Motorhome Insurance

A motorhome is unlike a private car in a number of ways. Whilst a standard private car policy will provide legally valid cover it would leave you with some potential "gaps" between what the policy provides and the cover you actually need. To give you some examples:

• Personal belongings under a standard car policy is limited to around £100, whereas a Comfort Horizon motorhome policy will provide a minimum of £3,000 which can be increased to up to £5,000 on request.
• There is no gas & explosion cover on a car policy.
• There is no cover for awnings and/or generators under a car policy
• Breakdown cover taken as part of standard car policy will probably have weight and length limits that may mean your vehicle is not eligible.
• Foreign use cover under a standard car policy may have trip limits and/or overall number of days limits.

You must tell us everything that is relevant to your motorhome insurance. If you don't then you risk having your policy voided, and being left without cover. We need to know all your details, your driving history (any claims or motoring offenses for you and any other drivers who will be using the vehicle), the motorhome details and the storage location. Many people choose to store their motorhome in a different location, such as a specialist garage or at a friend’s home during the winter months – if you do this it is vital that you inform your insurance company straight away, or your policy may be void. It is useful to remember that insurance companies and the police are starting to share information about cover, drivers and driving history.

Insurance companies need to take a lot of information in order to calculate a price: things like the make and model of car, postcode, driving history, claim experience, occupation, and type of use. By taking so much information we can personalise the price for your specific circumstances.

This applies only to DVLA reportable conditions that may affect the conditions under which you are granted your driving license but be aware not all companies quote in this situation.

Insurance companies work with different statistics and use different methods to calculate premiums. Some companies specialise in certain areas or types of car so are prepared to discount more in some areas than others. This adds to the complexity as a like for like quote with a number of different companies can yield a number of very different prices.

Comfort Insurance specialise in motorhome insurance. Our offerings include car insurance and home insurance, but these are designed specifically for motorhomers. We are motorhomers ourselves, and this is why we are able to put so much passion and understanding into our motorhome insurance policies.

There are a number of ways:

• Security – fit an alarm or tracker system.
• Annual mileage – be as accurate as you can with how many miles you would do in an average year.
• Additional drivers – Only add drivers to your policy that regularly use the motorhome.
• Install Reversing cameras or sensors.

A tracking device or tracker is an effective tool designed to help the law enforcement services find your motorhome if the worst happens, and it’s stolen. The trackers that Comfort Insurance recognise are:

1. RAC Trackstar
   This tracking device works independently from the battery – so even if the thieves disconnect the battery, the vehicle can usually be found. It works using GPS technology, and sends a signal every 20 seconds, so even if the vehicle is on the move, it can easily be found, and the thieves apprehended – and most importantly, your vehicle returned to you.
2. The Phantom Proactive Tracker
   This device works with your alarm system, and will send a signal to Phantom when the theft is actually taking place. You will be alerted by telephone. Phantom have a 24hour control centre, so your vehicle can be tracked even in the small hours of the night.
3. CobraTrak
   Again, this uses GPS, and has the added bonus that Cobra will liaise with European police forces, so if the theft takes place on the continent then you have that extra security. The coverage is vast, so if you do regular trips abroad then this may be the best option for you.

By installing one of the above trackers, you can reduce the cost of your motorhome insurance – but more importantly, you will be reassured that your pride and joy will be easily recoverable if the worst happens, and it’s stolen.

An immobiliser is an electronic device that stops the vehicle from being started if it is broken into. Although this won't stop your motorhome from being broken into, it may well stop it from being driven away. Most motorhomes on the road today already have immobilisers installed, but check with your dealer if you’re not sure.

A reversing camera is exactly what the name suggests – a camera mounted at the back of your vehicle, designed to give you a good view of areas you can’t see. This is especially useful if your motorhome doesn’t have a rear window.

A reversing sensor will usually be activated when the vehicle is put in reverse gear, and will give you a signal (usually audio) if you reverse too closely to an obstacle.

Both these devices are great if you are new to motorhoming and are not used to driving such a large vehicle – but in reality, they are great for anyone driving a larger vehicle. Not just for the reduced motorhome insurance premiums either!

Most newer motorhomes (being those up to 6 years old) come with some sort of alarm and/or immobiliser. Insurers will already have the details of the alarms and immobilisers that are fitted to newer vehicles. This is already built into their rating criteria. If you have an older car you may have fitted a specific alarm. All alarms and immobilisers are categorised and insurers may give discounts depending upon the make and model of alarm or immobiliser.

There may be a reason for the owner and registered keeper to be different individuals. For example, you may use a car that is owned by someone else in which case you would be the registered keeper. Or you may own a car that you allow your children to use and therefore the registered keeper would be one of your children

The main driver is the person who uses the vehicle the most and should be named on your motorhome insurance policy.

Guess the nearest month if you can't remember exactly and it's more than 3 years ago. As a general rule, the longer you have been driving for, the cheaper your motorhome insurance will be.

These need to include any motoring offenses in the last 5 years including any pending prosecutions. You will find the details you need on your driving license.

These need to include any accidents or claims you have made in the last 3 years. You will need to have details of these to hand. This includes all claims: even claims where you were not at fault.

The terms fault and non-fault can be confusing. A non-fault claim is simply a claim where the insurer is able to recover all their costs from someone else. If they are not able to recover all their costs, then it is a fault claim even if you didn't cause the claim to happen. For example a theft is typically classed as a fault claim because although you are not to blame for the theft, the insurance company had no third party to claim the costs from so they classify it as a fault claim. If the insurance company are not able to recover 100% of the costs of the claim, then it is classed as ‘Fault’.

If you do about 100 miles a week then that works out between 5,000 and 6,000 miles a year. If you do about 250 miles a week that works out at about 12,000 miles a year.

Unlike protected no claims bonus, guaranteed NCB does not have any stipulations about the number of claims over a period of time. Maximum NCB applies for the whole of the policy period. Proof of NCB that may be required following a change of insurer will show that NCB was guaranteed, and would identify the actual number of years’ claim-free driving

Net-rated policies (such as the Comfort motorhome product) use a premium equivalent to a maximum no claims bonus. The effect is the same as a guaranteed NCB in that it applies to the life of the policy, and cannot be directly affected by claims (other than a possible premium loading for adverse experience). If proof of NCB is required following a change of insurer the evidence would show the number of years claim-free driving. One advantage of net-rated policies is that available NCB can be used against another insurance policy, e.g. private car.