Winter Tyres - Insurance Companies May Not Cover

December 3, 2010

I was coming home tonight and there was an article on Radio 2 about winter tyres. Apparantley, some customers have contacted their Insurance Company before having the tyres fitted, and are being told they will be classed as a modification. This may cause problems if you make a claim and your Insurance Company does not cover modifications.

I don't understand how any tyre can be classed as a modification if it has the same rim size, width, profile and (or exceeds) the load index as the original equipment fitted by the car manufacturer. The speed rating does not matter, unless you are caught exceeding it. How can anyone with any intelligence prevent the fitment of tyres which are specifically designed to improve braking traction and cornering grip in winter conditions? After all, they are designed and substantiated by Engineers to provide these important safety functions. Furthermore, most vehicle manufacturers approve the fitment of winter tyres, and state this in their owners manuals.

I have winter tyres fitted to my diesel Yaris which I use for work. I fit them between October to April, as I have a 600 mile per week commute over the Pennines. They are an absolute necassity for myself, as summer tyres would be lethal in the conditions we have experienced this week.

I just don't understand how Insurance Underwriters in this country can get away with this. Most of our European neighbours are required to fit them by law.

December 3, 2010

waw, from the title i was expecting the thread to be that insurance wouldnt cover you unless you had proper winter tyres.......thats mad :huh:

December 3, 2010

Phoned mine before fitting and no problem whatsoever. No charge. A bit of media scaremongering I reckon (and I've a confirmatory e-mail from my insurer)

December 4, 2010

The Toyota manual quotes: "When replacing tyres, use a tyre of the same size and the same or greater load capacity as the original."

As long as you use the standard size, winter tyres aren't a modification - they are just replacement tyres....

Would you ring the insurance company to tell them you'd changed the tyres because they'd worn out? What's the difference?

I just have two sets of tyres on standard sized Toyota wheels, that meet the original Toyota spec, its just that they have different tread patterns....

December 4, 2010

The Toyota manual quotes: "When replacing tyres, use a tyre of the same size and the same or greater load capacity as the original."
As long as you use the standard size, winter tyres aren't a modification - they are just replacement tyres....
Would you ring the insurance company to tell them you'd changed the tyres because they'd worn out? What's the difference?
I just have two sets of tyres on standard sized Toyota wheels, that meet the original Toyota spec, its just that they have different tread patterns....

I agree with you all the way. However, it is a battle with Insurance Copmanies to make them understand what winter tyres are for. A number of years ago I had a bad experience when informing my insurance company I was fitting winter tyres to my Impreza WRX. I contacted them to try and be up front and completely squeaky clean, in case I had to make a claim. I couldn't believe the response. First of all they jumped to the conclusion I was using the car for rallying, and then I got the usual 1001 excuses why they don't cover the slightest modification to cars. I felt like I was banging my head against a brick wall, and ended up directly contacting the Underwriters. I ended up speaking to a Senior Underwriter who actually understood something about cars, and got a letter in writing saying I was OK to fit the tyres. The problem is this: when you first ring the call centre you get someone who normally has not got a clue about cars and they have no guidelines or training about winter tyres.

I don't bother to inform them anymore now. I take the approach that if they tried to void my policy, if I make a claim, the Insurance Ombudsman would make them pay out.

December 5, 2010

hi

i don't actually own a toyota any more but i found this through a google search.

it's true there have been drivers reporting insurance premium increases when speaking to their insurance company, perhaps expecting a discount which doesn't seem all that unreasonable seeing as most of the motoring organisations and safety advocates say winter tyres are better in the winter.

i believe the first report came from Auto Express:

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/autoexpressnews/260503/winter_tyre_ko_as_big_freeze_hits.html

some of the comments in that thread of what drivers have reported are frankly unbelievable and baffling.

Another little nugget i found, from the right honourable Philip Hammond Secretary of Transport, this is what he apparently said recently:

""Winter tyres wear out very quickly on normal road surfaces and cause significant damage to those surfaces, so they would not be appropriate in the UK situation,""

http://uk.autoblog.com/2010/12/03/transport-minister-slammed-over-confused-winter-tyre-message/

**facepalm**

Drive safely folks.