Does anyone know if a snorkel,heavy duty Wolf rims, front bull bar, fold down windscreen Mesh screen, Armoured glass and twin rear doors. and Barracuda thermal insulation. count as modifications and if i need to tell insurers (on Ex-Army Snatch Defender)
cheers

On My FL2 they counted heated screen ( factory option ) as a modification ! even the headlamp wash wipe as this too was a factory fitted extra ! as was cruise control ! Tow bar as well ! & rear luggage cover ! as it wasn't standard on a GS !
I think it was a way for the insurance company to ramp up the cost !
Looking forward to the increase when I notify them on monday about winter tyres and XS alloys ! even though they are the identical size !

Rear luggage cover is standard on a GS

"Rear luggage cover is standard on a GS"

Nope ! had to pay for it as an extra & remember being really miffed ! it was about £175 seem to remember, I may even dig out my purchase invoice, encase I was ripped once again !

My Passatt est ( one of 3 PassatTs I had ) it was standard on ( actually much better car , 100 times more reliable & 100% better service from the dealer )

Fitted as standard on my old FL2 and on MrsDave's FL2. It was only the "S" model where it didn't come as standard.
Think you may have Been ripped off there

Renewed insurance with LV with little fuss. Got an extra 1 yr NCD that took £220 off the cost, which was a surprise, given recent coverage of massive insurance hikes etc and I was expecting to pay roughly the same as last year

The LV website says that factory fitted options don't count as modification, but I decided to insist on a (taped by LV?) discussion about the factory fitted cold climate kit, which includes (AYAK) heated windscreen and I didn't want any incident resulting in a broken screen meaning that I got a normal (non heated) windscreen in place

The 'operative' went (at my insistence) to check on any impact and got confirmation that they had this info, thanks, and no premium increase would be required. ... so I think all clean & clear. ...

Be true to yourself. That way happiness lies...

Last edited by dunroof on 1st Dec 2012 8:36 am. Edited 1 time in total

No anguish, though thanks for your concern... it's clear that not all companies treat factory options the same.

As for paranoia, I think that clarity is important when dealing with (esp. car) insurance

Anyway beside that, a thumbs up for LV on policy and pricing.

Regarding retention of records... "The Data Protection Act 1998 does not specify periods for the retention of data. It is left to data controllers to decide how long data should be retained, taking into account the Data Protection Principles (see Data Protection Act Overview), business needs and any professional guidelines" so I reckon that 28 days is not laid down anywhere.

I imagine that it would be reasonable for an insurance co. with annuity business might retain it for longer... in fact "The Data Protection Act does not specify what a ‘necessary’ period should be for particular information. Each case would be considered on its own merits. For example, financial institutes may have to keep some information for up to six years in accordance with the Financial Services Authority regulations....

...so entirely possible that you might reasonably expect to be able to recover details of a conversation held in the past (eg) 12 months with an insurance company. ...

Be true to yourself. That way happiness lies...

Last edited by dunroof on 1st Dec 2012 8:36 am. Edited 1 time in total

I don't think that those who drafted the legislation give a toss about the storage requirements. Anyway cost per gigabyte has plummeted since this Act was drawn up. Not an insurmountable problem if the law demands it. ...

Be true to yourself. That way happiness lies...

Last edited by dunroof on 1st Dec 2012 8:36 am. Edited 1 time in total

I am aware from talking to acquaintances that financial services companies routinely keep record of client calls for 6 years.

Regarding data protection, any audit isn't concerned about the fact that records exist per se, more interested in (i) the security of the records - is the data shared with 3rd parties, is it protected from unauthorised access etc, (ii) the accuracy of the records, (iii) that the organisation complies properly with reasonable requests for copies by the client concerned.

All in all, I think that it would be reasonable to
(i) expect that insurance companies keep records for some time,
(ii) have access to these in the event of a dispute,
(iii) make sure that one looks after one's interests by getting on the record the things one wants on the record (eg... er.. I don't know.. perhaps that my car has a non-standard, more expensive, replacement like-for-like-please heated windscreen)...  ...

Be true to yourself. That way happiness lies...

Last edited by dunroof on 1st Dec 2012 8:35 am. Edited 1 time in total

Agreed!  ...

Be true to yourself. That way happiness lies...

If you buy a secondhand car, how are you supposed to know what options it has or hasn't got? Towbar, OK, but I have no idea whether my mudflaps (for example) came as standard. And I rather doubt whether the dealer I bought it from would know either. If it's sold to me by a LR dealer as "FL2 GS" then how can I know any different?