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Crime And Bad Conditions Hit Winter Car Insurance Claims

from:

Car insurance provider Esure has warned motorists that driving
in the winter months is substantially more likely to result in
accidents. According to statistics the accident rate increases
by 31% in winter, a rise that is due to reduced daylight and
inadequately gritted roads. This has been particularly
pronounced in the opening months of this year, when icy
conditions and high winds swept all parts of the nation.

20% of drivers polled had been involved in an accident because
of icy roads whilst 63% complained that gritting is not carried
out frequently enough. And it is not just in transit that
problems occur; 42% said that they had been forced to stay
indoors as roads were not safe enough to drive on.

Mike Pickard, Head of Risk and Underwriting at Esure, emphasised
the importance of safety over convenience: "It is of the
utmost importance to be aware of road safety during the winter
months and to judge carefully when it is safe to drive if
you feel it's unsafe, then leave your car at home and take
public transport instead".

But the threat of accidents is not the only danger on the roads
during winter. Police across the country are reporting an
ever-increasing number of 'frosting' incidents. This is a
form of car crime where 'Jack Frost' thieves steal a vehicle
that is unattended due to the driver warming up the engine. It
is a far more common crime that might be imagined with 66,000
victims every year. Joanne Mallon, car insurance manager at
Sainsbury's bank, said: "When it's freezing outside it can
be tempting to leave the engine running to speed up the
defrosting process while you nip back inside to get ready. But
this can have terrible consequences if your car gets stolen".

And the car insurance companies are unlikely to be sympathetic
either, as by leaving the vehicle unattended the driver is
deemed to have failed in their 'duty of care'. The message
being spread by both police and insurers is to make sure that
the keys are never left in the car's ignition even when the
vehicle is defrosting on the owner's driveway. Edmund King,
executive director of the RAC foundation stated: "Your car
keys are the weakest link in the car security chain so never
give the car criminal the chance to steal your keys. Never leave
your keys in the car when filling up with petrol or when
defrosting the car".

However, Adrian Webb, communications manager at Esure, is
anxious not to discourage motorists from defrosting their
windscreens: If you merely clear a small hole to peer through
the windscreen you are more likely to have an accident, and
cause serious injury or even kill somebody. Once again any
claim made due to a poorly defrosted windscreen is likely to
fall on deaf ears as the driver has failed in their duty to
drive with all-round visibility. Webb also advises against more
traditional methods of defrosting windscreens: "Windscreen
technology has improved in recent years making this less likely,
but pouring hot water on a cold windscreen isn't the wisest
thing to do".

About the author: Mark Skinner
Mark is an author of several articles pertaining to Car Insurance. He is known for his expertise on the subject and on other Business and Finance
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