This post covers our Budget Direct car insurance review and the subsequent claim.
Our big lap of Australia planning in 2022 was a rollercoaster. We could barely hang on for the ride!
Like most people, we were glad to have 2020/21 in our rear-vision mirror and looked forward to 2022. This was the year that Kev’s business would sell. We’d sell our apartment. Our car and the van would arrive, and we’d drive off into the sunset. 🌅
Instead…
- My Mum caught Covid in January whilst having radiation treatment in a Brisbane hospital
- I organised the transfer of Mum to an aged care home near us after she became bedridden and visited every chance I had
- We took delivery of our car in March
- A week later, my Mum died
- The night before the first business sale went through, the buyer pulled out
- Our apartment didn’t sell
- The business broker signed another buyer, and that sale also fell through
- We had $40,000 in damage to a rental property (5 hours’ drive away) we had to fix
- The car caught fire
- The van was delivered
I won’t bore you with a hundred and one other things that happened. While writing the list above, I realise many people have dealt with much more than we have this year.
Budget Direct Car Insurance Review: Nissan Patrol Series 5 Y62 Car Fire
When you pick up a phone call from your life partner one of the things you don’t expect to hear is “The car has caught fire and it’s completely fried.” (That’s the ‘G’ rated version!)
Your response might be like mine, “Yeah sure!”
Kev said, “yeah that’s what I said too when the staff came and told me that the car was on fire!”
That made me sit up and take notice, as I thought Kev was playing a joke. Although at exactly the same time in the back of my mind I was also thinking, he usually doesn’t ring me during the day unless it’s pretty important.
He then relayed what had happened since I dropped him off at the Auto Electrician’s that Monday morning.
After parking the car in the car park at work, he went round to the back of the car and popped the tailgate. We’d had a twin ARB air compressor installed. However, it hadn’t been switched on at the Auto Electricians’ workshop to test it before he drove away. Kev wanted to turn it on and see how loud it was and if it worked.
…it didn’t work when he switched it on.
He went to work with the intention of calling the auto electrician and letting him know he was taking the car back so he could assess the compressor and fix the problem.
After an hour or so one of the staff at work alerted him that the car was on fire, he thought they were joking. And then another staff member and another came to him to let him know that it was on fire. In complete disbelief, he ran into the car park to find someone running towards the car with a fire extinguisher. To this day Kev doesn’t know who this is, however, is extremely grateful for his help.
Unfortunately, it took over half an hour to extinguish the fire. This was due to the doors not opening, so they couldn’t pop the bonnet. Whilst waiting for the Fireys to arrive several large fire extinguishers were used, however, the fire kept flaring up.
After half an hour, the Fireys finally arrived. They ripped off the grill and used bolt cutters to cut the latch that locked the bonnet down. They then had full access to the fire and extinguished it within minutes.
The Police, Ambulance and Tow Trucks also arrived, and the car was loaded onto a tow truck and taken away for an insurance assessment.
Soon after the fire, Kev made several attempts to get through to Budget Direct, our insurance company, and finally gave up hope of actually speaking to a human and filling in the online claim form instead.
Kev continued to call Budget Direct over the following few days at random times and finally spoke to customer service two days later on Wednesday morning. She immediately stated the claim form hadn’t been filled in. Kev had filled in all the spaces provided so we are still not certain this was correct.
Customer service advised that because we were claiming a car fire, the “complex claims’ department would handle the claim. She also suggested we would hear from someone from complex claims around 48 hours later.
We found this unacceptable and requested to be connected to the complex claims department immediately. Our request was granted, so we started another process with Simon (not his real name) and another round of questions, which took another hour.
We quickly learnt that when you have a claim for a fire, you are treated entirely differently from when you claim for an accident. You are treated more like a criminal, having to provide a police check, driving history, car service records and a host of other paperwork.
It was explained that it would take 11 (working) days for an assessor to inspect the car and 14 (working) days for a decision to be made regarding the claim.
And here’s the kicker, although we have car hire in our policy you can’t hire a car until the car has been accepted and assessed. Plus, the total of $75 per day didn’t cover the 4WD we needed to tow our van. Our van, which we had been waiting for 19 months, arrived ten days after the fire!
