Car insurance claims, tracking devices and brokers: What you should know
With hijackings and vehicle theft on the rise, insurers are insisting on a certain level of tracking device - make sure you keep abreast of any changes to your policy.
Car on the road, Toyota SUV. Unsplash/gaspar zaldo
Consumer journalist Wendy Knowler joins Stephen Grootes on The Money Show.
This week on The Money Show, consumer ninja Wendy Knowler issues another warning about car insurance policies and being on top of the specifications and any changed requirements.
The role of brokers also comes into play - if your insurer rejects your claim because you failed to comply with instructions which your broker cannot prove they communicated to you, your broker may be forced to compensate you for your loss.
RELATED: Your broker could be made to pay up for rejected claim if you weren't properly advised
In a recent order, the FAIS Ombud (Ombud for Financial Services) ruled in favour of a consumer who brought a complaint against her insurer following the rejection of her motor vehicle theft claim due to her failure to install a tracking device.
The Ombud ordered a R786 000 payout after the client's broker failed to advise her of a new tracker requirement.
"With hijackings and car theft certain vehicles are at the top of the shopping list, particularly Toyotas and Volkswagens... and the hotspots are in certain areas like much of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal for example. What insurers are insisting on in recent years is that you have a certain level of tracking device if you have that vehicle."
Wendy Knowler, Consumer Journalist
"When people get a newly purchased car insured, they often either didn't need one or only required a basic tracker. Then the insurers started sending out letters saying that now, because of the hijackings, you need to have a particular tracking device or level, or your theft and hijacking cover gets removed from your policy."
Wendy Knowler, Consumer Journalist
Knowler's advice is if you're driving a vehicle at high risk of theft and hijacking, contact your insurer and find out if the tracking technology you have is sufficient to ensure that a claim won’t be rejected.
If it's a case where your claim has been rejected for this reason and you have a broker, lodge a complaint with the FAIS Ombud if you can’t find an email from them informing you of your insurer’s material change in tracking tech.
Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the full conversation