We caught car theft on CCTV but insurer still wouldn’t pay out

OUR leased Range Rover Velar was stolen in October. The police never recovered it because the thieves ripped out its tracker, which was later found thrown in a ditch.

We sent our insurer, LV=, CCTV footage from a camera on our neighbour’s drive, which also overlooks ours, showing the thieves taking the vehicle. But LV= says the footage shows the car was left unlocked because the lights didn’t flash when the doors were opened.

We know the car was locked and then locked again with a steering lock — the CCTV shows the thieves sawing this off. Yet LV= is still refusing to pay our £36,000 claim.

The firm has admitted to us that had we not provided CCTV, it would have paid out for our claim as it wouldn’t have had any ‘evidence’.

C. M., by email. THE good news is that LV= has overturned its original decision and will pay your full £36,000 claim.

It says it now believes you were probably the victim of so‑called keyless car theft and has apolo‑ gised for the delay in reaching this outcome.

Keyless technology is increas‑ ingly common in newer cars and allows you to open your car door without having your key in your hand. Instead, the vehicle sends out a radio signal and, provided your key fob is within range, the door will automatically open.

But the technology can be vulnerable to hacking.

Of course, LV= knows all this, so it’s surprising it was so quick to reject your claim.

And you are not the first person to have trouble claiming on your insurance following a theft. Money Mail has previously revealed how insurers have refused to pay out when belong‑ ings are stolen from cars because drivers cannot prove the car break‑ins took place.

It is always worth checking the wording of your policy as some specify that ‘force and violence’ must have been used.

In the meantime, consider investing in a Faraday pouch or box, which will cut off the signal from your keys stored inside the box and stop thieves piggy‑ backing on them. Mrs H. bought me one last year for my birthday. I’ve tested it, and not only does it stop the key signal reaching the car, it also means she spends far less time searching the house for the keys. I TOOK a pension with Eagle Star but stopped payments many years ago. Recently, I came across the last account details, sent to me in May 2002.

Probably ten to 15 years ago I received correspondence informing me that Eagle Star was no more. I remember filling in some forms regarding the policy. Since then I haven’t received any information and would like to know how I retrieve any money I am owed.

W. R., Rochester. YOu had a Rainbow pension from Eagle Star but I’m afraid there is no crock of gold at the end of this one.

Your policy moved to Zurich. The bad news is that the charges levied from when you stopped contributing were so high that they ate away every penny you had saved and the meagre invest‑ ment growth.

You set up the policy in mid‑ 1993 paying £30 per month and stopped contributing at the end of 1995. At the time of the state‑ ment you sent me from May 2002 your plan had a value of £714. All that had gone by 2014.

Charges were about £6.75 per month. Zurich says this covered initial set‑up, including the cost of advice, as well as the ongoing administration, such as the cost of investing funds, maintaining computer systems and comply‑ ing with pension regulations.

Zurich says you were sent an annual statement showing how the value of your policy was changing. A spokesman adds: ‘We also sent additional letters highlighting the effect of charges and urging him to consider his options.’

I’ve double‑checked that those letters were sent to the correct address so it may be that you did not put two and two together when letters arrived from Zurich.

Your case highlights how impor‑ tant it is to keep a close check on the value of investments and to scrutinise every letter we get from investment companies with which we do business.

WE USED our MBNA credit card to make a balance transfer which would pay off the £2,306 we owed on our Nationwide card. MBNA said the payment had been made but Nationwide said the money had not arrived.

We chased Nationwide, but two weeks later the debt was still showing on the card.

Each time we call Nationwide we have to explain the situation again, as it would appear there are no notes on its system.

R. B., Stockport. THERE’S a touch of Tweedle‑ dum and Tweedledee with this one. Nationwide says it has no record of receiving the initial payment. When you chased it up, someone recorded the problem as happening on May 26, rather than August 26, so they looked in the wrong place.

MBNA says it processed the balance transfer on August 26 and debited your account the following day. But, it says, Nation‑ wide rejected the payment leav‑ ing the transfer unsuccessful.

MBNA initiated a second successful attempt at the balance transfer on September 24.

Nationwide confirms the funds were received. It has now paid you £125 compensation.