UKH

So..............

Having taken out insurance with DOGTAG for an expedition to K2 this year I had to make a claim as we lost a lot of kit in the avalanche at camp 3.
I claimed for:
Cutting the trip short resulting in flight changes, new hotel bookings and change in travel
Loss of oxygen
Loss of kit

My total claim was for approximately £4000
Finally after 6 emails, 8 calls, leaving messages and 1 letter I have been granted £1000 with NO explanation of how this is made up, no explanation of why I did not get the full amount and to make matters worse I have had no call, email from DOGTAG although i have requested one.
DOGTAG have let me down when I needed them and have been offered NO explanation.

Is this typical or have others had more positive experiences?
What about other providers?

In reply to Big Mountain Man:


That seems like a lot. What was the breakdown?

In twenty years of expeditions I've only claimed once. From that and other experience insurers tend to only pay around 50% of the cost of gear, if that, as it's used/old etc. Like a car losing 30% when you drive it off the lot. Do they state that they will pay Replacement Value?

It would be interesting to hear their reasoning, anyway, and while these amounts are tiny, in insurance industry terms, I think they're big enough to warrant a reasoning if you request one.

In reply to Big Mountain Man:


Very sorry for your loss but I'm not surprised.

When I wrote off my motorbike [insured for XXX quid] long ago, the insurance company said "We'll give you X quid - take it or leave it". They would not budge, or explain, and I was advised by someone in the know I'd have to take them to court [and probably lose].

Ever since then I despise insurance companies.

In reply to Damo:

The break down was:
Twin axes - £300
Down suit -£600
Sleeping bag - £600
Oxygen - £1800

Change of flight - £120
New land travel £240
Hotel £200
Incidentals - £150

They say personal belongings are only covered for up to £1000 although total kit used on K2 is in excess of £6000 so if all was lost in flight, in country, in transit Id get almost nothing.

DOGTAG in my opinion are shocking, still to date I have NOT spoken to anyone just received a faceless email that you can not respond to!

In reply to Big Mountain Man:

According to https://www.dogtag.com/coverage/ the only possession coverage is Loss of Sports Equipment $5,000 - there isn't even a mention of any other possessions. This implies your coverage is different from what's on their website. Is that the case?

In reply to Big Mountain Man:


Well, that explains quite a bit of the total!


Well then maybe they're not suitable expedition insurance? Were they recommended to you by the company you went with? Did you feel that limit was acceptable when you bought it? I can't help thinking you're asking for more than you agreed to.

I'm not in the UK so never looked at Dogtag much, but never figured they were serious expedition insurers, more for skiing and adventure travel. That said, it's hard to get any decent expedition insurance nowadays, so I know your predicament.

In reply to Big Mountain Man:

Personally, I've only ever considered expedition insurance to cover choppering me off the hill in the event of a medical emergency or body repatriation if the worst happens. Anything else is an extra. Phoning insurance companies prior to the trips and giving them various curtailment scenarios confirms this - pretty much zero payment for any situation that causes your trip to end early. I know it's not fair, but it's expedition insurance, not holiday insurance (even if they sell it like that).

Never had to claim personally. I tend to use Snowcard as I have heard that Dog Tag don't have a particularly good reputation with the helicoptor providers in Nepal (slow to pay up), and they won't send a chopper out unless they know they are going to get paid. That may have changed recently.

In reply to paulmck:


Maybe Dogtag are tired of people claiming for heli evacuations when they could have simply walked downhill.

I've only heard good things about Dogtag. We have lots of clients insured with them.

In reply to Big Mountain Man:


I presume you knew, in the cover you purchased, that belongings are covered up to £1000? Such a thing would have been in the terms and agreement. I highly doubt an insurance company would retrospectively change the amount of cover.

In reply to Big Mountain Man:

Anybody with a profile name like Big Mountain Man deserves to be ripped off...