Insurance companies.......

[toffee-pie]

Robbing me again. For the third year running I need to change insurer. Quote for CL55 - £1300.

A 5 minute search yields < £700.

Guess this is standard across the industry.

 

[renault12ts]

Be careful what you wish for.

You got it for £700 because you shopped around. The industry relies on others not shopping around. If everyone shopped around...the price would go up.

It's a bit like those who complain about holiday prices rising during school holiday time. If the prices didn't rise then they'd be more expensive all year round and you you couldn't take your kids on holiday because demand would outstrip supply.

 

[toffee-pie]

Be careful what you wish for.

You got it for £700 because you shopped around. The industry relies on others not shopping around. If everyone shopped around...the price would go up.

It's a bit like those who complain about holiday prices rising during school holiday time. If the prices didn't rise then they'd be more expensive all year round and you you couldn't take your kids on holiday because demand would outstrip supply.

Nonsense, its not like I am a huge liability with a string of convictions.

If they want to charge me double of what it should be I will tell them where to go.

 

[renault12ts]

Nonsense, its not like I am a huge liability with a string of convictions.

If they want to charge me double of what it should be I will tell them where to go.

Ok you know it all...thinking it's all about you rather than about everyone else too. Why not, instead of just reading what I wrote you try to think about what I meant also...shouldn't take too long.

 

[markjay]

Insurance companies all run very complicated statistical risk-analysis algorithms, designed by their risk-assessment departments staffed with math graduates and computer programmers, and yet they come-up with with widely varying results.... that's statistics for you, an exact science in the sense that it can exactly predict by how much it if far off the actual result in either direction.

 

[markjay]

Ok you know it all...thinking it's all about you rather than about everyone else too. Why not just read what I wrote but try to think about what I meant also...shouldn't take too long.

It' an old principle...

It's a bit like the London Congestion Charge exemption for EVs, aimed at encouraging people to buy EVs, which works fine as long as not everyone actually buys EVs....

 

[RichM63]

@toffee, I too check online prices etc, but also check on guarantees, items covered, excesses, break down cover, etc etc and then Return to my insurer's office of 25 years and see if they can more or less match premiums. So far so good.

I don't tend to like faceless systems for something as important as good insurance cover. A low premium might be attractive, until the big day when everything goes pear shaped. Touch wood.

Another advantage for me, is that because, all my details, driving licence, history, and face, etc are known locally by my insurer, is that I can simply make a phone call to instigate a policy and know that the papers will have been printed and the insurance registered by the time I put the phone down.

Mind you, the prices and full no claims bonus discount system are to say the least incomprehensible!

35 years no claims and not even a parking ticket against me, and yet I get the same quote as if I had just 5 years/max no claims %, something is not right with this method. I'm the guy that clearly pays for all the uninsured yobs out there.

How does a £100 fine and a bit of a ban, for driving without insurance or even a driving licence, equate to the cost of being legal. How can one be banned from driving when not even being in possession of a valid licence. BONKERS!

(oops Grumpy Old Git Mode)

Rich

 

[toffee-pie]

Its a load of b*****, who on earth would pay so much for insurance . In my case the much cheaper premiums offered are pretty much identical to what I already have,
Insurance companies should try and keep existing customers who have had no claims or whatnot, NOT hike up premiums to ridiculous levels if they change cars.

Needless to say I am sending my documents back to them shortly and getting a refund for the remainder of my policy.

 

[ash59fifty-uk]

This happened to me after my first year of driving last year. On renewal with Go Skippy, £1100 down from £1700 on an A3 tdi, shopped elsewhere and got one for £800

Instead bought the MB and qouted £680 (with someone else)

I think it's because they try and automatically renew and think everyone will just carry on with them, even in my shop around I still got a cheaper quote on a comparison website with the insurer I was still with!

Give them a ring and see if they can beat other prices

 

[MancMike]

OP: My insurance is nearly two grand, for a car with half the power of the one you're insuring.

Previously I've paid much more than that, £465/month for a car with the same power I've got now, still half your CL55.

If you're cancelling insurance and getting a refund for the remainder of your policy, are you not shooting yourself in the foot? You'll surely miss out on another year's NCB and also have had insurance cancelled, which will put your prices up further.

 

[toffee-pie]

This happened to me after my first year of driving last year. On renewal with Go Skippy, £1100 down from £1700 on an A3 tdi, shopped elsewhere and got one for £800

Instead bought the MB and qouted £680 (with someone else)

I think it's because they try and automatically renew and think everyone will just carry on with them, even in my shop around I still got a cheaper quote on a comparison website with the insurer I was still with!

Give them a ring and see if they can beat other prices

Their loss, I am moving on to someone else (again).

 

[toffee-pie]

OP: My insurance is nearly two grand, for a car with half the power of the one you're insuring.

Previously I've paid much more than that, £465/month for a car with the same power I've got now, still half your CL55.

If you're cancelling insurance and getting a refund for the remainder of your policy, are you not shooting yourself in the foot? You'll surely miss out on another year's NCB and also have had insurance cancelled, which will put your prices up further.

Your situation is probably (vastly) different than mine. My NCB will be just continued where I left off, with a different car. That's all. Over 400 GBP a month is mental for insurance.

My insurance isnt cancelled, I moved to a different insurer, have done so for the last 2 years in a row.

 

[MancMike]

Oh at your renewal period? I thought you were ending early. I've misunderstood.

 

[Red C220]

Do you live in Beirut? I pay less than £700 to insure both our cars.

 

[zipdip]

Well said Red,I am always amazed how much people pay for insurance,I must admit this year I found I could not better the renewal quote from Diamond,of course the sex change operation helped

 

[rockits]

Some of their explanations are bonkers though.

A few years back I bought an R129 SL60 AMG that had a live tracker. My insurance quotes were higher with the tracker live than without a live subscription or turned off/removed. Why? They said stats suggested more SL60's had been stolen with live trackers than not!

Last year I went to add my old £4k 2003 E240 petrol auto 7 seater estate on to the work fleet policy. They wanted £1.5k extra! Explanation...it was a high risk car! Really?!! I didn't contemplate asking.the cost to add the SL500 or Maser then!

 

[toffee-pie]

My renewal is not till September, I can cancel this get my NCB back and just get a different insurer. I have done this for the last couple of years as my renewals were always bonkers.

 

[E55BOF]

My renewal is not till September, I can cancel this get my NCB back and just get a different insurer. I have done this for the last couple of years as my renewals were always bonkers.

I'm not sure I understand. If your renewal is in September, why would you be shopping around for quotes only half-way through the policy?

 

[toffee-pie]

I'm not sure I understand. If your renewal is in September, why would you be shopping around for quotes only half-way through the policy?

well clearly I need to inform them of my change in car. I am allowed cancel it, they will reimburse any outstanding months, sans admin fee. Might lose this 'years' NCB also. Even without a full years NCB from my present insurer I still have enough years NCB to get a quote for £700 or a bit more.

 

[Codger49]

Because he's changed his car and his insurer wants a significant uplift for the new car.