Owner blows top over storm damage bill

By Julie Sinclair

20th April 2007

The term is often used by owners trying to shift blame when a natural disaster has caused damage to their vehicle, such as a flood or strong winds. But the ABI dismisses it as an “urban myth”.

Its spokesman explained: “The Act of God phrase has no place in insurance. Your policy clearly explains what it covers, and it usually boils down to liability. To claim against a third party, you have to prove they were liable.”

It turns out ‘Act of God’ is a legal defence term. The spokesman added: “You might use it if someone is trying to sue you for damages. It says: ‘I’m not negligent as there was nothing I could do to prevent this thing happening.’

“A good example is if a tile falls off a neighbour’s roof and lands on your car. If you tried to argue the neighbour was responsible, you’d have to prove in court that they were at fault.”

We had contacted the ABI to find out where reader Alay Patel stood. He told us his new BMW 330Ci was written off when a wall landed on it during a storm. Alay, of New Malden, Surrey, said: “The car was parked at the school in Twick­enham where I work. I could barely believe my eyes when I came outside to find that the wall had collapsed on to it, causing £11,000 worth of damage.

“Yet even though it wasn’t my fault, when I got in touch with my insurer, Elephant, it looked as though my pol­icy was going to have to cover the cost of the repairs. That would mean I’d lose some of my no-claims bonus, as well as my £350 excess.”

Elephant told us it was still looking into whether the wall’s owner, Rich­mond Housing Partnership, could be held responsible for its collapse. But the ABI explained that a court battle could be a waste of time and cash.

“You could end up spending good money after bad,” the spokesman continued. “The wall owner would probably use the Act of God defence in court and Mr Patel would have to prove it was negligent, in this case by not maintaining it properly.”

We called Richmond Housing Part­nership’s insurer, Sarr, and a spokeswoman told us: “The wall was quite safe before the storm damage.”