So the family and I had rather a late night in our motorhome playing cards and so we were all quite tired when we eventually turned in for the night, meaning that the next morning we were already late for our arranged meeting with our friends and fellow motor-homers the Wilsons. Then came the usual morning commotion, the queue for the shower and the breakfast rush, then by the time we were ready to leave our friends had decided to explore the countryside without us.

Then I couldn't find the keys. We looked everywhere, and in my usual patient and understanding way I first accused every member of the family of hiding them, progressed to accusing them of not helping me to look for them properly and concluded by accepting my son's version of events that aliens had come from Mars and stolen the keys to my motor home. I went to the cab to get my mobile and call my insurance company for help. I was stranded in the middle of a field with a grumpy family… and it was about to rain.

There in the middle of the cab, sitting next to my phone, were the keys! I couldn't believe that I'd left the keys to my beloved motorhome in the cab. Being an insurance man I couldn't help but wonder if my motorhome would have been insured if it had been stolen under those circumstances. And so my mind drifted back to the Insurance Times article.

If my motorhome had been a car the ombudsman would have considered

Location

Was I in a position to deter a thief

Was I recklessly ignoring the risks

Mitigating factors

Whether I knew about the exclusion in the insurance policy

I would like to think that this form of insurance pragmatism would have applied to me and my motor home. I think that by using an insurance broker there is a lot more chance of getting the right insurance policy for your motor home

For a class leading service in motorhome insurance contact Coversure. They provide motorhome insurance is a cut above the restand you'll leave with the peace of mind that you're covered.

He phoned his broker and asked about caravan insurance who told him that there shouldn't be any problem and the broker would be delighted to give Chester a quote. Chester gave the broker details about the type, value and size of the caravan and where it would be situated.

It was only a few minutes before the broker called him back and said that he unfortunately could not find him any caravan insurance. The reason was that although the caravan site itself was fine, it was the particular spot that Chester wanted that was the problem. It was next to the river Avon, right at the water's edge, and last year it had flooded which caused lots of insurance claims, meaning that now, insurers are unwilling to offer any insurance to caravans places right on the water's edge. If he was going to buy the caravan, it was going to be entirely at his own risk.

This news meant that Chester would have to re-think his ideas about buying a caravan. Since it was highly likely that the Avon would flood again at some point, he couldn't afford to risk placing it there without insurance. He asked his broker what the "normal criteria" of a caravan site was so that he could bare it in mind if he was still going to go ahead and buy his caravan.

In terms of insurance, the ideal caravan site should be a registered CaSSOA site, this is because these sites have security standards that all caravans must meet. If the caravan is to be placed less formally, for example, on a farm, then the caravan should have its own compound with a defined perimeter. Some insurance providers insist that a caravan site has a minimum number of caravans. A sort of, "safety in numbers" logic. Another thing to look for in a caravan site is a defined boundary that is secure and would not allow uninvited people to come and go as they please.

Chester hadn't really though that the insurance would play such an important part in the buying of his caravan. He was just appreciative of his knowledgeable broker who could steer him in the right direction, after all, he just wanted to enjoy his caravan and the insurance was just to take to worry out of owning one.

Caravan insurance is one of the biggest factors to take into consideration when thinking about purchasing a caravan. Coversure are a leading provider of caravan insurance and can offer you advice, or a quote to get your caravan insured