Disclaimer
This is our most recent version of our policy booklet. For the version that is specific to your policy, please use your app. If you need help finding this, please use this guide.
This policy booklet only applies to you if you have a Personal Car Policy and you have Legal Expenses Cover as a policy add-on.
CALL 24/7 ON 03333 609 506 FOR ASSISTANCE
Contact Information
| Telephone | Writing |
Motor Claims Helpline (Section A) | 03333 609 506 | RAC Legal Services Great Park Road Bradley Stoke Bristol |
Legal Advice and Claims (Sections B-D) | 0333 070 3529 | RAC Legal Services Great Park Road Bradley Stoke Bristol |
Call charges apply. Please check with your telephone provider. 03 numbers are charged at national call rates and usually included in inclusive minute plans. We do not cover the cost of making or receiving telephone calls. Our calls are monitored and/or recorded.
If you have hearing difficulties and have a Textphone, just prefix the number you wish to call with 18001 to access Typetalk.
Important information about RAC Motor Legal Expenses Insurance
Your RAC Motor Legal Expenses Insurance is a contract of insurance between you and RAC Insurance Limited. The contract consists of:
This policy booklet;
Your schedule, which tells you which vehicles are covered, how long you are covered for, who is covered and the cost of the cover; and
Any notices we send you, for example, any letter we send you notifying you if there are any changes.
A premium is payable for the contract of insurance which will be made clear to you in advance of purchase
RAC Motor Legal Expenses Insurance is arranged and administered by your broker.
RAC Motor Legal Expenses Insurance is intended to provide cover for the costs of;
Making a claim for uninsured losses against a person who is at fault for a road traffic collision (Section A);
Defending a prosecution for an alleged motoring offence (Section B);
Making a claim for breach of an agreement relating to the buying, selling, repair, servicing or lease of the vehicle (Section C);
It meets the demands and needs of those who wish to ensure such risks are met now and in the future.
RAC Motor Legal Expenses Insurance also provides for a telephone legal helpline to assist you
with advice on any private legal matter (Section D).
There is no limit to the number of claims you can make in any policy period. The amount that is covered for certain types of claims or for certain sections are set out in this booklet.
Definitions
Any words in bold in this section have a specific meaning, which we explain below.
“claim” means an incident which we accept as falling within the terms of this RAC Motor Legal Expenses Insurance policy and which, in our reasonable opinion, is the first incident that could lead to a claim being made. For example, issues arising from a road traffic collision or incident leading to a motoring prosecution.
“legal costs” means:
The reasonable, proportionate and properly incurred fees, expenses, costs and disbursements incurred by you and agreed by us in pursuing or defending a claim; and/or
The reasonable costs of a third party for which you are ordered to pay by the court or are agreed by us and which are incurred in connection with legal proceedings;
“legal proceedings” means the pursuit or defence of civil legal cases for damages and/or injunctions or specific performance, or the defence of a motoring prosecution within a court of criminal jurisdiction within the UK;
“legal representative” means us or the solicitors or other qualified experts appointed by us to act for you provided that they agree:
To try to recover all legal costs from the other party;
Not to submit any claim for legal costs until the end of the case; and
To keep us informed, in writing, of the progress of legal proceedings.
“limit of indemnity” means the maximum amount payable per claim under the policy which is £100,000;
“policy” means this Motor Legal Expenses Insurance policy that is subject to the terms and conditions in this booklet, along with your schedule;
“policy period” means the length of time this policy is in force, from the start date as shown on the schedule;
“proportionate” means the value of the claim must be greater than the costs of pursuing the claim;
“RAC”/“we”/“us”/“our”
For the provisions of cover under sections A-C means RAC Insurance Ltd;
For the provision of services under section D of this policy means RAC Motoring Services;
In each case any person employed or engaged to provide certain services on behalf of the RAC Group.
“reasonable prospects of success” means a 51% or greater chance that you will recover your losses or damages in pursuit of a claim (including enforcing a judgment), make a successful defence of a claim or obtain any other legal remedy that we have agreed to.
“road traffic collision” means a collision involving your vehicle, for which you were not at fault and another party was at fault;
“schedule” means the document outlining your level of cover;
“standard terms of appointment” means the terms and conditions which we will require the legal representative to accept in order for us to cover your legal costs. This contract sets out the amounts we will pay the legal representative under your policy and their responsibilities to report to us at various stages of the claim. A copy of these terms can be requested by contacting us;
“UK” means England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and for the purpose of this policy includes Channel Islands and the Isle of Man;
“uninsured losses” means your losses directly arising out of a road traffic collision that are not covered by insurance;
“vehicle” means the UK registered vehicle(s) that appears on your schedule and includes attached trailers;
“you”/“your” means the person(s) or company named as the policyholder on the schedule, and for the purposes of making a claim, includes any person authorised by the policyholder to drive or to be a passenger in the vehicle.
