Insurance company refuse to fly dead biker’s body

This is not an uncommon exclusion and one that can catch many motorcyclists out when looking for travel insurance.... however lots of insurers do offer the option to include this cover and quite a few without any extra charge at all... make sure you are clear about whether the cover is included or not...

Whilst this may seem a harsh decision the claims costs involved in a repatriation can be low compared to the costs of treating a serious injury.... on a recent trip to the USA a friend broke his ankle in a bike accident and the claim for the medical treatment alone came to over £10,000

Posted: 26/03/2008 at 18:00

This is bad news, but a warning for all of us.

Don't rely on the free travel insurance that you get with your bank account / credit card etc. - most policies will exclude riding a motorbike as a dangerous pastime. It's always best to pay a little extra for safety, there are loads of policies out there that do cover biking and a lot of other "dangerous" activities. Most of which can be had for c£50 for annual cover or £15 for a fortnight.

The E111 from (or the new plastic thingy) is no use for any of this - it just entitles you to emergency treatment in EU countries, not rehab costs.

Posted: 26/03/2008 at 18:39

Cant expect nothing less from insurance companies they will weasel out of anything, its probably one of those things where they told him he would be covered on a motorcycle ( as long as its only 50 or below ) which they probably didn't state on the phone, instead got out of it with the its written in small writing in the terms of his policy.

Insurance companies are without a doubt the biggest crooks going.

Posted: 26/03/2008 at 18:39

T509Speedy wrote (see)

Cant expect nothing less from insurance companies they will weasel out of anything, its probably one of those things where they told him he would be covered on a motorcycle ( as long as its only 50 or below ) which they probably didn't state on the phone, instead got out of it with the its written in small writing in the terms of his policy.

Insurance companies are without a doubt the biggest crooks going.

thats such a load of bollocks! its probably one of those things he never even thought of or asked about!

Posted: 26/03/2008 at 18:47

my company wouldnt even recover my bike, or what was left of it, from the isle of man...because it wasnt mainland UK!!! Accident wasnt even my fault..when I asked them if they would have recovered from the Isle of Skye because it was now attached by a bridge their collective heads blew a fuse and they ended up putting the phone down on me...pricks.

Posted: 26/03/2008 at 20:07

Flying dead bodies is worse than sailing them and I've been pulled up often enough for that.

Posted: 26/03/2008 at 20:33

I don't see the problem here.  Basically he wasn't insured.  Why should the insurance company pay?  If he had had no insurance at all would you expect his body be flown back for free? 

This is why we pay insurance.  It's down to the policy holder to make sure he has appropriate insurance, not down to the insurance companies to pick up every tab regardless, otherwise why would anyone pay for more comprehensive cover?

Posted: 26/03/2008 at 21:58