As it took two days to get through on the phone, Simon finally raised a customer complaint and advised us we’d hear back from someone in that department within a day or so.
Samantha (not her real name) called the following day and had access to our file and the paperwork we provided the previous day. Samantha then apologised our claim was taking so long and proceeded to advise it was because they had
- so many claims
- not enough staff
- the staff were all working overtime
- there was nothing they could do to hurry the claim along
Every staff member we spoke with from Budget Direct had the same rhetoric and excuses.
Week Two
The following Tuesday, Kev called Simon to see how the claim was going and was told that Simon had been waiting for the requested paperwork from us for a week.
He advised that he couldn’t assign an assessor until he received all the paperwork. Kev suggested the paperwork was supplied on the previous Wednesday, and Samantha could also access all the paperwork the previous Thursday!
A few moments passed, and miraculously, Simon found our file with the paperwork contained within!
Week Three
The following Tuesday after missing a phone call from Simon we called back only to speak to Jill (not her real name). Jill advised that Simon was very busy and couldn’t speak with us. She then also advised Simon had assigned an assessor earlier that day and that it would take a further 10 (working) days before the assessor could inspect the car.
…you might imagine our response!
Jill then continued with all the rhetoric and excuses mentioned above, adding “it’s because of the floods!”
We advised that we would be contacting the insurance ombudsman as we were tired of being given the run-around from Budget Direct. We contacted the Ombudsman the following day. You have 2000 characters to use in the application form for the Insurance Ombudsman, and I used all of them!
An NSW Nissan Dealership
The next day I received a message via messenger from Stephen, the sales manager of Muswellbrook Motors. He had read my post about the car fire in a Y62 Facebook group.
“So sorry to read about your Patrol. Please don’t take this as someone trying to take advantage of someone’s bad luck, but I would like to try and help you. I have a white Patrol on the water at the moment and due to us in late November. It is a cancelled order.”
The wait time on a new Patrol was nine months. We knew this as Kev had contacted our local dealer, the one we had purchased from earlier in the year. Not knowing the insurance outcome, we put a deposit down on the new Patrol.
Week Four
Some good news! On Thursday, Kev received a phone call from Budget Direct advising that the assessor deemed the car a complete write-off. However, Budget Direct would have to make a decision about what they would do next.
Looking at the car, the pictures, and the footage, you wouldn’t have to be Einstein to come to that conclusion, either. Procedures are procedures, I guess.
Budget Direct also advised us that we would hear back from them the following Friday with a decision about the payout.
Week Five
I was out on Monday morning and received a text from Kev
“Total Loss Payout!”
Budget Direct would pay the policy out. We both breathed a massive sigh of relief.
Living in limbo for 5 weeks not knowing if we’d done our dough or not was stressful. Especially when we had a tight deadline with a deposit on another car, Budget Direct’s decision was not in sight then.
Budget Direct asked if we wanted a payout or wanted them to source a new car. Kev opted for a payout as we already had a deposit on another Patrol.
However…
…an argument ensued about the no-claim-bonus. Budget Direct admitted we were “not at fault” but still withheld $700 to cover the excess. After Kev read the policy he pointed out to Samantha (not her real name) that if he was “not at fault” why was he charged $700 excess?
Samantha advised it was because Budget Direct had no one to assign the blame for the car fire! Kev pointed out that 6-month-old cars generally do not burst into flames and that perhaps Budget Direct should start by looking into the work we recently had done on the vehicle.
The following day, Jo-anne (not her real name) contacted Kev. She brought up that the Insurance Ombudsman had contacted them recently. She asked what it would take to close off the complaint and make the payout. Now we understand why Budget Direct went from dragging its feet to agreeing to the payout!
Kev told her to return the $700 excess and reinstate his no-claim bonus, and he said he would be satisfied that she could close off the claim if he received a copy of the conversation in writing.
Then, two days later:
The payout was made and later that day, we received another phone call from Budget Direct.
