Have you asked if cycle cover on home insurance gives you adequate cover on the bike?
If you don’t ride many miles, don’t compete, or have a cheap and cheerful bicycle which lives safely indoors, then maybe the cycle cover on your home insurance is enough. If that’s not you, then it’s worth noting that home insurance for cyclists can have significant limitations.
Cycle Cover on home insurance may not be up to scratch
Generally speaking, bicycles worth upwards of £800 are not automatically covered on home insurance and need to be specifically added, usually with an additional premium. In many cases home insurers will decline to provide cycle cover for higher value bikes.
If you are riding around town on a carbon number worth more than some people’s cars, and you haven’t told your home insurance policy about it, you may be taking a big risk.
It might be hard to believe, but you may find that your bike is covered on home insurance as long as it’s not being ridden! This is because there is no cover for accidental damage whilst the bicycle is away from the home. It is also very likely that cover while racing or riding an organised events will be specifically excluded.
Home insurers often impose large excess amounts, commonly in the region of £500. That could be a nasty shock if you ever find that your bike is not where you left it, or you were hoping the insurer might pay if you clip the wing mirror on an expensive BMW.
Hidden in the small print of your home insurance may be a fairly impractical requirement to anchor your bike to the fabric of the building its stored in. This involves securing your bike to a lock that is permanently bolted to either the floor or wall of your home or outhouse. Failure to do so might even mean your insurer can legitimately refuse to pay a claim.
Most home insurers will only settle a claim if the damage or theft occurs whilst the bike is being used by the policyholder themselves. Therefore, if a friend or member of your family wants to use your bike, you will need to name them on your home insurance policy in the same manner as you would on car insurance.
If your home insurance does not include cover away from home, you probably won’t be surprised to learn that such policies also exclude cover when your bike is left in a race transition area.
What are the most common shortcomings of home insurance for cyclists?
- No cover available
- No cover while riding/racing
- Higher excesses
- Additional lock requirements
- No lending to family members
- Race transition areas not covered
- No cover with an airline or overseas
- No breakdown recovery
Bicycle Specific Insurers:
Over the last four or five years, the big insurers have started to cotton on to the cycling market. They have noticed our bikes are getting more expensive and that we are using them more and more for sport and competition. There is a real concern for accidental damage while out training, racing, and when checking bicycles in with an airline.
There are now a range of insurance policies on the market, along with updated insurance products available through recognisable brands such as Wiggle insurance, Evans cycle insurance, and British cycling insurance.
While the cover they provide is better than what was previously available, some remain tied down to the old home insurance model. Some policies appear almost identical to home insurance, with just a few additional ‘bolt-ons’ to provide the cover we need as cyclists.
The trouble is that if you need your cover to include things such as travelling abroad, race cover, accidental damage and so on, each feature will attract an additional premium.
Their claims are also handled using rather outdated methods, like funnelling claims through large call centres operated by underwriters. If there is one thing we know about bike claims, it is that they are never simple. Without somebody on the end of the phone who knows their bikes, you are going to struggle to get the service you deserve.
Our bicycle insurance claims are processed by our in-house team. Once you submit your form, you will be assigned a dedicated claims handler who will take the lead on processing your claim. They are part of a small team looking after Yellow Jersey customers, so if you call in and your handler is unavailable, you will still end up speaking to someone familiar with your claim. Have a look at our claims process to learn more about how we help our customers.
Cycle Cover the right way
We offer three tiers of insurance so you don’t end up paying for features you don’t need, but we can provide complete cover including:
- Bicycles worth up to 15K covered for theft and accidental damage
- 60% Multi-bike cover discount and cover on a single policy up to £50K
- Competition cover
- Cover in transition for bicycles, helmets & wetsuits
- Cover for owned or hired bike boxes
- Race fee cancellation cover
- Damage to bicycles in a bike box in an aircraft hold
- Excellent accident management service & advice
- Personal Accident cover in the event of a serious incident
- Cycle rescue and breakdown cover
- FREE DNA+ forensic coding kit
As a cycling enthusiast, you will appreciate that there is a huge difference in the quality and design of the cheapest bike on the market and the one you ride. We believe equal consideration should be given to protecting you and your cycles with cover that meets your needs. Yellow Jersey’s specialist bicycle insurance policy is not just a modified home insurance policy. In fact, our exclusive product was designed in house, from scratch, based on our customer consultations.
Learn about how we can protect your bikes, and get an instant online bicycle insurance quote.