's not at all worth claiming anyway, think about the excess, and the policy loading the year after.
Ceri JC
11-12-08, 02:29 PM
Realistically with a cheap bike like the SV it's not at all worth claiming anyway, think about the excess, and the policy loading the year after.
My POV too. I'll probably downgrade mine to TPO next renewal as the bike is now worth so little that I couldn't see myself claiming for theft anymore.
My POV too. I'll probably downgrade mine to TPO next renewal as the bike is now worth so little that I couldn't see myself claiming for theft anymore.
are you serious is yours a k4 bet there's at least £2000 worth i couldnt afford to lose that much :confused:
Ceri JC
11-12-08, 03:46 PM
are you serious is yours a k4 bet there's at least £2000 worth i couldnt afford to lose that much :confused:
It's a K4 with 46K on the clock, £1600 worth of crash damage and a scratched and dented frame and a scuffed tank that weren't factored into the £1600. Oh and it only has a dealer SH up to 16K miles. Although it's worth a lot more to me (I've owned it from new, know it's mechanically sound and I'll run it into the ground) I'd be lucky to get £1000 for it in a private sale (although I could get about £200 more breaking it for parts)and an insurance payout would probably only be in the region of £1500. Depending when in the year it occured you should also factor in the loss of the rest of the £190 policy (when you claim, you don't get the rest of the year's premium back).
Despite my so called "protected no claims discount", I can guarantee my insurance would spike by about £250-300 the year after I made a claim (they still ask if you've made any claims, it's a seperate question to "do you have a no claims bonus" :mad:). This'd probably go down to £150-200 the year after etc., however, adding it all together, along with the associated cost increases on other (multiple) bikes I'd be insuring in the next 5 years (which will be worth a lot more so the hike would be even greater) and my 2 cars' insurance, I'd estimate the total cost of claiming, in terms of increased premiums would be over £2000 in the long run.
Also, despite "pride coming before a fall" and not wanting to tempt fate, my bike's comparatively very unlikely to be nicked. This is given its low value and fact it's kept in a very secure alarmed garage, datatagged, immobilised, almaxed, ground anchored and with an anti-pinch pin. It'd be beyond the skills of opportunists and kids and the value of the bike wouldn't be worth the risk to the pros.
It's a K4 with 46K on the clock, £1600 worth of crash damage and a scratched and dented frame and a scuffed tank that weren't factored into the £1600. Oh and it only has a dealer SH up to 16K miles. Although it's worth a lot more to me (I've owned it from new, know it's mechanically sound and I'll run it into the ground) I'd be lucky to get £1000 for it in a private sale (although I could get about £200 more breaking it for parts)and an insurance payout would probably only be in the region of £1500. Depending when in the year it occured you should also factor in the loss of the rest of the £190 policy (when you claim, you don't get the rest of the year's premium back).
Despite my so called "protected no claims discount", I can guarantee my insurance would spike by about £250-300 the year after I made a claim (they still ask if you've made any claims, it's a seperate question to "do you have a no claims bonus" :mad:). This'd probably go down to £150-200 the year after etc., however, adding it all together, along with the associated cost increases on other (multiple) bikes I'd be insuring in the next 5 years (which will be worth a lot more so the hike would be even greater) and my 2 cars' insurance, I'd estimate the total cost of claiming, in terms of increased premiums would be over £2000 in the long run.
Also, despite "pride coming before a fall" and not wanting to tempt fate, my bike's comparatively very unlikely to be nicked. This is given its low value and fact it's kept in a very secure alarmed garage, datatagged, immobilised, almaxed, ground anchored and with an anti-pinch pin. It'd be beyond the skills of opportunists and kids and the value of the bike wouldn't be worth the risk to the pros.
in that case your right probably not worth claiming :)
in that case your right probably not worth claiming :)
But even if the bike was worth £2000 it's probably not worth getting the theft cover.
Add up the money spent on the theft cover for the amount of years youve had the bike and it not being stolen, + the excess its just not worth it.
In my case the excess is £650! £600 more per year than TPO. If the bike didn't get solen for 2 years then i would have saved £1850.
Ceri JC
11-12-08, 04:49 PM
But even if the bike was worth £2000 it's probably not worth getting the theft cover.
Add up the money spent on the theft cover for the amount of years youve had the bike and it not being stolen, + the excess its just not worth it.
In my case the excess is £650! £600 more per year than TPO. If the bike didn't get solen for 2 years then i would have saved £1850.
Yes, I did the maths of fully comprehensive cover and I'd have to write off a bike (100% my fault) every 1.5 years to break even. If you write off a bike every 1.5 years, you shouldn't ride motorbikes.:)
SoulKiss
11-12-08, 05:02 PM
Yes, I did the maths of fully comprehensive cover and I'd have to write off a bike (100% my fault) every 1.5 years to break even. If you write off a bike every 1.5 years, you shouldn't ride motorbikes.:)
I dunno, with GAP insurance and a New Bike each time it means that an "upgrade" can cost as little as £300 - so you only loose the GAP premium each time :)
yorkie_chris
11-12-08, 05:03 PM
If you write one off that often you'll struggle to get insurance.
But even if the bike was worth £2000 it's probably not worth getting the theft cover.
Add up the money spent on the theft cover for the amount of years youve had the bike and it not being stolen, + the excess its just not worth it.
In my case the excess is £650! £600 more per year than TPO. If the bike didn't get solen for 2 years then i would have saved £1850.
but i need a bike and havnt got £2k always handy to replace it if it does get nicked then im stuffed theft is a bit of a neccessity for me :)
yorkie_chris
11-12-08, 05:09 PM
You don't need £2k. £300 will get you a runabout
You don't need £2k. £300 will get you a runabout
yeah but thyere mostly sheeeiteee when you get em they always end up costing much more keeping em going.:(
yorkie_chris
11-12-08, 05:19 PM
Says who?
my dads had few wreckers over the years and mostly they never pay off although their was some exceptions like the cbr400 he got.
yorkie_chris
11-12-08, 05:25 PM
You just need to know what to look for and where to get bits, and how to bodge.
nothing beats a good bike bodge.
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