You’ve seen the commercials: “Call now and save 15% or more on your car insurance!” Unfortunately, when someone is selling substandard coverage or service, their only marketing ploy is price. So, their advertising campaign leads consumers to believe that the only difference between insurance companies is price. Here’s proof that you can’t compare apples to oranges….
”Joe’s” car was stolen and destroyed. The insurance company denied the claim because his keys were in the car and there was no sign of forced entry. According to the adjuster, the policy does not cover theft without “evidence of forcible entry.”
FYI: Any time a claim is denied, the adjuster has an obligation to show explicitly in the contract where the loss is not covered, and the insured/agent (if you have one!) should read the policy to determine whether coverage exists or not.
Under most insurance policies sold by independent agents, there is no requirement of evidence of forced entry to substantiate a theft claim…”theft” is simply the unlawful taking of someone else’s property. Likewise, there is no exclusion if a vehicle is stolen as a result of someone leaving their keys in the car.
However, the policy in question is not a “usual” insurance policy. According to this proprietary company policy form: “This policy does not apply under Part IV to loss due to theft under Coverage D of Part IV if evidence exists that forcible entry was not required to gain access to the automobile and violation of the steering column and/or the ignition system is not present.
“Forcible entry means felonious entry by actual force and violence evidenced by visible marks on the exterior of the automobile and the destruction of the lockable steering column; or evidence of actual force to gain entrance to the premises on which the automobile is garaged at the point of entry.”
Based on the above, it seems clear that the claim is not covered and there does not appear, under the contract, to be any recourse for the insured.
This points out a valuable lesson that all (auto) policies are not equal. Anyone choosing coverage based solely on price may get what they pay for.
