Some of you know I do a bit of mountain biking, so the subject of bike insurance is something I have considered at length.

Most standard buildings and contents insurances cover bikes…usually with a standard limit of £200 – £250. This is fine, it covers your average bike.

But many people who are enthusiastic about cycling will have a dearer bike than £250, simply because dearer bikes have componants that last longer, lighter stronger frames and are just nicer to ride – there is a very noticeable difference – it’s not just being flash.

So, what about insurance…well, most insurance companies will rise the insured value of the bike up to £1000 or £1500 is asked, without too much of a quibble and that covers probably more than 95% of cyclists – you can buy a pretty awesome bike for £1500!

And then, for the other 5% Marks and Spencer insurance has an automatic limit of £4000 per bike.

So, that covers the value of the bike, but then you must check the limits of the cover. Many companies just don’t know about mountain bikes – so won’t cover damage while the bike is off road. Or maybe they would only cover theft if it’s stolen from your home. Or, and I’ve had this myself when I was shopping around – they wouldn’t cover the bike while it was locked to a wall anchor in my locked garage that was attached to my house. They suggested I keep it in my living room. Genuinely. Oh, and they were also happy to insure it if I kept it locked to the lamppost at the bottom of the drive. Incredible.

I ended up with Marks and Spencer – I decided thay were OK by phoning their claims line and having a chat to an underwriter about what was reasonable and what was not.

I suggest you adopt this technique if you use non specialist bike insurance.

If you are really looking for top notch cover for your bike – consider a specialist bike insurer – I’m sure there are many and google will help you out here – these people have come to my attention so get a mention – www.eta.co.uk/insurance/cycle – and I see they cover you for pretty much every eventuality, but for a price.

So, insuring your bike – take care if it’s your pride and joy – it would be easy to rely on common sense and often that is not the same rule of thumb that the insurers use. I don’t advise in this area of insurance.