Insurance company admits “mistake” after cyclist’s stolen bike claim declined as “no evidence” of damage to lock… because thief took it too; First Transcontinental finishers; GB Olympic cycling medals continue + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
"It's not April 1st, is it?": Cycling fans react to bizarre news Vuelta a España stage will start inside a supermarket
It’s not 1st April is it?
— Julian (@julianr_76) July 30, 2024
Yep, this is the news we first shared on yesterday’s live blog, that just when you thought professional cycling couldn’t get any weirder… they go and announce that stage six of the Vuelta will begin inside a Carrefour supermarket in Jerez. Bizarre.
Naturally, it’s because of sponsorship, the organisers telling us that to celebrate 12 years of Carrefour’s backing (the brand whose logo appears on the red leader’s jersey) the riders and lead car will set off from the supermarket’s aisles “where customers usually do their shopping”.
Let’s hope the closure is well-communicated and some poor abuela isn’t left stranded outside without lunch. Good luck getting this idea past the British public for the Tour of Britain… could you imagine the uproar if Asda/Tesco/Sainsbury’s was shut for such purposes? ‘Lycra-clad racers starve the elderly’ would surely get an outing in certain sections of the press…
The Carrefour news is, of course, prime punning territory and a few of you entertained yourselves with… “Aisle believe it when I see it”… “Cycling round a supermarket? Are they off their trolley?”… and other efforts.
On Twitter, Tim Cooper recalled some amusing fun he used to enjoy in an unnamed Halfords store thanks to his mate being the manager: “Mate of mine used to manage a Halfords superstore and was the keyholder. After closing — and after everyone had gone — we had criterium races round the aisles on Halfords bikes. I think the max number we had racing was 5. This predates rolling CCTV security!”
Over on Facebook, Andrew William Smart commented: “I’ve always thought a crit stage in a multi-storey car park would be impressive.” Now that sounds like fun.
tadej going solo win after he started the stage from the carrefour: pic.twitter.com/mFbgTorwfJ
— Laura 🇸🇮 (@ImCalledPikachu) July 30, 2024
GB win another cycling medal (sort of) as plenty more Paris crashes blight Olympic triathlon
Look away now anyone who believes a bike ride should never be preceded by a swim or followed by a run… personally, I think it’s quite impressive adding extra difficulty to your day’s physical activity, rather than (like me) simply crawling off the bike into a dark room to eat your bodyweight in ‘recovery’ meals. Britain’s Beth Potter won bronze in this morning’s women’s event, the French taking another gold thanks to Cassandre Beaugrand, as the athletes did indeed brave the Seine for the swim. We’ll wait to see the reports from the Olympic Village bogs in the coming days to confirm who came out unscathed…
Be hanging round city centre Brew Dogs with their medals for the rest of the day
— Josh Pugh (@JoshPughComic) July 31, 2024
Obviously, we’re most interested in the bike leg, the poor athletes coming out of the river and onto the wet city centre cobbles — Lotte Miller, Jeanne Lehair and Laura Lindemann just three of the riders to hit the deck. Former cyclist and commentator Jens Dekker wasn’t too sympathetic… apparently forgetting what happened on Saturday…
because no one crashed on the wet roads in the ITT ..
— Coreen Mazzocchi (@mazzok) July 31, 2024
The men are at the start, including a certain Kristian Blummenfelt…
Robin Gemperle wins Transcontinental
One minute shy of nine days exactly, Robin Gemperle reached the Transcontinental finish line in Istanbul having led from start to finish. He finished second to two-time winner Christoph Strasser last year, but the Swiss rider turned 2023’s result around, finishing four hours ahead of Strasser this time.
Just the 12 punctures for Strasser during the nine days, but by our calculations Gemperle’s moving time was 22km/h. Remarkable considering the terrain, lack of sleep and relentless nature of the ride.
Is it okay to use a pressure washer on your bike? The cases for and against spraying your bike clean
Wait, why are they all working together?
Cycling fans currently watching the triathlon bike leg & wondering when everyone in these groups is going to sit up & start swearing at each other. 🤷♂️
— Daniel Friebe (@friebos) July 31, 2024
Strange scenes as rival athletes on different teams contribute equal turns during Olympic race, without squabbling or sitting on… triathlon’s weird…
"Kristian Blummenfelt is not to be messed with": Tour de France stage winner backs Olympic triathlon champion's plan to win Tour by 2028 and says he'll "immediately claim his place" in peloton
Transcontinental rider has to turn back and ride final kilometre again after missing part of the finish route
Extraordinary drama at Transcontinental as Abdullah Zeinab who had looked to finish third after an admirable nine days chasing the win, only to eventually be caught by Christoph Strasser during a tough spell which saw the Palestinian rider suffer FIVE punctures since Sunday. Well, while it looked like it would be a third-place finish, disaster struck, Zeinab realising he’d missed part of the obligatory Finish Parcours, meaning he had to turn around to finish the race again, by which time Tim De Witte had arrived in Istanbul in third.
