A Gold Coast couple’s $40k car was stolen from their garage. Their insurer has rejected their claim

A Queensland couple are set to be out of pocket $40,000 after their new car was stolen from the garage of their Gold Coast home, with the insurer denying their claim because they left the keys in the car’s centre console.

Last August, Guy and Nadine Broadbent were asleep when thieves broke into their home — using tools to pry open a locked gate and enter a laundry door into the garage.

Guy woke at 4am, to see his 2023 Kia Seltos Sport sedan had been taken.

The couple lodged a claim with their insurer, Budget Direct, but were denied due to the keys sitting inside their car.

“The car was secured in the garage. They’ve gone through our home, into the garage, lifted up the roller door and taken off in the car,” Broadbent told the Gold Coast Bulletin on Wednesday.

“I feel silly for being honest with them (police) but I’m an honest person and do the right thing.

“I told them the car was locked up in the garage and the key was in the centre console. We got broken into and they’ve driven away with it.”

The car has never been recovered.

Budget Direct sent the Broadbent family a letter, outlining the reasons for denying the claim.

“You must ensure that you or the person in charge or control of the car, lock the car, activate any required security devices, and keep all keys, remote locking devices or proximity keys safe and secure,” the letter states.

“This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring all keys, remote locking devices or proximity keys are not left in the car.”

The Broadbents’ appeal to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority was also unsuccessful.

On Wednesday, Sunrise reporter Georgie Costi said the situation was “a reminder to everyone to always read the fine print”.

“Guy and Nadine ... were fast asleep when thieves actually forced their way into their home,” she said.

“They used tools to break in via the side door and the laundry. They made their way into the garage then when they were able to steal a brand new $40,000 car.

“The couple woke up ... realised the car was stolen and they reported it stolen to police and the insurer, and they were honest — they revealed the keys were in the centre console. That’s when things got really tricky.”

In a statement, Budget Direct said it was reasonable to expect customers to keep their keys safe.

“Due to customer privacy considerations, we cannot comment specifically about the claim you have raised with us, however, we note that to help keep insurance affordable for as many customers as possible we believe it’s reasonable to expect customers to take appropriate steps to prevent or at least not contribute to their cars being stolen,” the insurance company said.

“We are very clear in our PDS that if you leave your car unattended, for any period of time, you must always lock it and not leave the keys in or on the car. We also consider that, together with any applicable extenuating circumstances, when we review such a claim. Our advice regardless of what insurer you are with, please always read your PDS before taking out cover.”