Dog tag claims

Rachel

Active member
I wondered if anyone has experienced the fun of making a claim on their dog tag policy? Mine has been ongoing since the middle of August and I'm finding them a pain in the backside to deal with. Is this typical? And did people get a reasonable amount payout compared to the cost of replacing their gear? Also, was there room for negotiation or was it a case of taking what they offered?
 

Rachel

Active member
After 3 months of being left on hold for ever and spending a fortune on photocopies of bank statements and postage, Dogtag have finally settled and paid out for the clothes I had stolen. Not the bikes, not the caving gear, not the via ferrata kit, tablets, MP3 player, toiletries, towels or even shoes. Don't even think about wasting your money on a policy with this company.

(For those not in the loop, I had my car and contents stolen from a car park in Dunkirk on the way back from a club holiday in Ornans. Basically lost everything except the clothes we were wearing)
 

Mark Wright

Active member
Rachel,

What level of cover did you have? I've just been checking my Dogtag policy which I took out primarily for the medical emergency and repatriation element as I have my personal belongings covered through my Lloyds bank account.

Dogtag Base has a maximum cover of ?200.00 for personal belongings, Dogtag Pro a maximum of ?1,000.00 and Dogtag Max is ?2,000.00.

Mark
 

Mark Wright

Active member
                                                                Base                        Pro                          Max 

Sections of Cover                                 Up To   Excess     Up To Excess       Up To  Excess

B2. PERSONAL POSSESSIONS                   ?200 ?150        ?1,000 ?110         ?2,000 ?110
? Single article, pair or set.                       ?100                 ?100                 ?200
? Valuables (aged 18 and over)                 ?100                 ?100                 ?200

From the above its clear that all the Dogtag policies are pretty poor when it comes to personal belongings and clearly isn't going to cover bikes or tablets or much else for that matter. Even the single article maximum of ?200.00 for the Dogtag Max policy isn't going to replace a modern caving lamp.

Mark
 

JoW

Member
Worth checking what is covered by your house insurance?

I have cover for items away from home on mine as I regularly drive around with a car full of kit, but I'm not sure if that covers me abroad.
 

Rachel

Active member
Thank s for the link to the ombudsman - I will certainly have a go at chasing that up.

We had Dogtag Max cover and their reasoning is that the 'valuables' are not covered because they were left in a car and outdoor kit is not covered in the policy anyway. The main problem is that the detailed policy documents were in the car when it was stolen, so I can't double check them...maybe that's where the ombudsman may come in handy.

In fact, I declined their offer in writing, pointing out that it was woefully inadequate and they hadn't even mentioned caving gear which made up the majority of the claim. They put the money in my bank account and ignored my emails anyway.

Even the police were not helpful, pointing out that it was my own fault for leaving the car unattended. I was rather proud of my daughter who piped up 'but isn't that what car parks are for?'
 

Rachel

Active member
And they didn't cover the cost of getting home minus car either ....Dunkirk to Bentham by public transport for 3 people didn't come cheap 😤
 

Mark Wright

Active member
I've just been checking my Dogtag policy details again and Caving and Via Ferrata equipment is covered in the Extreme Sports section, however there is an exclusion:

(e) Sports equipment that is left untended in or on a vehicle or a car trailer;

Mark
 
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