The event organisation praised Zeinab’s “hardy resolution to persevere”, taking “all manner of situations in his stride, and managing his mind to stay calm and collected through difficulty and discomfort”. Andre Bachmann is today the fifth rider to finish overall, everyone else still with miles to cover, climbs to conquer and challenges to overcome.
Chapeau all, and good luck…
Shimano sales fall by 21% in first half of 2024 – but components giant says key European market remains "firm" despite serious delivery problems
Kieran Reilly wins BMX freestyle silver
Place de la Concorde has a rich history, perhaps most notably for its bloodiness during the French Revolution, but is most familiar, in a cycling context at least, for its location at the bottom of the Champs-Élysées, years and years of the Tour de France’s best sprinters flying past the famous square en route to final-stage victory. For this week, however, it has been turned into a playground for some of the most ridiculously talented bike handlers you could ever wish to spend your Wednesday afternoon watching, not least Kieran Reilly who just won silver.
And in some style too…
Just ridiculous from GB’s Kieran Reilly 🔥
His first run in the BMX freestyle final is a stunning one! #BBCOlympics #Olympics #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/uXk4wXOlGh
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) July 31, 2024
Collarbone, wrist, hip… that’s just three bones I’d break trying that… and that’s before we even start on how many fewer teeth I’d leave Paris with. It was gold for Argentina’s Jose Torres Gil who posted the top score of 94.82, while home favourite France’s Anthony Jeanjean was in tears as he dropped to third. This Olympics lark is exciting, isn’t it? And we haven’t even hit the velodrome yet…
'I mean, I wasn't planning on but I'll bear that in mind...'
boots I understand, but bikes? pic.twitter.com/PONzXqC74u
— Owain (@orhunt) July 31, 2024
Jo’s done some digging and it’s apparently in Edale Valley near the start of the Pennine Way so just remember that if you ever see a public toilet and think ‘ah yeah I’d love to make cleaning my bike a near impossible job’…
Insurance company admits "mistake" after cyclist's stolen bike claim declined as "no evidence" of damage to lock... because thief took it too
The Guardian newspaper has helped a devastated cyclist receive an insurance payout after their provider initially declined the claim as the thief had taken the lock too, meaning there was “no evidence of damage” to it. The tale appears in the ‘Consumer champions’ section of the paper today and features a reader from Brighton’s unpleasant experience with Homeprotect, who have now admitted making a “mistake” over the initial rejection of the claim.
JC explained: “My e-bike was stolen this month but my insurer, Homeprotect, has rejected the claim because there is no evidence of damage to the lock. That’s because the thief made off with it, too. The bike was listed on my policy as a specific item to be covered even away from home. I don’t believe that the policy wording is clear. It should state that a bike theft claim will only be considered where there is CCTV proof or a broken lock is found.
“I can’t tell you how upsetting this is. I am 68 years old and bought the bike just before lockdown and it was a life-saver. It’s kept me mobile and sane. I’d parked it outside my art class, locked to a bike stand. I came out and it was gone. I reported the theft to the police and gave Homeprotect the crime reference. I’ve asked the company to review its decision but so far it has not changed its mind.
“I used my bike every day because Brighton is so hilly, and also for long rides such as Land’s End to Edinburgh. A replacement will cost at least £2,500. This leaves me in an impossible situation. I’m being penalised because the thief took the lock.”
Thinking the situation did indeed seem “unfair”, the Guardian contacted Homeprotect and got them to admit a “mistake in declining” the claim, a decision that has since been overturned.
Homeprotect said: “We’re very sorry about the poor experience JC has had in trying to resolve her claim for her stolen e-bike. We made a mistake in declining this claim and have since overturned the decision, with a payment being made to the customer for the value specified for the bike, plus the cost of the lock.
“We acknowledge the distress that’s been caused by this claim being dealt with incorrectly, are reviewing our internal processes to ensure this doesn’t happen again and have offered additional compensation to JC as a gesture of goodwill.”
