Stupid insurance question: 'normal' policies for old chod?

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

I ditched my trade insurance when they started asking for company accounts, and I've now got a mega-cheap classic policy for my Granada with Peter James. As expected with a classic policy, it's limited. At just 3k per year. I don't really do any miles on a day-to-day basis, but I've been on some longish trips and it looks like I'll exceed 3k well before the end of the policy. So I've been looking around and I found that quite a few mainstream insurers aren't interested in covering stuff which is over 20 years old. There are a couple who 'll go up to 25 (so I can get a normal policy for the Granada if need be), and I know there are classic policies up to about 6k per year, but this raises a more general question: If you want to do a reasonably high amount of miles in your old shite, will anyone give you some bog-standard, non-classic insurance, or will you have to keep buying lots of 3k policies?

 

In any event, why do they bother with a maximum age limit for the car? It's not like they'll have to go looking for any parts when some huge SUV reverses into your Horizon.

[Micrashed]

How odd, I cant say I have ever had any issues insuring old cars with mainstream companies - that said I invariably swap every year these days using price comparison sites as my "last years" company always pick a telephone number and use that as the basis if the renewal quote (then seem to get upset when I tell them Im not re-newing with them because I can get a cheaper quote elsewhere....)

 

I dont suppose you could just disconnect your speedo?*

 

 

*joking!!!

[meshking]

I used to use footman James for my 1983 dyane, in which I used to drive 20k per year. I had no problem with unlimited miles and business use. I think it was around £150 per year, iirc.

 

Now I've got my 2cvs insured with Peter James, but limited to 3k per year. Can you not get unlimited mileage policies anymore?

[skattrd]

Have you asked your current insurer about increasing the mileage on your policy?

[Pillock]

Unlimited mileage classic policies are increasingly hard to get.... a few people sussed that you rarely pay more than £250 for a classic policy and there's some cars that you can can quite easily live with every day, commute in, or razz around town as a 21 year old (BMW E30, Golf GTI) that fall into the category. Certainly beats £3000 to insure a Saxo at that age.

All they can do is limit the mileage to make it appeal to the crowd who only drag the car out of the garage on sunny Sundays to take it to a show.

 

My Mk3 GTI was on a 4500 mile policy, and that was the most I could get through Flux. £190 for a years insurance, cheapest non-classic policy for a 31 year old with 6 years NCB was £700.

[skattrd]

Thinking back a few years to when I had a sensible number of cars and standard policies, I used www.quinn-direct.co.uk and Admiral/Elephant/Bell (same company).

They insured my mk2 Scirocco as a standard car whilst I was doing 40k a year in it. That was a few years ago though and they may have changed now.

 

The nearest you get to unlimited mileage classic policies I think will be the mixed modern/classics that FJ and PJ do where if you have more than 4? cars on the policy they all get unlimited mileage cover.

[willswitchengage]

How well is the mileage limit policed, if at all? When I renewed my inshurunce in Feb is was over the phone and I asked to raise my mileage from 3k to 6k, which naturally put the price up. The bloke on the phone said making it lower can put the price up too, and the optimum in his experience was about 4k. I then enquired to how this is policed and he grumbled and just said really "well we go on trust", and well me being mr honest I just went with the higher realistic mileage for me. I stick with normal insurers anyway to keep me NCB as an investment - you never know when shit might hit the fan and you need a normal cheapo everyday car (to my knowledge classic policies don't offer NCBs)

[vulgalour]

I've got a limited 4k normal policy on the Polo (27 years old) with Admiral but they haven't ever asked me for a mileage quote so I could, in theory, do a bajillion miles a year and never have a problem. Interestingly, the Princess gets automatically bumped onto a classic policy with Admiral which seems to be the same cover, but a different label, I'm guessing the main difference is the option to go with an agreed valuation on the car, I didn't look into it in any depth because Admiral wanted two or three times what other classic insurers did. The main problem with the policy I have on the Princess is the clause in the contract that it has to be at home in the garage between 10pm and 6am to be covered for that time period as any incident during that time when she's not tucked up in the garage would lead to me not being allowed to make a claim. It's not a problem at the moment as I don't use the car at those times normally, but when it comes to renewal I shall be looking for a policy without that particular restriction.

[Luxobarges_Are_Us]

With P. James, I did have to declare the mileage at inception so I guess that when you run over that child, they'll have a look at the odometer and find out that you've been doing 30k instead of 3k. I also have the garaging restriction, and I have no garage, but I am not going to bother with a theft claim if it gets pinched.

 

NCD can be refreshed at minimal cost through buying a regular policy every other year and cancelling within the cooling off period.

[jonathan_dyane]

Direct Liars have no problem insuring my 26 year old 190D on a 'normal' policy with business insurance doing ITRO 15000 miles a year as a (OMG!) social worker.

[Lankytim]

The Volvo and Allegro is insured with Peter Best, unlimited mileage- £155 for the two! I did this online, I found that adding the Allegro made no difference at all to price. Unfortunately you don't accrue NCB so this year i'm getting a regular policy for about £350, just so I can keep my NCB ticking over rather than lose it.

[Lankytim]

The Volvo and Allegro is insured with Peter Best, unlimited mileage- £155 for the two! I did this online, I found that adding the Allegro made no difference at all to price. Unfortunately you don't accrue NCB so this year i'm getting a regular policy for about £350, just so I can keep my NCB ticking over rather than lose it.