A motorist who parked on the street overnight after finding the driveway at her new home too narrow and difficult to navigate has lost a theft claim dispute.

Insurer SGUAS denied the claim because its policy excluded cars left on the road between 10pm and 5am.

The vehicle was stolen at 2am from directly outside the woman’s house. The thieves had broken into the home and taken the car keys. 

A police report stated that regardless of where the car was parked, “the offenders would have successfully got her vehicle, as they smashed the [house] window to get in”.

The car owner told an SGUAS investigator all her insurance was bought through a broker and she was vague about details, saying she left all management to him.

She often parked on the street because her driveway was very narrow and it was difficult to get the vehicle into the car port, she said.

Her broker told the Australian Financial Complaints Authority the car would have been taken from wherever it was parked.

But AFCA says that because the woman failed to advise the insurer of a change in parking arrangements, the insurer is not liable.

“While I empathise with the complainant’s situation, I am satisfied the policy exclusion regarding overnight street parking applies,” AFCA’s ombudsman said. “It is unlikely the complainant’s intention was to park on the street. It appears this practice was established when the complainant found the driveway was narrow and difficult to navigate.

“The complainant was regularly parking on the street overnight, which means under the terms of the policy the insurer can deny the claim. She failed to advise [the insurer] about the change in parking arrangements as required by the policy. This has prejudiced the insurer to the extent it is entitled to deny the claim.”

AFCA says parking on the street did contribute to the theft, and while the “actions of the thieves were brazen”, the insurer’s underwriting information shows cars face a higher risk of being stolen while parked on the road.

At policy inception, after the woman had moved to the property, the broker gave clear instructions to the insurer about where the vehicle would be parked overnight, including sending it a picture of the car port.

See the ruling here.