misscheapskates:

I guess the beauty of comparison sites is that they give you an idea of what you should look to pay, but money saving isnt just about the premium but perhaps about the time and hassle you have to give the problem if it isnt covered, and I reckon that I will continue to use a broker, and pay a bit more for their expertise.

Thanks so much for your input.

Unfortunately it generally takes someone to find out the hard way that there is a lot more to an insurance policy than a good price! If it is half the price you paid before it doesn't mean you got a great deal, you likely have half the protection and features you had before and you will likely only find this out when you come to claim and find the niggly bits you didn't think about are quite important after all.

It is just such a shame that 90% of people shop with their wallets and not with their common sense....and yet they would never consider picking up a cheap "value brand" product in Tesco's....but they are happy to do so with insurances.

Sorry to dispute, but NU only changed to Aviva in 2009, but lets not nit pic... it was definately their policy and they definately paid out. Presumably they wouldnt have done so if they didnt have to?

The Merc garage I took the car to, were insistent it had to be done that way, so I went with it (as I didnt have to pay). A friend reported that they had similar experience (petrol into a diesel engine) and as they werent covered, they took it to a local garage who just did the traditional cheapy clean out - they had recurring problems ongoing, though I cant be sure it is related.

I guess the beauty of comparison sites is that they give you an idea of what you should look to pay, but money saving isnt just about the premium but perhaps about the time and hassle you have to give the problem if it isnt covered, and I reckon that I will continue to use a broker, and pay a bit more for their expertise.

Thanks so much for your input.

Though they haven't been known as Norwich Union for over 10 years. They are now called Aviva and I checked their policy earlier which was not specific about covering misfueling issues. So I guess is it a case of each claim on its own merits. Therefore applying this information to comparison sites may be misleading and the same would apply to a broker advising this when a policy is taken out.

In regard to the method of cleaning out the wrong fuel, I think the method you describe of cleaning out the tank is only done when diesel is put into a petrol fueled car. This would be on the basis that diesel contains oil.

Thanks for the input - yeh I guess it would be a problem to offer so much info.

They did pay out and I learned something else. Just emptying the tank and washing it out isnt always enough; the tank should be removed (and I guess inverted) to make sure its completely emptied of wrong fuel, or ongoing problems will occur. This is pretty costly, and I believe its not something the AA etc will do; I think their pollicy is to drain the tank and flush out then refill with appropriate fuel, though I cant swear to that.

I have to say that I also have protected excess, so I guess that helped, although of course you end up paying for that too!

The company was Norwich Union...though I would check they still offer it.

So did your Insurers cover the accidental loss ? If so which Insurers dealt with the claim and what was involved?

This issue was raised in May 2010 in a BIBA article. Most Insurance policies don't note whether they will cover damage caused by accidental misfueling or not. As such it would be difficult for comparison sites to include information, unless they phoned each Insurer and applied specific information to each product on the comparison quotes listing. You can of course use the link to the Insurers sites contained in the quotes to see if noted in any viewable policy wording and if not give Insurers a call.

I am not sure all brokers would be necessaily aware of which Insurers specifically included misfueling cover. I believe Adrian Flux brokers offer a separate misfuel policy and such a product may be available elsewhere. Then there is the possibility that some breakdown policies may cover sorting out the intial problem of misfueling. People would have think whether claiming on a Car Insurance would besensible, even if possible, due to the excess, increase in premium and loss of some no claims discount if not protected.

I recently got a really good quote from a comparison website, but when I spoke to my usual Broker, he said to watch out for small print, like not covering the wrong fuel. I couldnt figure out how to check on the comparison site, so I and went with my broker - just in case - two weeks later I put petrol in my diesel car!! Would have cost me between £600 and £1000 to sort if my insurance hadnt covered.

Any idea how to check detailed cover easily on comparison websites??