Janelle (not her real name) contacted Kev to advise Budget Direct was going to buy us another car and that job had been assigned to her. She went on to ask what model, colour, etc we’d like and she would find one for us.
Kev said Budget Direct was very generous in buying us a new car, but we’d already received a payout. Janelle was extremely apologetic and said that there must have been a mix-up in communication and that she had only been handed our case.
The Question On Everyone’s Lips?
What caused the fire?
We still don’t know! (at the time of writing in November 2022 and in this March 2024 update and again in February 2026). Budget Direct advised that the car goes to their forensic department for a full investigation. We have it noted on our file to contact us to let us know their findings and the outcome.
Tips When Making A Car Insurance Claim
We are happy with the outcome (who wouldn’t be with a payout?), however, we do have a few tips to help your claim if you ever need to make one (we hope you don’t).
Read Your Policy
Yep, they are as boring as batshit to read but necessary when dealing with Insurance companies and claims. Read the fine print and the product disclosure document as it could save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars to get your claim over the line.
You have to know where you stand and what your rights are regarding the policy.
If you don’t like reading policies (Totally me! 🙋🏼♀️) Find a friend or family member who does and have them explain it to you in plain English. Have a list of questions you need answers to about the policy so you can ask and understand your insurer’s responses.
Contact The Insurance Ombudsman
If you are unhappy with the progress or the answers the insurer provides, fill in an application form to the Ombudsman. We are so glad we did this, believing we’d have been strung along for months. We’d heard so many stories of people’s claims journeys with insurers we took the plunge early and contacted the Ombudsman.
This was also out of necessity as the clock was ticking for the next car, and we had taken possession of our
Everyone’s Stories And Policies Are Different
Just because a person tells you if you are insured for an agreed value or market value, your outcome should be X. This is not always the case; each person’s policy differs to suit them when initially taking out their policy.
Wrap Up
We hope you found our Budget Direct car insurance review helpful. If you need further clarification or a question answered please leave a comment below and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
With years of experience travelling Australia in a caravan, I’m passionate about helping others embark on their own unforgettable adventures. From off-grid camping tips to expert advice on planning the ultimate big lap of Australia, I share stories, practical hacks, and inspiration to make your journey stress-free and exciting. Whether you’re a seasoned traveller or just starting out, join me as I explore the beauty of Australia, one road at a time!
Did you reinsure with Budget, I would not have. I have always been insured with Ken Tame and never had any problems.
I love reading your stories.
Thanks for your comment Gordon
I’m glad you love reading our stories!
No we insured elsewhere this time round.
Thanks heaps,
Have previously been with Budget – last 5 years ago. I will not consider them ever again. Will let my older brother know who can pass it on his major face book page.
Poor fellow was down SA with his three old Sunrise Caravan on a highway and hit a Emu on the front left. Opened the van up quite a bit. Never saw the Emu again but did see major timber rot in this van. Gaffa Tape back to Burpengary and saw Sunrise. Sunrise do not want any bad publicity and immediately had a major repair down by the manufactures. The van under Qld Consumer still extends the warranty under consumer law. Sunrise stated that the rot definitely there during their warranty.
My brother Ian a retired Cop now has stage 3 or 4 prostate cancer but hanging in there.
Go to Carnarvon George Qld near Roma and Bunya Mountains
Happy ventures.
Gary
I have a 1996 GQ Patrol since new and it is in very good condition. Cannot tow much.
Thanks for your comments, Gary. We hope your brother keeps on hanging in there and recovers soon.
Will definitely visit Carnarvon and Bunya at some stage. 🙂
Had a very similar experience with Budget Direct. Once yourclaim is assessed as a complex claim you are almost treated as a criminal. Took 3.5 mth to settle our claim.
Oh gosh sorry to hear it took so long
Hey guys so glad your outcome was successful,….. did you Re insure with Budget Direct🤣?
We haven’t picked up our new car yet, so stay tuned for that one 😁
Thanks for the review, I found this really informative. So glad to hear you got a new vehicle. Please keep us up to date on what caused the fire. See you out on the tracks.
Thanks Ivan,
I’ll update the post when we find out