The wife just got an insurance questionnaire in the mail today. They are claiming "we occasionally contact customers to update their profile to ensure their insurance policy information is correct".
Some of the questions are pretty standard (in my opinion) such as "how many miles driven to work?" and "is the vehicle ever used for business?" (which I can understand as some people are driving for Uber) however, some of the questions that I'm having a bit of trouble with are "is the vehicle modified or altered in any way?", "is the vehicle equipped with winter tires during the winter months?", "what condition was the vehicle at purchase/lease?" and "where is your vehicle parked overnight?".
So, "is the vehicle modified or altered in any way?" ....... what does that even mean? Drilling two holes in the console then mounting a Kleenex dispenser is a modification. Drilling two more holes in the frame so you can mount a trailer hitch is a modification. Hell, painting the grill flat black with a spray can is altering it too. What if you bought the car used and aren't even aware of some slight modifications? If you state "no modifications or alterations" and the insurance co finds otherwise (for example, a previous owner installed a chrome oil fill cap and you, the new owner isn't even aware it's not factory), I'd bet they'd try to use that to void any insurance payment. Here's on final question .... "does your vehicle have any unrepaired damage?" ..... well actually yes, there are some cracks in the dash pad, the drivers seat has a rip in it and the floor mats are fraying on the edges. Oh, and the paint is chipped on the front of the hood and the brake drums appear to be rusting ....... I won't even mention the missing radio knob. Where does it end?
"What condition was the vehicle at purchase/lease?" How does one answer that? Ummm, well it was dirty and needed an oil change ...... ??? It was CERTIFIED you idiots, that's why I purchased insurance for it.
"Where is the vehicle parked overnight?" ....... Well, it gets parked in the garage during the winter, the driveway during the summer and in a public parking lot or in front of a friends house if I have too much to drink and decide it's best to take a cab home.
Here's an interesting one ..... "is the vehicle equipped with winter tires during the winter months?" but that's not all ..... they also want to know WHEN THE TIRES WERE PURCHASED ?????? Seriously? Now they want to know how old the tires are on your car? Oh, and please define "winter months" ....
I can see it now ..... "well you said you park it in the garage during the winter so we aren't going to cover the vandalism that occurred when it was parked on your driveway in January".
The bottom line is this ...... what if the car was bought as a shell, you installed a 350 in place of the V6, with the usual fancy valve covers and air cleaner? God forbid you install some decent, used, aftermarket aluminum wheels on the thing. Oh, and park it on the driveway for two nights while you finish staining and varnishing the TV stand? Sorry pal, you aren't covered.
This is some scary chit mang ....... you have to tell the truth or risk being refused coverage and you risk being charged HUGE amounts of money for having a modified vehicle equipped with old snow tires, that occasionally gets parked in the driveway ........ I am SO happy I sold my old car last year. It had an 8cyl in place of the straight 6, a Mustang II front susp, etc etc .... I think it may be time to buy a Prius
Here's another thought ..... what if I installed factory Firebird or Camaro 16" wheels on an S10 originally equipped with 15" wheels. I used all factory parts but it would most surely be viewed as having been altered. This REALLY bugs me as I have 14" Cutlass Rally wheels on my Buick Regal .... oh the horror
One more thing I should add ..... the car in question is a 2000 FOUR DOOR Cavalier
-- Edited by chips on Wednesday 17th of February 2016 08:47:01 PM
To add to the rant a little ...... they don't even ask if the car has two snows or four.
What happens if they decide that December is a winter month yet, due to warmer than usual temps and no snow (something about snow tires shouldn't be installed until the temps drop below 7 I think is the number), you don't actually need to install your snows until early January yet you get into an accident on December 17th????? Well, since December is a winter month and you didn't have your snows on, we aren't covering you.
Welp, if this is a hint as to what's coming, we'll all be driving stone stockers or paying through the nose for the choice to add a little style or pep to your vehicle. Time to grind the Edelbrock off your intake manifolds and paint them engine colour.
Paranoid? HELL YA, I know they're out to get me, they've always been out to get me and now I have proof
Yup , in this case , the more info you give , the deeper the hole you'll be digging . " The dog ate it " if they follow up on where is the questionnaire . A couple of years ago my car insurance folks decided to send me a higher bill for the year .....about $200 + higher as I remember . I drove into town to the office ( I like to deal locally if $$$ are close when I shop ) and I simply said " I've been driving 55 years without an accident and my last ticket was in the U.S. in 1996 . I'm not paying more money . Do you want me to shop ......I've only been with you 15 years ?" ......a few days later I got a revised quote for the old amount . I refuse to pay for someone else's bad driving .