Well done to the Guardian and feel free to get in touch with us if you go through similar…
"You need a degree to work out the system": Local business owners welcome decision to rip out "absolute disaster" cycle lane which led to "lots of customers" getting parking tickets
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Given the first item on today's blog, that doesn't sound encouraging.
"consideration is a two-way street" Perhaps it could be made one-way and use the other half for a cycle route?
I recently had 2 weeks cycling in France. My first ride back in the UK was commuting to work; on return I said, of all the great things about French cycling (eg amazing climbs and descents, views, quieter roads, considerate drivers (mostly), cafe stops etc), if there was only one thing I could pick out then it would be the vastly better road surfaces; makes such a difference. I was on one French road with UK standard tarmac (ie potholed and bumpy) and there were temporary signs by the side of the road saying 'Chaussee Deformee'; probably resurfaced by now. Even their bike paths are silky smooth.
Please remove this story and replace it with one about ROAD cycling as this is ROAD CC. Stop filling out content with irrelevant stories.
Richard Standing said: “Or maybe the cyclists should find a safer mode of transport…” The memories come flooding back- the day when Blackpool Police wrote on Twitter the thoughts of the whole of Lancashire Constabulary: 'If cyclists don't like the conditions on the roads, they should find an alternative mode of transport'. This was later deleted, but LC has remained true to the sentiment to this day and is also resolute in its determination to protect offending drivers at all costs. HN21 VXB's driver has now exceeded his year without MOT and 2 years without VED, and I've now discovered where he lives- it's half a mile from Garstang Police Station where NPT stalwart PC Mike Duff works at writing letters asserting that he mustn't be told of any more 'alleged offences' because he doesn't have time to deal with them.
@eburtthebike I like the cockwomble telling you that the roads were safe for bicycles in 1826. So all you have to do to be safe is to go back in time about forty years before the pedal cycle was invented and you won't have any problems!
@Smoggysteve For me one of the plus points of cycling is in the particular: getting the local knowledge, finding the better route ... ... but I think most of the population are less inclined to "magical mystery tour" (with the possibility of the odd bad trip) and more "just getting from A to B safely". Even when just "out travelling". I haven't done much cycling round Lincolnshire and what I did was mostly about the south. I do know that even trying to get between neighbouring towns there - what a not-unfit person might contemplate as a "journey for transport" - could involve a Hobson's choice of thundering traffic or the poorly maintained alternatives (or going a very long way round). I don't think that's necessarily inevitable (see Dutch countryside and "just don't let the motor vehicles drive over everything"). But I suspect (for several reasons, but especially the "low population density" one) Lincolnshire will be among the last places any transport revolution reaches, if it ever does.
Campaign to make endangering a cyclist “as unacceptable as drink driving” I recently had my life threatened by a reckless/inattentive driver, and since I had a bar cam, I posted a still and an explanation on our local website. Whilst I did get some support, there were also some incredibly entitled drivers: 'the one idiot decided to start weaving back and forth across the road, almost collided with me yet I was over the white line in the other 'lane'..... yes, I did beep my horn at them and got told to F*ck Off for the privilege!!!' 'However, had he have collided with me/my car who was going to HAVE pay for the damage to my 26 plate car.....oh yeah that'll be me !!!' 'The public highway is not suitable. In 1826 it was. In 1926 perhaps it was. In 2026 I suggest it really isn’t.' '....cyclists will hold up a significant amount of traffic for quite some time to excercise their "rights" to be on the road whilst making people late for work/school/appointments etc just because its their "rights".' '...all because of 3 cyclists all riding "abreast"...' [I did ask for evidence, but didn't get any.] 'Im absolutely certain that we all get the message that ONLY you matter, ONLY your story is the truth.....' [sic] 'However, I do take issue with Entitled arrogant smarmy cyclists who think only their opinion matters, oh, or thinking about it, do I detect misogyny. [sic] 'My point remains - consideration is a two-way street, and the idiot policy makers who can’t see an issue with mixing 10-15mph traffic with 50+mph traffic are the main problem.' '..by the way, only one contributor in this thread has lowered to thinly veiled prejudices, borderline rudeness and absolute refusal to consider anyone else’s point of view.' All that because I posted about two drivers who put my life at risk and posted a picture of one of their cars. Motornormativity is so deeply embedded in our society that it is going to take generations to change things.