Your Motor Legal Expenses Insurance Cover
It is important that you let us know as soon as possible if you think you may need to claim. If you do not, this may prejudice your claim and may mean we are unable to cover you.
Section A - Uninsured Loss Recovery
What is covered
If you are involved in a road traffic collision within the UK during the policy period for which you are not at fault, and you have uninsured losses, for example your motor insurance excess or compensation for personal injury, that you need to recover we will;
Provide you or your passengers with help and advice. You must call the motor claims helpline on 03333 609 506 straight away, as we will not be able to cover legal costs that have not been agreed by us first;
Put you in touch with our legal representative, who will assess your claim; and
If our legal representative, in their reasonable opinion, agrees your claim (including an appeal or defence of an appeal) has reasonable prospects of success, we will cover you or your passengers for legal costs, up to the limit of indemnity.
If the legal proceedings are going to be decided by a court in England or Wales and the damages you are claiming are above the small claims track limit of the county court, the legal representative must enter into a Conditional Fee Agreement which waives their own fees if you fail to recover the damages that you are claiming in the legal proceedings.
If your claim falls within the small claims track of the county court in England and Wales the most we will pay the legal representative is £400 plus VAT. You will be responsible for any costs in excess of this.
What is not covered
A personal injury claim for stress, psychological or emotional injury unless you have also suffered a physical injury.
Section B – Motor Prosecution Defence
What is covered
If you have received a summons, citation or requisition for prosecution to attend a court for an alleged motoring offence, involving your vehicle and occurring within the UK during the policy period, we will:
Provide you with help and advice in respect of the alleged motoring offences;
Put you in touch with our legal representative, who will assess your case; and
If in their reasonable opinion, our legal representative agrees your claim has reasonable prospects of success, appoint and pay up to the limit of indemnity for a suitable representative to either:
Defend the allegation; or
If you plead guilty to the offence, look to reduce the impact of the penalty, where it would otherwise result in you being disqualified or suspended from driving. This is known as a plea in mitigation.
Appeal against your conviction or sentence.
What is not covered
We cannot provide help if your summons relates to violence, alcohol or drugs related offences or if you had no valid licence or no licence at all;
Claims relating to parking offences where penalty points are not applicable to the offence.
We will not pay fines, costs or other penalties a court of criminal jurisdiction orders you to pay;
Mitigation of a guilty plea if, in our reasonable opinion, it would not make a material difference to the outcome of your sentence.
Section C – Motor Vehicle Consumer Disputes
What is covered
If you enter into an agreement during the policy period and within the UK relating to a contract for the sale, purchase, servicing, repair, testing, hire or hire purchase of the vehicle and wish to claim compensation for a breach of that agreement or defend any claim relating to that agreement, we will:
Provide you with help and advice (under the Telephone Legal Helpline, Section D). You must call our helpline straight away, as we will not be able to cover legal costs that have not been agreed by us first;
Put you in touch with our legal representative, who will assess your case; and
If our legal representative, in their reasonable opinion, agrees your claim has reasonable prospects of success, we will cover you for legal costs, up to the limit of indemnity.
Section D - Telephone Legal Helpline
What is covered
We will provide a telephone legal helpline service, open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Just call us on 0333 070 3529.
We will give you initial advice on any private legal matter within the UK. Where possible, we will tell you what your legal rights are, which options are available to you and how best to implement them. We will let you know if you need a lawyer.
What is not covered
Advice where, in our reasonable opinion, we have already given you the options available,
Advice relating to immigration or judicial review; and
Advice against us.
General Conditions
The following conditions apply to all sections of this policy. If you do not comply we can refuse cover and/ or cancel your policy.
You must pay your premium;
You must request services directly from us, as we will only provide cover if we make arrangements to help you;
If you do not accept an offer which the legal representative considers reasonable, we may refuse to pay any further legal costs.
We will not cover legal costs:
that have not been agreed by us or were incurred prior to us accepting the claim;
for claims arising from:
faults in your vehicle or faulty, incomplete or incorrect service, maintenance or repair of your vehicle; or
a road traffic collision occurring during a race, rally or competition;
We may withdraw cover if at any point your claim has less than a 51% chance of succeeding;
You must always keep any losses you incur to a minimum. Ensure you take steps to prevent any loss in the first place and don’t do anything that could unnecessarily increase your losses or prejudice your claim. If you do not, we may not cover you and it may affect your ability to claim. Please speak to us if in doubt;
You must notify us of all offers to settle your claim. We may withdraw cover if we have not provided written authorisation to accept or reject an offer to settle your claim.
If you do not accept an offer to settle your claim which the legal representative considers reasonable, we may refuse to pay any further legal costs.
