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I read an article in Insurance Times a few weeks ago where the financial ombudsman had said that he would support a policyholder against the insurer, excluding claims for leaving keys in or near a vehicle. I then wondered if the same would apply to a motor home.

So the family and I had rather a late night in our motorhome playing cards and so we were all quite tired when we eventually turned in for the night, meaning that the next morning we were already late for our arranged meeting with our friends and fellow motor-homers the Wilsons. Then came the usual morning commotion, the queue for the shower and the breakfast rush, then by the time we were ready to leave our friends had decided to explore the countryside without us.

I then realised I had no idea where the keys were so I looked for them, and couldn’t find them. My family then joined in the search and in my usual calm and patient manner I accused each family member of stealing them, then moved on to accusations of half-hearted searching before finally accepting my son’s version of events which was that aliens must have come from mars and stolen the keys to our motorhome. So I then went to the cab to get my mobile so I could call my insurance company for help. I was stranded in a field with a grumpy family and to make matters worse, it was about to rain.

There in the centre consul, with my phone, were the keys! Oh my goodness. I had left the keys of my precious motor home in the cab. I couldn’t help wondering if my motor home would have been insured if it had been stolen and my mind drifted back to the Insurance Times article.

If my motorhome had been a car the ombudsman would have considered

Location

Was I in a position to deter a thief

Was I recklessly ignoring the risks

Mitigating factors

Whether I knew about the exclusion in the insurance policy

I would like to think that this form of insurance pragmatism would have applied to me and my motor home. I think that by using an insurance broker there is a lot more chance of getting the right insurance policy for your motor home

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