Can you ever run a de-cat exhaust and actually be insured? Somewhat of a grey area?

norm

norm

norm

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It's fairly easy to spot a car on the public road running a de-cat due to the rich smelling exhaust, or in the case of a diesel the stench.

But is it the case that all de-cats render the car uninsured? I know from searching various Google results on motoring forums the standard response seems to be "no catalytic converter, equals not roadworthy, therefore uninsured". However a car can be unroadworthy for a multitude of reasons but still be insured.

However that's neither here nor there if you haven't declared to your insurer in the first place the exhaust modification?

I know some insurance companies aren't that explicit as to what exhaust modification have been carried out, allowing you to select "cosmetic and performance", however again looking at motoring forums people who have explicitly stated 'de-cat' as a modification are point blank refused a quote for insurance.

Obviously the correct answer is don't run one as it's breaking the law, but the question is are those who do invalidating their insurance as well? There's little anecdotal evidence around saying insurance company didn't pay out on claim because of de-cat which you would expect to see, as it's not an entirely uncommon modification with modified cars.
 
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It's highly unlikely it will be road legal so that means no insurance, no mot & big legal trouble if you get caught (the noise will get you noticed fast as well BTW!).
 
AWPC said:
It's highly unlikely it will be road legal so that means no insurance, no mot & big legal trouble if you get caught (the noise will get you noticed fast as well BTW!).
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Yeah but having a brake light bulb out is not road legal either but that wouldn't invalidate ones insurance.

And you can actually run a de-cat with the backbox still fitted so it won't be obnoxiously loud either.
 
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The reality is that one is a deliberate modification which has a material bearing on the likelihood of you successfully obtaining an insurance policy, the other is an oversight or a minor lack of maintenance. If your insurer can demonstrate that they would not have insured you (for any amount of money) with the modifications made to your car, you're stuffed.

You'd have to be unimaginably stupid to run a car with a decat on UK roads these days. The extra noise/power isn't worth the gamble of having your entire life ruined by anything more than a minor accident.
 
DRZ said:
The reality is that one is a deliberate modification which has a material bearing on the likelihood of you successfully obtaining an insurance policy, the other is an oversight or a minor lack of maintenance. If your insurer can demonstrate that they would not have insured you (for any amount of money) with the modifications made to your car, you're stuffed.

You'd have to be unimaginably stupid to run a car with a decat on UK roads these days. The extra noise/power isn't worth the gamble of having your entire life ruined by anything more than a minor accident.
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Well the same would then apply to cars with DPFs removed, of which there will be many that carried out this modification before the change in MOT rules came about.

I just recently renewed my insurance and I told the insurer I have an EGR bypass fitted, and that wasn't questioned and was still quoted, when in effect it's an emissions regulation device just like the Catalytic converter, so why is one allowed and not the other?
 
Sports cats are great for passing a visual inspection, but try getting a pass on the MOT emissions with one fitted.
I've tested god knows how many, and short of getting them glowing red hot, they fail more than they pass.
 
ShiWarrior said:
Decatting is illegal, it will fail the MOT, if you have an accident when your decatted, your insurance is invalid
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I don't believe you can say that definitively, it would be at the insurers discretion. If the proposer has declared a performance modification to the exhaust but not what specifically, why would the fact it's a decat make them at any more risk?

I mean this is the ludicrous nature of insurance, you can swap all four tyres on your car for some cheap Chinese ditch finders and not declare it, and that doesn't alter your risk profile of a crash, but other relatively innocuous things do.

And plus most people would get a valid MOT certificate, and swap the exhaust afterwards.
 
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norm said:
I don't believe you can say that definitively, it would be at the insurers discretion. If the proposer has declared a performance modification to the exhaust but not what specifically, why would the fact it's a decat make them at any more risk?

I mean this is the ludicrous nature of insurance, you can swap all four tyres on your car for some cheap Chinese ditch finders and not declare it, and that doesn't alter your risk profile of a crash, but other relatively innocuous things do.

And plus most people would get a valid MOT certificate, and swap the exhaust afterwards.
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:cry: why would an insurance payout when they don't need to? If you were in a moderate accident you can't exactly sneak into the impound yard and put a cat back on.
 
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hyperseven said:
:cry: why would an insurance payout when they don't need to? If you were in a moderate accident you can't exactly sneak into the impound yard and put a cat back on.
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To save a heap of counter litigation? They can't expect not to pay out and that be the end of it.

Ultimately if they chose to insure someone with a 'performance exhaust modification' without asking for further details you would reasonably expect to be insured. The fact that it doesn't meet emissions criteria is largely irrelevant.
 
There are a lot of supercars on the roads with no cats which are somehow insured and pulling dodgy MOTs or putting cats back on for MOT time.
 
norm said:
To save a heap of counter litigation? They can't expect not to pay out and that be the end of it.

Ultimately if they chose to insure someone with a 'performance exhaust modification' without asking for further details you would reasonably expect to be insured. The fact that it doesn't meet emissions criteria is largely irrelevant.
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:cry: OK fella, you do you.
 
Are you willing to take the risk that they'll cover you because they're feeling "nice". We are after all talking about insurance companies.
 
Mr_Sukebe said:
Are you willing to take the risk that they'll cover you because they're feeling "nice". We are after all talking about insurance companies.
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No personally I would not take the risk.

But if it's the case that cars with de-cats are without question uninsured why aren't the police taking a stricter approach with them, and people having their insurance cancelled. Given that's it's not hard to spot from the smell/noise.
 
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norm said:
No personally I would not take the risk.

But if it's the case that cars with de-cats are without question uninsured why aren't the police taking a stricter approach with them, and people having their insurance cancelled. Given that's it's not hard to spot from the smell/noise.
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There has to be actual police for starters on the road! :rolleyes: Most traffic cops are either in unmarked cars trying to catch speeders or attending an incident few are actually patrolling the roads so the chances of getting caught are slim is why some drivers chose to take the chance.

If they get caught it's a world of legal pain & try getting insurance again it will be way tougher & cost more than some cars are actually worth :rolleyes: I think most traffic police are concentrating on speeding motorists as that's any easy target......
 
If you have non specific "exhaust modifications" listed on your policy then you are probably OK.

The whole "car would technically fail an mot = no insurance" thing is a massive grey area that appears in practice to err on the side of extreme caution/benefit of the doubt towards the insured.
 
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