rat damage insuarance

hpeiris · May 9, 2020

is rat damage covered under comprehensive vehicle insurance ? like to hear from anyone who has recently claimed

Devinda_Z · May 12, 2020

Interesting question!

I've attached link to the policy document of an insurance company as found on their website. Need to scroll through and see if they make mention of rodents or any animal for that matter. Would they be considered a natural peril???

https://www.fairfirst.lk/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Policy-Jacket-Private-Car.pdf

AVANTE · May 12, 2020

On 5/12/2020 at 11:17 AM, Devinda_Z said:

Would they be considered a natural peril?

https://www.fairfirst.lk/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Policy-Jacket-Private-Car.pdf

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Rats = not man made = natural = anything that's a peril by nature = natural peril = yes ( I mean that's a good argument)

Seriously a good question.

vag2 · May 12, 2020

what about damage by other big animals like elephants, buffaloes, peacocks? Since they are covered, no reason why Rats should not be.

Kavvz · May 12, 2020

On 5/12/2020 at 11:17 AM, Devinda_Z said:

Interesting question!

I've attached link to the policy document of an insurance company as found on their website. Need to scroll through and see if they make mention of rodents or any animal for that matter. Would they be considered a natural peril???

https://www.fairfirst.lk/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Policy-Jacket-Private-Car.pdf

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On 5/12/2020 at 11:57 AM, AVANTE said:

Rats = not man made = natural = anything that's a peril by nature = natural peril = yes ( I mean that's a good argument)

Seriously a good question.

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Good arguments, and it would certainly be interesting to see if they hold up...

The attached link to the insurance policy does make mention of something along the lines of "The insured shall take all reasonable precautions to safeguard from loss" etc. in clause No. 5 of the 'Conditions' as well as a whole heap of exclusions under 'General Exceptions' and to me this seems to mean that the insurance policy holder is going to make a fuss, and not pay for rodent damage or the like as its reasonable to assume that the owner of the insured vehicle is under obligation to protect the car from such perils...

But, then again every policy is different and even with the paticular one that's listed above, its an aweful lot of legalese to wade through so who knows...

(Its a bit like some of the twitter posts our politicians are making these days. Who knows WHAT they mean to say, I doubt even they know! )

Edited May 12, 2020 by Kavvz

Kavvz · May 12, 2020

On 5/12/2020 at 1:59 PM, vag2 said:

what about damage by other big animals like elephants, buffaloes, peacocks? Since they are covered, no reason why Rats should not be.

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Sri Lanka as a whole needs a good insurance policy against the 225 buffaloes we have running loose in the country....

But coming back to the question at hand: I didn't know damage by animals was generally covered? I always assumed it wasn't...(Please feel free to correct me, as this is just a generalization, your policy could be different.)

I do know that any use of the car / vehicle inside a national park or the like where its considered outside the boundries of 'normal use' or any activity that intentionally breaks road-rules usually invalidates any claims...?

Edited May 12, 2020 by Kavvz

varotone · May 12, 2020

Damage due to a peacock crashing the expressway was covered once. I don't see why rats are an exception. If you are an unfortunate victim of rat damage, please update on what happened with the claim. It would be nice to know.

Kavvz · May 12, 2020

On 5/12/2020 at 6:23 PM, varotone said:

Damage due to a peacock crashing the expressway was covered once. I don't see why rats are an exception. If you are an unfortunate victim of rat damage, please update on what happened with the claim. It would be nice to know.

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Oh I see, that's what you guys mean by damage from animals is covered...Okay: That makes sense as in a situation where you collide with a peacock etc crossing the road it would be considered an unavoidable road accident and therefore you'd be able to make a successful claim. However, damage caused to a parked car by peacocks shitting on it (because you parked under their party-tree) may not be covered as it would have been up to you (the insured) to keep the car safe by parking it in a safe spot...

I fear the rat scenario maybe similar: If you crash into a large rat or animal that was crossing the road you'll probably be able to claim damages; but if a rat gnawed on your car and damaged it, the insurance policy may not pay citing that it is the owners responsibility to keep the car safe from rat damage by parking it in a safe spot...

But yes, either way it would nice to know for sure.

Edited May 12, 2020 by Kavvz

iRage · May 13, 2020

You know...why not call the insurance company and say you want to make a claim for it ? No harm in actually asking....and we will all know the answer once and for all

You might want to do it in person so that they see you are serious....

Quiet · May 13, 2020

I claimed for a collision with a dog and then with a monkey both times there were no issues.

vag2 · May 13, 2020

one argument against customers is that technical failures are not covered by insurance. So if a rat gnawed your door-beading, you have a better chance than if it gnawed some wires in the Power Window motor. Even in that case , the cost of replacing the wires should be covered IMO.

Edited May 13, 2020 by vag2