Admiral is a UK based insurance company, set up in 1993 to specialise in car insurance. They’ve come a long way since and now offer a lot more than just car insurance.
They are a popular choice in the insurance industry and have managed to rise to household name status without any help from domesticated Russian-speaking African mongooses or Italian-named Welsh tenors. Whether you insure with them or not, like or loathe them, Admiral Insurance take centre stage as the go-to name for a car insurance quote.
Admirable Admiral.
A key component of most comprehensive motor insurance policies is glass cover. What many people do not realise is that windscreen cover, although the same policy, is a separate part of a fully comprehensive policy. It is a different claim process to how say, road traffic collision claims are processed. Same policy, different claims; if you claim for windscreen damage as an Admiral-insured policyholder you are directed to the prevailing ‘nominated’ windscreen replacement company (such as Autoglass or Auto Windscreens). However, if your car is damaged in a collision (or as a result of vandalism) your car will end up in an accident repair centre ‘approved’ by Admiral, usually somewhere close to where you live. In the words of a domesticated Russian (and English) speaking mongoose, ‘simples’. Got it?
Some facts on the two types of claim:
For windscreen repair/replacement claims, the repairer is contractually obliged and duty bound to make an assessment on behalf of the insurer on whether or not the damage can be repaired (or if it meets the repair criteria which is set out somewhere on a Venn diagram of what MOT regulations advise; what British Standards permit, and their own limits of what they will consider as viable). In the event of a replacement, Admiral state that they,
“…may use glass which is not provided by the vehicle’s manufacturer but is of a similar standard and quality.”
However, the stipulation on parts used in the event of the car going in for accident repair appear to be somewhat dissimilar:
” We will repair your vehicle with parts made to the manufacturer’s specification.”
Simplified, if your windscreen is damaged they will only pay for a non-standard – or aftermarket – replacement. However if the windscreen is part of an accident claim, they will replace it – and all other parts – with genuine, OE parts.
Got it?
Oh, remember the bit about the repairer making an assessment on behalf of the insurance company on whether or not it meets the repair criteria? A car was in for repair; rear end damage. The car was returned to its owner who then claimed that the windscreen was damaged in the collision and demanded that it is also replaced. Admiral Insurance approved the work and the car was returned to the bodyshop. No inspection. No assessment. Nothing. Here is the damage:
The thumb-print is of the person taking the image sent to Admiral Insurance. It was so small, they had to point at it for the image. What this also means is that the windscreen replacement was approved fair and square; legit. Putting the (very) repairable size of the damage aside, how can a stone strike – on a front windscreen – be connected to a rear-end shunt? Some more on the size of the damage:
It’s so small it was difficult to get he camera to focus on the damage, and not the tape measure.
Between their policy to replace damaged windscreens with parts not manufactured by the car manufacturer, they’ve approved the replacement of a perfectly repairable windscreen with a genuine, manufacturer-branded part. Questions need to be asked about this disparity. Why? How? Not only that, who is making that correlation between rear end damage and front windscreen stone strikes?
Come on Admiral, this is silly. You’ve been had by a chancer, and you’ve pulled your own pants down before bending over.
Admirable.