insurance (company/broker/provider) asking for a copy of vehicle ownership/title

hey there,

is this a regular practice done by insurance company/provider/broker?! i had the insurance activated and the broker told me that they would need a copy of the vehicle ownership/title once it has been placed under my name and that i have 2 weeks to provide it. broker lady said that

1) it will be kept with my file as a proof that the vehicle is under my name and i can legally insure the vehicle.
2) she also stated that since they are in a different city and far from toronto (5 hrs away) that they can not see and check the bike therefore a copy of the title is required and she tied this in with item 1.

im ?!!?!?!?:confused:?!?!?! regarding item 2. since when did insurance companies have to 'check' the bike or any vehicle to get a policy?! im kinda ok with item 1. so does this make sense?! and is this done regularly?!

insurance company/provider will remain nameless for now.

thanks.

5:12

This is normal. Certainly the insurance company has the right to check a vehicle that they are agreeing to insure. As an example, if there was damage to the vehicle prior to the policy effective date, they will be sure to note it so that you don't try to claim it later. Since you don't live close by, they might ask you to take photos of the vehicle.

yup, i had to provide pictures of my bikes to State Farm when i insured them...and copies of slips

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Originally Posted by Red_Liner740

yup, i had to provide pictures of my bikes to State Farm when i insured them...and copies of slips

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Statefarm asked for pictures of my bike, but my new company said they didn't need it for bikes over a certain year.

We always ask for ownerships for car and bike insurance as a way of validating that we have the correct owner, address, and VIN. There's been many times that the ownership address or the registered name was different as clients forgot to update it after a move or didn't realize it was under a parent's name etc... Fixing these issues is usually nothing more than a 10min trip to the MTO office and it prevents problems down the road such as a cop pulling you over and looking at mismatched pink slips, registration/ownership, and driver's licence; or in the event of a claim to know 100% who has insurable interest (legal owner).

It's also a great fraud prevention tool. It demonstrates that you actually own the bike, and not insuring it in someone elses name.
Also, it catches leased vehicles (although that's not commonly a problem with motorcycles).
It may even show any "brand" on the vehicle.
Consider it a good underwriting / risk prevention measure.
I've tried to institute this as a mandatory rule where I work.

Years ago it was not uncommon for someone claim to have made a trailer, got it licensed and insured, only to have the trailer stolen from a parking lot at a bike show or from a loading area at the local marina. They would file a claim, and end up with enough money to get that trailer replaced. They never did actually have a trailer though.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bear22099

Years ago it was not uncommon for someone claim to have made a trailer, got it licensed and insured, only to have the trailer stolen from a parking lot at a bike show or from a loading area at the local marina. They would file a claim, and end up with enough money to get that trailer replaced. They never did actually have a trailer though.

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This is the kind of stuff that the ordinary citizen knows of but does nothing to stop. Then, when we get our insurance renewals and see how much our premiums went up (To pay for these kind of bogus claims) we complain about the insurance companies.

thanks for the replies.