ADAS insurance clause

[the woodster]

Luckily my 1150 doesn’t have any safety aids fitted

My bike has much less than my car. I've also re-read all these new additions to the policy and there are some clauses that prohibit using the OBD port to install updates that have not been approved by the manufacturer or enhance the performance of the motorcycle.

 

[andysdad]

Apparently ADAS covers all manner of systems.

My Blind Spot system failed and I drove for 2 months without it, ignoring the Amber warning light, due to the long lead-time at the Dealer.

So I was not insured.

F*ck!

 

[Wapping]

It stated that claims would not be considered if it could be shown that turning off the systems could have contributed to the claim…. My bike has much less than my car. I've also re-read all these new additions to the policy and there are some clauses that prohibit using the OBD port to install updates that have not been approved by the manufacturer or enhance the performance of the motorcycle.

See post #13.

The onus is still on the insurer to prove that the switching off or tampering with the ADAS was directly responsible for the claim.

Anyway, it’s all very simple for everyone. Buy your vehicle, but don’t then go tampering with the ADAS system or start ‘chipping it up, mate’ (or whatever the term is) and all will be well. If you feel you really must, then inform your insurer as to what you’ve done or intend to do. You might need to talk to someone above the level of chimp, but hey, that’s life.

If you have done it and are so unfortunate as to be involved in an event where the police and / or an insurer are taking a great deal of interest in your vehicle, appoint a solicitor to advise you as to how to proceed and / or to advocate on your behalf.

 

[steadysteve]

Perhaps it depends how you define ‘operative’.

If it can be legitimately switched off by the driver would that be classed as uninsured?

Or would the insurer only class it as ‘inoperative’ if it had been permanently disabled by some bloke plugging into the OBD and doing a delete on it in the same way some folk ‘delete’ the AdBlue on their vehicle.
I can’t see how they can reasonably enforce that if there is a switch in the vehicle that enebles the system in question to be ON or OFF.

 

[Berin]

See post #13.

The onus is still on the insurer to prove that the switching off or tampering with the ADAS was directly responsible for the claim.

Anyway, it’s all very simple for everyone. Buy your vehicle, but don’t then go tampering with the ADAS system or start ‘chipping it up, mate’ (or whatever the term is) and all will be well. If you feel you really must, then inform your insurer as to what you’ve done or intend to do. You might need to talk to someone above the level of chimp, but hey, that’s life.

It’s not so much that as real life.

All cars since 2024 have a variety of distracting warnings, from speed alerts to proximity alerts, lane control, brake assist, take a break warning and others- on the loaner I had last week there were 11 and I turned them all off via the dash menu because otherwise it was misery to drive.

 

[Oldrat]

I’ve previously mused on here about my campervan which, after a while driving, throws up a “time for a break?” alert.

It goes away in time but can quickly be removed by hitting the OK button.

Think of the resulting legal tangles if by chance I were involved in a no blame accident shortly after and the insurance were able to produce evidence to say that not only did I not stop, but against advice I continued driving. And I’d acknowledged receipt of said advice by pressing OK.

Insurers regularly squirm to avoid paying out in costly cases, I can imagine them decking to even pay the costs to recover ‘no blame’ damages.

 

[zerax9]

The ECU would have a record of it.

Agreed... if the vehicle has a collision (modern cars have a sensor to know), then the last few secs/mins of data is stored for later evaluation... so current status of ADAS systems at the time of the collision will be in there, as is almost everything else !

I saw one of those accident investigation programmes on the telly a while ago... and they could tell if a brake light (or any light) was lit at the time of a collision just by knowing if the filament (it was a while ago) was intact or not. All very clever.

 

[steadysteve]

Agreed... if the vehicle has a collision (modern cars have a sensor to know), then the last few secs/mins of data is stored for later evaluation... so current status of ADAS systems at the time of the collision will be in there, as is almost everything else !

I saw one of those accident investigation programmes on the telly a while ago... and they could tell if a brake light (or any light) was lit at the time of a collision just by knowing if the filament (it was a while ago) was intact or not. All very clever.

There was something in the smallprint of my handbook for a 2012 Astra saying the ecu could be interrogated to provide data in the way you describe. It’s not a new thing although it seems more relevant today if the insurers are openly stating their intentions.

 

[autogs]

Agreed... if the vehicle has a collision (modern cars have a sensor to know), then the last few secs/mins of data is stored for later evaluation... so current status of ADAS systems at the time of the collision will be in there, as is almost everything else !

I saw one of those accident investigation programmes on the telly a while ago... and they could tell if a brake light (or any light) was lit at the time of a collision just by knowing if the filament (it was a while ago) was intact or not. All very clever.

I think you mean they can tell if the lamp was illuminated even if the filament was broken?

 

[zerax9]

I think you mean they can tell if the lamp was illuminated even if the filament was broken?

No... IIRC... if a filament is off, it's cold and brittle... so will break easily... but if it's on, it's hot and malleable and can withstand some shock... so if the driver says he was braking when he hit the car in front, the filament should be intact. All that is now superseded though, as the data via various modules will tell you what pedals were pressed and when...

 

[Oldrat]

No... IIRC... if a filament is off, it's cold and brittle... so will break easily... but if it's on, it's hot and malleable and can withstand some shock... so if the driver says he was braking when he hit the car in front, the filament should be intact. All that is now superseded though, as the data via various modules will tell you what pedals were pressed and when...

We used to check if lights were faulty or were damaged in an impact by examining the filament ends under microscope.

If the filament was on and the bulb damaged by shock/impact, then the ends will be globular rather than snapped off.

 

[the woodster]

Back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, I dealt with an investigation of a serial rapist where crucial evidence was found in the boot of his Vauxhall SUV. He suggested that the 'real' rapist had planted it in his car. Vauxhall were able to provide supporting evidence from the ECU that his car had never been accessed without using the only keyfob.

 

[SBD]

No... IIRC... if a filament is off, it's cold and brittle... so will break easily... but if it's on, it's hot and malleable and can withstand some shock... so if the driver says he was braking when he hit the car in front, the filament should be intact. All that is now superseded though, as the data via various modules will tell you what pedals were pressed and when...

I remember a Z cars case like that from my childhood…

Anyway, 99.9% of all lights are now led and don’t have filaments.