Denied Car Insurance Cover: When & Why This Happens

Can you be denied car insurance cover in Australia? The simple answer is yes. In Australia, any insurance company can deny you cover for any reason it chooses to. Provided the reason forms part of its underwriting guidelines and it has the data to back up the decision.

However, insurance providers don’t want to deny you cover. So why would they? Let’s find out…

Denied car insurance cover – why?

There are several reasons insurers deny cover, which will either relate to the policyholder or the vehicle. Car insurance cover can be denied when you try to buy or renew a policy. Or when you make a claim.

Having insurance coverage denied at the time of a claim can also result in your policy being cancelled. And you don’t want to be driving without insurance, trust us.

Let’s look at why you might be denied car insurance.

Taking out a policy  

If an insurance provider decides not to sell you a policy (or renew your policy), it’s because you haven’t met all the policyholder requirements.

Every insurance provider has a policy disclosure statement (PDS) outlining its policy guidelines. You need to meet these to be eligible for insurance cover. The guidelines are not just there to protect the insurance underwriter and insurance provider – they’re there to protect you and all the other customers.

Read through your insurance provider’s PDS (here’s ours) to see what your responsibilities are before you apply for insurance. For example, maybe you need to check something in your credit history. Or perhaps you have pre-existing damage to your vehicle that needs further repair.

Remember insurance providers are run by people. A good one is staffed by people who are always ready to take your call or answer your email. They’re ready to explain and talk you through anything which doesn’t make sense and help get you the correct cover.  

Submitting a claim

Just as a good insurance provider is ready with fast and fair customer service, they should be fast and fair with their claims service too. However, their speed of response won’t overtake their need to look through all the facts of a claim.

Your insurer will have a ton of experience in resolving claims, which means they’ll happily process yours if you provide all the right information and documentation. It also means they’ll quickly see through any discrepancies.

When you submit your claim, your insurance provider will ask a series of questions to understand the nature of the claim and the extent of the damage. If it comes to light that you’ve misrepresented and failed your duty of disclosure, your claim is likely to be rejected. Even if you’ve been paying a premium.

For example, if you don’t disclose a licence suspension or drunk driving to your insurance provider, they can deny your claim. Your policy may even be cancelled.

Each time you claim, they’ll do their due diligence and check your driving history. So, if you’ve misrepresented at the time of taking out your policy it’s bound to be discovered down the line. And then if you’re involved in a $100,000 incident you could become personally liable.

In addition to being honest when you take out a policy, you also need to fully disclose complete and accurate statements related to your claims. Because if you (or a driver on your policy) submits a false statement your insurer will refuse a claim and cancel your policy.

Are you wondering who submits a false or inflated claim? Then check out this bizarre dash cam footage that shows insurance scams are alive and well.

And note that dash cams can also help law abiding citizens to file their claims more easily. Read dash cam do’s and don’ts to find out how.

To sum it up, just like your mum said, always tell the truth. Both when you take out a policy and when you make a claim.

Honesty is the best policy if you don’t want to be denied car insurance

An insurance policy is ultimately an agreement between your insurer and you. If you can’t or don’t uphold your part of the agreement, you’ll be denied car insurance cover.

Here’s a (non-exhaustive) list of reasons when and why this might happen:  

• Licence suspended
• Licence disqualified
• Criminal history
• Credit default
• Bankruptcy
• Drunk driving
• Unlicenced driver
• Unlisted driver
• Reckless driving
• Unregistered vehicle
• Pre-existing damage to a vehicle
• You don’t pay your premium
• You don’t tell the truth (or don’t disclose the whole truth)

There are times when you may not realise that you’re not disclosing the truth, which is why you need to read your PDS. For instance, changes to your living situation that affect where you park your car. Or alterations to your car. Or even an unlisted driver sharing your car.  

You can make these changes to your policy details – known as insurance endorsements – at any time, not just at your car insurance renewal. And there may even be a bonus for doing so… a car insurance endorsement could save you money.

Again, be truthful – honesty really is the best policy for your policy.

Making a car insurance claim successfully

When you choose PD Insurance car insurance, you can be confident that our PDS outlines what you need to know upfront. In addition, our online claims process is fast and easy to understand. Find out how to make a comprehensive car insurance claim to see how the process works for you!