-- Edited by teejay99 on Wednesday 17th of February 2016 09:51:43 PM
Yup , in this case , the more info you give , the deeper the hole you'll be digging . " The dog ate it " if they follow up on where is the questionnaire . A couple of years ago my car insurance folks decided to send me a higher bill for the year .....about $200 + higher as I remember . I drove into town to the office ( I like to deal locally if $$$ are close when I shop ) and I simply said " I've been driving 55 years without an accident and my last ticket was in the U.S. in 1996 . I'm not paying more money . Do you want me to shop ......I've only been with you 15 years ?" ......a few days later I got a revised quote for the old amount . I refuse to pay for someone else's bad driving .
-- Edited by teejay99 on Wednesday 17th of February 2016 09:51:43 PM
t-j, i am with you on shopping local with in reason on the $$ but unless you do shop once in awhile you don't know if they are being fair either. i was with a local broker friend of mine for approx 10 + yrs both business and personal until they sold out to a big firm from toronto. about the 2nd yr everything starts going up so i start shopping it because i felt i didn't have any aliegence to the new company and i got a big surprise on the lower pricing. now when i shop for something larger i go to the local people and ask for a price and tell them i will be shopping out for it and you will get the first and last kick because we are both local and if you are close enough i will give it to you instead of some stranger in toronto. their usually good with it and most do the same for their own business.
-
i do realize your business is none of my business also. rick
this ?aire is something i haven't heard of, humph! your right about a lot of them ?'s being brain teasers for sure. and you don't want to lie to them, that's their out. this new safety check that's coming might have a relevance, maybe. -i have heard rumors on this though, WHEN THE TIRES WERE PURCHASED ?????? --brother in-law has a tire business and i heard date of manufacture though.
-- Edited by shag766 on Thursday 18th of February 2016 03:10:43 AM
I did a bit of poking around on the internet and found out a little about the actual insurer.
Under "Is this vehicle ever used for business" they supply several option boxes you can "tick". The options are: Yes, No, Uber/Lyft (Lyft is apparently a US based Uber type business that is expected to make an appearance in Canada), Sales, Consulting, Delivery. According to chatter on the internet, this company will instantly cancel your insurance if you admit to driving for Uber (now that isn' surprising).
I wonder if the real reason for this questionnaire is to weed out the Uber drivers and the insurance co's figured, "hey, let's ask a bunch more questions so the Uber thing isn't so obvious, plus we can also use this opportunity to cancel modified/altered vehicle policies. An added bonus will also be we can void some policies when we do an assessment on a policy holder who has been involved in an accident, who happens to have undeclared modifications/alterations".
I'm thinking the person who thought this up just got a nice raise and an extra week of vacation
The big laugher I had was inquiring about Grey Power Ins .......the phone # is Toronto and after a little back and forth the car insurance was slightly under my current rate . The kicker was they wanted me on their house insurance too ! Their rate was DOUBLE what I'm paying ....the guy couldn't believe it , I guess they think that Toronto , being the center of the universe , is what real home values are in other cities . No deal !
A decade ago, I sold our sons Nissan 350Z for slightly under 30 grand, to a young man in TO.
- the purchase price, fell into the appraisal range listed on the "sellers package"
Few months later, got a letter from the Ministry Licence Department:
- asking for the sold price, for HST verification (I suppose)
^^ Clearly, the bill of sale, was made for the correct amount / compliant with the Wholesale/Retail range
I chucked the letter, in the garbage can / they don't have resources, to waste peoples time...doing followup.
- never heard from Ministry again, in this isolated matter
A decade ago, I sold our sons Nissan 350Z for slightly under 30 grand, to a young man in TO. - the purchase price, fell into the appraisal range listed on the "sellers package" Few months later, got a letter from the Ministry Licence Department: - asking for the sold price, for HST verification (I suppose) ^^ Clearly, the bill of sale, was made for the correct amount / compliant with the Wholesale/Retail range
I chucked the letter, in the garbage can / they don't have resources, to waste peoples time...doing followup. - never heard from Ministry again, in this isolated matter
me too a few years back, only it was for a boat i sold. like you, i pitched the letter and never heard any more about it. i think they rely on the hope that folks will feel intimidated.
__________________
don't walk in like you own the place..........walk in like you hold the mortgage.
