INSURANCE - NEVER EVER USE AXA HONG KONG - PART I

Yesterday I was feeling singularly uninspired, and working on the old addage of "if you have nothing to say, say nothing" I decided to remain silent. Then at about 5.30pm a whole new ranting possibility was delivered to me on a plate. I didn't want to comment last night as at the time I was so angry and disbelieving I would have struggled to make any sort of sense. This morning I am still angry and disbelieving but hopefully a little more coherent.

A few days ago Mrs C had a minor mishap in the family chariot. Unfortunately the mishap occured on a rather steep hill in Hong Kong and a combination of a shaken Mrs C, an open door, a feeble handbrake, and an unfortunately positioned fire hydrant means the chariot now has 1 fewer doors than originally specified by the maufacturer.

We whistled up the local chariot repair company who whisked the chariot and it's now-seperated door away, and contacted the insurance company. The garage told us that the door had been damaged beyond repair and a new one was required. The insurance company sent an assessor along and he agreed.

So off we go you may think?

The door is ordered. The part arrives. Is put on the car. I pay the excess, the insurance company pays the rest and Robert's your mothers brother. Easy.

If only.

Yes the garage can go ahead and order the part, fit it and repair the car, BUT, and it's a huge BUT, they then tell me that on top of the excess of HK$7,000 I have to pay HK$750 because the door that is being replaced was 3 yrs old, and door that is doing the replacing is new, therefore there is a depreciation charge as the insurance covers the cost of like-for-like.

Am I alone in thinking this is complete bollocks?

Has anyone else come across anything like this before in Hong Kong when making a claim?

I have insured the whole car, not each individual part. If a part is damaged it gets replaced with a new one. That's what insurance does. And where the hell am i supposed to get a light blue 3yr old door for a LandRover in Hong Kong? And if a 3yr old car door is available then it means that the car it comes from has been written off. Why would i want a car door from a written off car? It may be damaged but not been recognised? This car is driven by my 5mth pregnant wife with my 10mth old son in the back. I don't want them driving round in a car with a potentially damaged door that may fly open at any given moment.

The insurance broker I have been dealing with assures me this is standard practice in Hong Kong, and a quick read of the policy reveals an exclusion that specifies that "The company will not be liable in respect of depreciation wear and tear mechanical or electrical breakdown failure or breakage" - that's fine - I'm not trying to claim depreciation, I'm trying to claim for accident damage which to my mind is specifically covered by... "the Company will indemnify the insured against loss of or or damge to the Motor Car and/or its accessories and/or its spare parts whilst thereon. The Company may, at its option, repair reinstate or replace the Motor Car and/or its accessories and/or its spare parts or pay in cash the amount of such loss or damage."

I would suggest that anyone who is has a car in Hong Kong has a look at their insurance policy and a chat with their agent to make sure of where they stand.

(On a seperate but related note, never ever buy a LandRover Freelander. The thing works but there are lots of niggly problems with it, the finish and trim are cheap and bits have a habit of falling off, the rear window goes up and down with a mind of its own and the road noise is unbelievable. Worst car I ever owned and I have had a few.)

I have a feeling this one could run and run. Prepare for regular updates.