Green laning cover??

So, I was wondering what's the script with green laning and insurance? As has been said before and will be said again - green lanes ARE roads, just unsurfaced, as are some unclassified county roads.

My current policy insures the vehicle for social, domestic, pleasure and commuting. It excludes time trials, rallying and competition use.

Therefore, it would seem I'm covered.... :lalala:

Or is there some specific exclusion within a standard car policy? A Discovery is classed as a car....

Would the insurance pay out if another vehicle damages mine for example, just like it would down the local high street? etc.

mine had in the exclusion policy "organised off road events " - which I had understood to be p&P days etc. When I clarified it and used the exact same argument - legal road, not organised etc etc - I found out that categorically the underwriters would not cover me for laning despite all rational argument.

I actually think I would have stood a good chance if it had come to a claim of arguing I was covered but it would have taken a lot of time, and money and stress and I didn't think it was worth it

Complained they had mis-sold a policy by being, at the least, unclear in their wording and so didn't have to pay the cancellation fee .

Went to flux- cover same bar £3 and deffo covered

moral of the story check with underwriters (via broker) before you need to claim.

If unsure I would always recommend contacting your insurer to clarify.

We give greenlaning & off roading cover with all of our policies.

Hope that helps.

Jordan

Jordan - it will certainly help come renewal time, thanks. Incidentally what sort of claims have AF had under the green laning/off-roading cover? Anything that normal fully comp cover includes on metalled roads?
I'm not being too clear I guess... ripping the sump off due to bouncing into a hole with a hidden boulder? Stuff like that?

110woman - just to clarify - did something happen where you needed to claim or you were just checking the policy out before anything did happen?

As people said....Green lanes are are just unmaintained roads at the end of the day so tax, insurance, mot all required your normal road insurance should cover it

Doubt you'd be covered for p&p events but all insurers are different

DIFFLOCK66 said:

110woman - just to clarify - did something happen where you needed to claim or you were just checking the policy out before anything did happen?

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some one mentioned about green laning not being included on their policy - I checked mine out with Liverpool & Victoria and it certainly excluded p&p sites BUT like potus said

"Green lanes are are just unmaintained roads at the end of the day so tax, insurance, mot all required your normal road insurance should cover it "-

I asked the question and got a big fat resounding NO- no amount of reasoning with them would change their mind- I was not covered to go on any green lane - they recognised they were in the wrong hence the fact they didn't charge me for cancelling my policy early. When I complained about it being misleading I was told they couldn't possibly list ALL the exclusions to insurance but that they got to decide

Do not assume logic, fairness and an understanding of what a green lane actually is. At the end of the day it is the underwriters behind the ins company that get to make the decision on what they will or won't cover- sure you can fight the decision in the event of anything happening and possibly even win, but in the meantime you have no vehicle for a number of months

If you insure with a "normal" company I suggest you ask the question explicitly at quote time to ensure cover or go to a company that deals with 4x4s

I sent a carefully worded email, along the lines of am I covered for any legal right of way, and got the answer back yes.
I fear many non specialist insurers have no idea what green laning actually is, and all they hear is "off road"
Im not covered for competition or P&P, not an issue as yet, will be looking at adding it if its not a daft price next month when im up for renewal.

In reality its not a "Green Lane" surely that is just a nikname, they are unsurfaced roads and are therefor proper roads and your insurance company should not discriminate on those grounds

no, they should not, but many do.

something like surfaced road or something similar, if something ACTUALLY happened, I'm not sure where the insurance companys would actually stand on this one, I used to live on an unadopted road, and as such was unsurfaced, in fact at times I have been on smoother "green lanes" it is also a public right of way, in many ways similar to a GL, shows up on maps as a UCR, as many lanes do.

Who is actually going to crash bad enough down a lane in order to make it worth making a claim anyway? I am more concerned about recovery after breaking down whilst laning. i imagine the AA/RAC would consider that off roading and not cover you a bit like they dont cover trackdays.

You are not "off road" when green laning so the AA or RAC would have to recover you even if they have to call out a 4X4 of thier own

By " green lane" you must mean byway open to all traffic (BOAT) Clues in the name. If your policy doesn't cover some roads where does it stop -only A road, B roads cul de sac's? If your policy doesn't cover BOATs then go to citizens advice as its fraud on part of the company to sell you cover that doesnt cover all legal roads. (Been there, got the county court judgement)

As for AA/RAC read the (very) small print it basically says recovery from a highway, its a different term altogether. I was run of the road into the ditch AA refused to do anything as it wasn't on a highway - by about 18" and I needed a proper recovery service, they're just not equipped to lift of anything but flat level tarmac

Tuskenraider said:

Who is actually going to crash bad enough down a lane in order to make it worth making a claim anyway?

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You don't have to crash badly to squash a rambler and have them sue the #### out of you. You might think differently once they've taken the roof from over your head.

NFU know what a greenlane is and I am covered.

I assume everyone is covered as its a road.... but, would you claim for every bit of damage? I know if I did I would be uninsurable!
I treat my insurance as 3rd party, fire, theft and write off

turningtim said:

As for AA/RAC read the (very) small print it basically says recovery from a highway, its a different term altogether. I was run of the road into the ditch AA refused to do anything as it wasn't on a highway - by about 18" and I needed a proper recovery service, they're just not equipped to lift of anything but flat level tarmac

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So it could be argued that if you were actually on a "green lane" and not to the side of it they would have to recover you as it may be considered a "highway" but as ever a precise definition of highway is hard to find, here's an excerpt from an article on parking;
"Road" is defined in the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 as "... any length of highway or of any other road to which the public has access...". While the Act does not define "Highway", at common law it is a way over which all members of the public have a right to pass and re-pass and therefore includes a footpath over which the public right of passage is on foot.

Regarding insurance on "green lanes" you may/probably will find a clause in the insurance documents that says something to the effect that the covered party has a "responsibility to minimise/avoid damage/injury etc etc not put themselves, their property others safety/property at risk unnecessarily" in which case they may consider it fair to argue that driving into four foot deep water full of boulders unnecessary and a deliberate act etc

I've just been researching this and obviously I can't speak on behalf of other insurers/brokers but any policy taken out through Adrian Flux Insurance, the following will apply:

"We can confirm that you are fully covered for Off Road and Green Lane use, the definitions of which are as follows:

Green Laning is the driving of the many un-surfaced tracks and roads throughout the countryside in the UK that have vehicular rights.

Off Roading is a term for driving a vehicle on private land or private property which has been specifically designed for off roading and where there is no Road Traffic Act requirement.

This cover is subject to the vehicle not being used for racing or timed events"


So once again I cannot say what other insurers will classify 'Green laning' as, but as a specialist we can and do cover it.

I hope this helps!

Jordan

When I had insurance through Post Office they wouldn't cover any unsealed roads.

I suppose most insurers would classify green lanes as high risk roads, much like T'Ring is a public road but few insurers would cover you if you crash while on it. Perhaps if you asked your broker if they insured for the use of unsealed roads rather than green lanes as there is no definition of green lanes.