Ok the dust has settled on my bike theft, and I am looking for a new bike. Can anyone give some pointers on insurance cover for bikes specifically. Does household insurance usually offer cover for theft from a bike locked to railings for example ? Whats the approx costs per 1000chf for bike insurance or % of value premium ?

thx
dave

I think it depends on the household insurance. After I explained the situation with my bikes and camera equipment to my agent he tracked down a policy which also gives me Fr.10,000 of coverage for items stolen when they are away from the house. This even covers me when I am out of the country (I think). I don't have the details with me at the moment, but the premium was very competitive with other household contents insurance quotes I had.

I actually phoned up my insurance agent at the start of this year to clarify if my bike was insured or not. On my household policy, bikes were covered but only to the value of 1000.- I took out an additional policy specifically for bikes and had to inform the agent the make, model and value of the bikes to be insured. It added 40.- or so to my annual insurance bill, so its worth doing.

what you have to do is to tick the box saying "coverage including theft outdoors" (or the equivalent in German/French/Italian) ....

I'm not sure what you will be looking for in a new bike or second hand, but if its of any interest I will have a full suspension Trek Fuel EX8 for sale at the start of April. Its a good trail/cross country bike. Excellent condition 2 years old in May 2008, 100mm suspension travel back and front, Shimano LX and XT components, Hydraulic disc brakes with bigger discs then standard installed.

Together with the sticker for the mandatory insurance, you can find an optional theft insurance with an Einzahlungschein and if I remember correctly it costs around 30-40 CHF.

VCS (Verkehrs Club Schweiz) has a good reputation in insurances.
Have a try and ask them how much it would be.
see therefore the following homepage but you need to be a member of the VCS.

http://www.velojournal.ch/CMS/content/view/511/90/

http://www.verkehrsclub.ch/default.c...TOKEN=10082636

I have a question:

When I (worked) lived in Switzerland (1969 - 1979) all our bicycles had to have an insurance plate which used to cost Sfr - 2 .

I presume that this system is still in operation - and if so, what is the cost today?

I am doing a study on bicycle accidents - Can anybody tell me where I can find statistics on claims made through this insurance?

Just in case I have difficulty in finding my way back to this area of the forum I will be really obliged if answers are also sent to my PM inbox

Thanks ,

George

George - search this forum for the term "vignette" and you should find some answers. The cost is about 6 or 7 CHF, which gets you third-party insurance. I have no idea where you might look for statistics about claims.