Bike insurance and road side assistance options

Specific board for this popular undertaking.
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MarOliKop
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Joined: 21 Feb 2019, 12:25am

Bike insurance and road side assistance options

Post by MarOliKop »

Good day,
I am interested to know, what would you recommend for me. I would like to purchase some time of insurance that would cover stolen bike, destroyed bike and that would provide some type of road side assistance in case of a bigger breakdown during the trip. I will have separate health/travel insurance for myself since I am coming from abroad.
Please share your experience, suggestions and advices.

Thank you all.
Marian Kopecky (Oli)
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Paulatic
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Re: Bike insurance and road side assistance options

Post by Paulatic »

I would recommend you give your bike a thorough service a couple of weeks before you come. You carry a couple of spare tubes, some zip ties and a phone. For any mechanical problems other than punctures you are never going to be that far from some form of rescue. Be it limping on to a bike shop, a mobile mechanic,another cyclist, or a taxi ride to a bike shop or in worst case a rail station.
Regarding theft won’t your travel insurance cover clothing/ personal items? For the bike just carry a lock, keep it in sight where possible and weigh up the risks where you do leave it.
We got to a remote cafe on our penultimate day and outside were two heavily locked E2E bikes. The owners, from London,were inside. I found it extremely strange to lock a bike in such a location. Their fear of theft, due no doubt to their home environment, was still strong after over 800 mls. So you’ll need to do what you’re comfortable with. Personally I wouldn’t worry.
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LollyKat
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Re: Bike insurance and road side assistance options

Post by LollyKat »

Paulatic wrote:For any mechanical problems other than punctures you are never going to be that far from some form of rescue. Be it limping on to a bike shop, a mobile mechanic,another cyclist, or a taxi ride to a bike shop or in worst case a rail station.


This ^, most of the time. In remote areas you will find people are generally helpful and you'll be able to hitch a lift if necessary. ETA do a bicycle recovery service for £24 per year but as you (presumably) do not live in Britain they may not cover you. Also it is limited to a 25-mile radius, which might not be far enough to find a bike shop or railway station in some parts of the country, though you'd be able to find accommodation..
MarOliKop
Posts: 14
Joined: 21 Feb 2019, 12:25am

Re: Bike insurance and road side assistance options

Post by MarOliKop »

LollyKat wrote:
Paulatic wrote:For any mechanical problems other than punctures you are never going to be that far from some form of rescue. Be it limping on to a bike shop, a mobile mechanic,another cyclist, or a taxi ride to a bike shop or in worst case a rail station.


This ^, most of the time. In remote areas you will find people are generally helpful and you'll be able to hitch a lift if necessary. ETA do a bicycle recovery service for £24 per year but as you (presumably) do not live in Britain they may not cover you. Also it is limited to a 25-mile radius, which might not be far enough to find a bike shop or railway station in some parts of the country, though you'd be able to find accommodation..


Thank you for the post. I was just told from ETA that they can't insure me because I am not a resident of Great Britain.
I will see if my travel insurance could insure me for this.
Vorpal
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Re: Bike insurance and road side assistance options

Post by Vorpal »

I generally agree with the folks above. Carry some tyre levers, spare inner tubes, and basic tools. If you don't know how to change an inner tube, https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=pa ... &FORM=VIRE learn it before you leave. Even if you aren't too sure, other people will help you out.

Otherwise, there are other alternatives for cover. I haven't used anything like this, and therefore cannot say anything about efficiency, effectiveness, responsiveness, etc. Nor do I know if they will cover someone coming from abroad.

You would have to join British Cycling to get their cover, but maybe they would do it? https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/cyclerescue
others are:
https://www.cycleguard.co.uk/Home/AboutCover
https://www.lexhaminsurance.co.uk/produ ... -recovery/
https://www.call-assist.co.uk/cycle-rescue

I hesitate to recommend them (because my experience with them is mixed), but Halford's have breakdown cover & may be more likely to cover someone coming from abroad.

You can likely find others by looking at the websites of these, and googling key phrases.
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MrsHJ
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Joined: 19 Aug 2010, 1:03pm
Location: Dartmouth, Devon.

Re: Bike insurance and road side assistance options

Post by MrsHJ »

Paulatic wrote:I would recommend you give your bike a thorough service a couple of weeks before you come. You carry a couple of spare tubes, some zip ties and a phone. For any mechanical problems other than punctures you are never going to be that far from some form of rescue. Be it limping on to a bike shop, a mobile mechanic,another cyclist, or a taxi ride to a bike shop or in worst case a rail station.
Regarding theft won’t your travel insurance cover clothing/ personal items? For the bike just carry a lock, keep it in sight where possible and weigh up the risks where you do leave it.
We got to a remote cafe on our penultimate day and outside were two heavily locked E2E bikes. The owners, from London,were inside. I found it extremely strange to lock a bike in such a location. Their fear of theft, due no doubt to their home environment, was still strong after over 800 mls. So you’ll need to do what you’re comfortable with. Personally I wouldn’t worry.


My general principle when on tour is not to lock the bike in the hope that someone will nick it ( I’m probably too sensible absout where I leave it though). Then I can enjoy a nice holiday with no cycling and have the fun of getting a new bike when I get home. It hasn’t worked yet- hence this bike is 13 years old.
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