You must ensure you take steps to prevent any loss in the first place and don’t do anything that could unnecessarily increase your losses or prejudice your claim. If you do not, we may not cover you and it may affect your ability to claim. Please speak to us if in doubt;
We will need to be able to speak directly to any legal representative appointed, or agreed by us, even if this is one you have chosen;
Whilst we must appoint the legal representative, you may choose your own if it becomes necessary to start court proceedings, or if there is a conflict of interest. If you wish to do this, please tell us their name and address so we can consider your request.
Whilst we must appoint the legal representative, you may choose your own if it becomes necessary to start court proceedings, or if there is a conflict of interest. If you wish to do this, please tell us their name and address so we can consider your request. Your suggested legal representative must agree to our standard terms of appointment. A copy of which is available upon request. You will be responsible for any legal costs which are in excess of the hourly rate that we would normally pay to our preferred legal representative. This amount is currently £125 per hour (unless the claim falls within the provision under Section A relating to claims in the small claims track of the county court). This amount may vary from time to time.
If for any reason we cannot agree to your suggested legal representative, we will ask the Law Society of England and Wales (or similar body) to name one
If you have a dispute with us or complaint about the service provided by us or a legal representative we appoint, please let us know using our complaints procedure. Please note however, this policy will not cover any advice or your legal costs in connection with this or any claim against us;
We may decide not to issue legal proceedings, but instead pay you directly for your claim, for example, where the legal costs of your claim are greater than the value of your claim;
If you have legal expenses cover with a provider other than RAC or if you are a member of a trade union and the cover or membership benefits provide cover for your claim, we will not provide cover.
During extreme weather, riots, war, civil unrest, industrial disputes, our services can be interrupted. We will resume our service to you as soon as we can in these circumstances.
Cancellation of your policy
You can cancel your policy within the cooling off period, being 14 days from the later of:
the start date; or
the date you receive your policy documents.
If you do this, we will cancel the policy with immediate effect from the day you request it and we will refund your premium in full unless you have made a claim within this cooling off period.
After this cooling off period you can still cancel but we will not refund any premium to you.
Cancelling a direct debit will not always cancel your policy, if you wish to cancel the policy then contact your insurance broker.
Misuse of your policy
You must not:
Behave inappropriately towards us, including acting in a threatening or abusive manner, whether verbally or physically;
Persuade or attempt to persuade us into a dishonest or illegal act;
Omit to tell us important facts about a claim in order to obtain a service;
Provide false information in order to obtain a service;
Knowingly allow someone that is not covered by your policy to try and obtain a service under it;
If these conditions are not complied with, we may:
Restrict the cover available to you at the next renewal;
Refuse to provide any services to you under this policy with immediate effect;
We may also take any of the additional steps as set out above if any claim is found to be fraudulent in any way, and the policy will be cancelled with effect from the date of the fraudulent act, and the fraudulent claim forfeited. We will not refund any premium. We will notify you in writing if we decide to take any of the above steps.
Complaints
We are committed to providing excellent service. However, we realise that there are occasions when you feel you did not receive the service you expected.
If you are unhappy with how your policy is arranged and administered, for example, the way it was sold to you, please contact your broker on the number shown on your main policy documents.
If you are unhappy with our services please contact us as follows:
Telephone: 0330 159 0610
In Writing: Legal Customer Care RAC Motoring Services Great Park Road Bradley Stoke Bristol BS32 4QN [email protected]
Financial Ombudsman Service
In the event that we cannot resolve your complaint to your satisfaction under the complaints process set out above, you may in certain circumstances be entitled to refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service at the following address:
The Financial Ombudsman Service
Exchange Tower
London
E14 9SR
0800 023 4567 / 0300 123 9123
The Financial Ombudsman Service will only consider your complaint once you have tried to resolve it with us.
Using this complaints procedure will not affect your legal rights.
Financial Services Compensation Scheme
RAC Insurance Limited is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). If it is unable to meet its obligations under the relevant sections of cover, you may be entitled to compensation from the FSCS.
Further information about FSCS arrangements is available from the FSCS website www.fscs.org.uk
Your Data
When providing you with services under your Motor Legal Expenses Insurance cover, RAC Motoring Services and RAC Insurance Limited are the data controllers of your personal data. They mainly collect data directly from you and use your personal data in order to provide their services, including the establishment, exercise or defence of a claim. The data they use may include information about your health, ethnicity or racial origin, sexual orientation, or religion (depending on the nature of the service you require).
RAC Motoring Services and RAC Insurance Limited may share your personal data with its service providers and may monitor and record any communications with you for quality and compliance reasons. For further information regarding how they will process your personal data and your rights under the Data Protection law, please visit RAC.co.uk/privacy-policy or contact the Data Protection Officer by emailing [email protected] or by writing to Data Protection Officer, RAC, Great Park Road, Bradley Stoke, Bristol, BS32 4QN.