Thanks for all the marvellous entertainment Julien, even though it's always been coupled with irritation as one shouted at the screen "There's no N! It's not Alanphilippe!" as the commentators consistently got your name wrong. Somewhere in an alternative universe there wasn't a landslide on stage 19 of 2019, you caught back up with Bernal on the climb to Tignes, the next day wasn't shortened either and you clung on to the yellow jersey all the way to Paris. You deserved one just for the amount of excitement you generated that year and the peloton will be a duller place without you, plus Mrs H is going to have to find a new piece of eye candy now...
I don't always agree with Smoggysteve's opinions and he certainly can be blunt when articulating them but he is a long-term contributor to road.cc comments, he is quite clearly an enthusiastic cyclist and his opinions are genuine, not deliberately contrarian, so he is not in any way a troll. If you want to go troll hunting I can point you in the direction of a 24 carat example...
14 thoughts on “Insurance company admits “mistake” after cyclist’s stolen bike claim declined as “no evidence” of damage to lock… because thief took it too; First Transcontinental finishers; GB Olympic cycling medals continue + more on the live blog”
Presumably Robin Gemperle is
Presumably Robin Gemperle is now going to eat for two hours solid and then sleep for a week or so…?
Wasn’t Taylor Knibb who
Wasn’t Taylor Knibb who crashed most often in the ITT, a triathlete by trade ?
stonojnr wrote:
Past tense not required – she competed in the triathlon this morning!
I wasn’t expecting finish
I wasn’t expecting finish-line drama after a 10 day race, but watching Abdullah Zeinab’s dot take a wrong turn so close to the end, and have to back track a couple of km to complete the final parcours was heart-rending. Not sure if it actually made the difference between 3rd and 4th place, but I suspect it did. Absolute kudos to all who have finished, are still on the road and those who have pulled out but had the courage to start in the first place.
Edit: checked the dots and it looks like AZ was 9minutes or so ahead of TdeW when he had to turn back within spitting distance of the finish line, only to come in about 30 minutes back!
Insurance companies… well
Insurance companies… well if you can’t show us the bike that’s been stolen how can we possibly know it’s been stolen? They really will try anything, many years ago a friend had their initial claim for their stolen motorcycle rejected because they couldn’t provide both ignition keys to prove that they hadn’t lost one and the criminals picked it up. The fact that they explained that one of the keys had been on a ring that had accidentally fallen overboard on a sailing trip in France was not accepted, and it wasn’t until the motorcycle was recovered by the police – in virtually written off condition – and they could show that it had been hotwired that the company agreed to pay out. Obviously there is plenty of fraud and they have to be cautious but they can get pretty ridiculous.
I tried to make claim on a
I tried to make claim on a Bianchi I crashed after a delivery driver walked into my path and I hit him in the middle of the road.
I took pictures of tha damaged bike and got a shop to quote the damage and say frame was written off due to the damage etc.
The insurance company tried to say the bike wasn’t the same bike as in the pictures. Why? Cos I had a different coloured saddle and bar tape. Seriously these fuckwits exist and live among us.
Clearly a modification that
Clearly a modification that invalidated the policy !
No, they just couldn’t
No, they just couldn’t identify it’s the same bike cos no one ever changed the colour of tape or saddle did they?
They paid out in the end but took ages to sort out cos of their clownish behaviour.
Hey road.cc, can you tell
Hey road.cc, can you tell Madri that however much they interrupt my viewing of your site with fullscreen adverts for their noxious brew (seems to be every time I open a new page this evening) I still wouldn’t be seen dead drinking their faux-Spanish (brewed in the UK by Coors) hipster product?
Better than vanity behemoth
Better than vanity behemoth ads…
ktache wrote:
Let’s just be glad of their misdirected marketing budget…
We had a similar issue with
We had a similar issue with Pedalcover a few years ago. Two of our bikes stolen because they cut through our lock. Pedalcover claimed that the object we had locked them too invalidated the insurance because it was not immoveable, despite it still being there and untouched when we returned. It was another bike locked to a big tree.
We had to take it to them Ombudsman who ruled on our side and we eventually got our payout but it took over a year of fighting for it. Fortunately we could replace our bikes with savings but imagine if we couldn’t! And this was from a “cycling insurer who understood cyclists”.
Insurance companies and many
Insurance companies and many other great british institutions always shirk their responsibilities by saying no. They then say no again and no again. It’s a simple strategy to wear out those that will give up and by doing so increase their profits.
Don’t give up. They are parasites and leeches on the backside of society.
Nowadays I always take a
Nowadays I always take a picture of the bike(s) locked up, especially if they are on a lockable rack on the back of the car…I just don’t trust insurance companies to behave …