Frequently asked questions – motorbike insurance

About Hastings Motorbike Insurance

What should I do if I can't find my motorbike make and model?

If you cannot find your motorbike's make and model details, please contact our team on 0800 99 1066 who will be happy to help you. (Calls may be recorded and/or monitored)

Can I get immediate cover?

Yes, providing you have a credit or debit card we can issue you with immediate cover, subject to normal terms and conditions. Please note that if you choose to pay by Direct Debit we will require a deposit from you, payable by credit or debit card and you will need an account that supports the Direct Debit facility.

What is an excess?

An excess is an amount you must pay when making a claim, however if the claim was not your fault and there is a Third Party your insurer can make a recovery from, you may recover your excess from the party at fault. Any excesses, which apply, are displayed on your motorbike insurance quote summary.

Can I have more than one motorbike on my Hastings Direct insurance policy?

You can insure more than one motorbike through Hastings Direct. You need to take up a different motorbike insurance policy for each vehicle.

Do I need to report any car accidents when obtaining my motorbike insurance quote?

It is important to disclose any incidents or claims within the last 5 years relating to driving a bike or a car. Failure to disclose previous incidents or claims could invalidate your policy cover or claim. Even if the loss was not covered under your policy (e.g. your motorbike was damaged and you only had TPFT cover), the total cost did not exceed your excess or you decided not to claim, these are still incidents and should be entered as a claim. We can only offer you cover if the total number of claims, for all the riders on the policy, in the last 5 years is 5 or less.

Which security devices can help to reduce my motorbike premium?

Some insurers recognise and offer discounts for security devices which were fitted at the time your motorbike was produced, or added later. You can check whether this applies to your device by entering details of your motorbike's security device at the relevant point in your quotation.

What happens if I have an accident?

If you buy comprehensive motorbike insurance cover, your insurer can arrange for your vehicle to be recovered, and for you to be taken home or to your destination. You don't need to worry about estimates. If your motorbike needs repairing, your insurer will instruct their own approved repairers. Any repairs and payments are settled directly with the repairers.

If you have a third party fire and theft policy you are covered for liability to third parties e.g. if you damage their vehicle or property, or cause injury. However, accident damage to your motorbike is not covered.

What happens if I need to make a claim?

Contact the claims service on 0844 800 3844 (calls may be recorded and/or monitored). An incident manager will record details of the incident and begin to sort out your problem immediately. The incident manager will confirm what you are insured for, any excesses you need to pay and will discuss the steps involved in making your claim.

What is legal cover?

Our legal cover provides legal advice and assists in recovering uninsured losses (such as excess), medical losses or loss of earnings following a non-fault accident. Cover is provided for legal costs to pursue a case, as well as cover in certain circumstances to defend against motoring prosecutions (N.B. excluding drink/drug-related offences).

Do you offer breakdown cover?

Breakdown cover is not automatically included in your policy; however it is available as an optional extra, which you can include with your bike insurance policy.

We offer three levels of cover:

	Ride sure - Roadside	Ride sure - Roadside & Recovery	Ride sure - Roadside, Recovery & Home Service
Yearly cost	£26.99	£37.99	£54.99
Monthly cost	approx £2.25 per month	approx £3.17 per month	approx £4.58 per month
No call out charges
Covers mainland England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
Roadside assistance
Messaging service
Recovery service
Home service
Emergency service
Alternative travel service
Trailer and Sidecar service

What can I do online?

You can obtain a motorbike insurance quotation and buy your policy online. We can also offer you extra legal expenses cover and personal accident cover should you need it.

Can I ride abroad using my policy?

You are automatically covered to drive in any European Union countries, to the minimum level of insurance required (usually the equivalent of the UK Road Traffic Act Cover). In addition your current policy cover is automatically extended for up to 60 consecutive days per trip in countries which are a member of the European Union

Do I need "business use" to ride to work?

Under our motorbike insurance policy you can ride your motorbike back and forth to the same place of work using social, domestic and commuting cover.

If you need to use your motorbike to visit any other sites of business during the working day, we can arrange to increase your cover. However you will not be covered for any goods or samples carried in connection with business use e.g. courier or delivery services.

Are my helmet and leathers covered on this policy?

For an additional premium you can purchase our Personal Accident policy which includes up to £750 of cover for clothing and personal effects.

Is it safe to use my credit/debit card on your site?

Hastings Direct appreciates the importance of protecting your personal information from possible security risks, and therefore any personal information entered in our online quote form is protected using SSL encryption technology. This works with your Internet browser to protect the data. For a number of credit and debit cards we require a Card Security code (also known as CVV2 or Card Verification Value), which is a three digit number on the signature strip of your card. You may also, depending on the card you have chosen to use, be asked during the payment process to provide a secure password (MasterCard SecureCode or Verified by Visa) which provides extra protection from online fraud.

Can I get instant cover with Hastings Direct?

If you pay by either a Credit or Debit card online, Hastings Direct can arrange instant motorbike insurance cover for you.

Can I pay monthly with Hastings Direct?

Yes you can, our usual terms and conditions will apply.

If I cancel will there be any charges?

When you purchase your policy, we will send your initial policy documents in the post. On receipt of these, you then have a 14 day cooling off period for reflection. If you cancel during that period, the insurer will make a charge in proportion to the period of cover you have enjoyed. (If cover has not started, no charge will be made by the insurer). If you cancel after the 14 day cooling off period, the charge applied by the insurer depends upon the period of cover. For full details concerning cancellation and charges, please refer to your policy booklet (which we make available to view, print or download via the link to Important Documents when we provide your online quotation). However, in either of the above cases you may not get any refund if a claim has been made, or is likely to be made on the policy. If you are paying by instalments, the full annual premium may still be due. In addition to the above, we apply our own administration charge to cover our costs - please click the link to Our Terms and Conditions to obtain full details.