Question about write off's on cars < Year old

Question

A relatives car was stolen, driven a mile then set alight recently. This left nothing but a burned out bit of metal, obviously a write off. However the car had only been brought (new) last year and according to Direct Line they may be able to offer a brand new replacement assuming that 1. This is the first owner (Yes) and 2. The car is less then a year old (this is where it gets interesting)

The car was registered in May 2007 at Fiat's factory somewhere in europe. It then took 4 months (Yes, it was a complete c**k up) to arrive in the UK where my mother picked it up September 2007 with only the delivery miles on it. So is there any law which states one way or the other which date would be the right one?

It would seem to me that it would be silly to count the car as no longer being new when it was registered, given how common pre-registering is.

Answer 1

it would be the date it was registered in the uk. she will be fine. i work for an insurance broker.

Answer 2

What date is registered at  DVLA   and in log book.  That is the one that will apply  . So may not get a new car at no charge at all   Watch this point if acquiring another new one,,, refuse it if preregistered  

Answer 3

It will go off the date it was registered by DVLA in UK.

Answer 4

What Direct Line offer is set out in the terms of their policy.  If the policy says that you count from the day it was first registered, your relative won&#039;t get a new one.

Their liability is to provide the value of a second hand Fiat first registered in May 2007.

If you want fair, don&#039;t do cheap.

Answer 5

I know that most of the answers say year of first registration, but you need to check the wording in your policy booklet as the insurance company my girlfriend works for use the year of make rather than the year of first registration.  The claims handler dealing with the claim should be able to tell you whether they use year of make or year of registration.

Answer 6

As stated, the date of registration in GB is the date that the insurance will use.

You state that the car was &#039;registered....      ..at Fiat&#039;s factory&#039;, do you not mean built? as a british car couldn&#039;t be registered if it wasn&#039;t in the country.

The dates you give will reveal the facts, May 2007 was &#039;07&#039; registration period while September (the date you say it was collected) is &#039;57&#039; registration period. So what was the reg of the car?

Having been in a similar situation, the insurance companies are usually good at dealing with claims for cars &lt; 1 year old.