Insurance...Are they crazy? help please

[babydriver]

I have insurance on my car with Tesco and insured my sons car with Direct Line, I got a letter from DL asking for proof of ncb which I sent only to get a phone call saying I can't use my ncb on both policies which I did not know, so my son is 18 and has been driving for 4 months until the above was found out and I am getting some silly prices for cover for a 900cc or so micra, Admiral do a multi car policy and want 7700 big ones for a years cover and this is for outside Manchester not Beirut. All the other big guys like dl, Tesco, churchill etc are asking from 2-3k for a £500 jaloppy which has no street cred for a teenager but should have been cheep as chips to get cover for.I remember paying over the odds as a kid for insurance a long time ago but it was not impossible like it is today, Insurance companys a pushing youngsters to drive with no cover as they are pricing them off the road and not all teenagers are hormonal power and speed merchants.Somebody give my kid a chance!!!!!!!!!!!

[dollywobbler]

Have you tried adding yourself to his policy as a named driver? You won't get away with naming him on your policy if he's actually the main driver, but adding you to his can often generate a discount.When I was 21, I added my 23 year old girlfriend to my policy and it dropped by quite a bit!

[Guest]

Aaah, those were the days, 20 and driving my Daihatsu Mira Classic Turbo 4WD.

 

 

A mate paid a touch over a grand to insure his Corsa 1.0 Envoy so I thought "sod that" and decided I'd get myself truly ripped off instead, was worth it though, just for not driving a sodding 3cyl Corsa.

[pogweasel]

Jesus. It really is daylight robbery isn't it. My first premium was about £600, and I thought that was a total rip....

[Milford Cubicle]

My first premium in 2004 was £700-ish for a VW Polo Coupe S.Admittedly I live in a very rural area, and I'd completed the 'Pass Plus' training to get the premium as low as possible.

[Station]

The insurance companies have really taken advantage over the fact that you have to be insured to drive a car. I compared fully comp and the lowest Third party cover on my own and the difference was a few pounds.I used to pay 1,500 for an Astra when I was 26. The car wasn't even purchased for that much and the only claim I made was for a windscreen which I had to pay for myself. It's ridiculous. I find NCB don't make any difference the older I get as I have a lot of cars and the insurer's get bitchy about me wanting to cancel the policy. I would never claim if I had an accident, it's too much hassle and they always make it hard for you to claim, starting off with giving you a pathetic amount - I paid 1,200 per year and they tried to give me a 250 pound pay off for a written off car. I don't think so. FFS, why don't I just set up a direct debit and have all my earnings just go to insurance companies.When I was a lad my dad just stuck me on his policy as there was no way I could afford 3,000 per year for a policy I'd never ever use. I wish there was a company that insured jalopies that were worth 100 - 200 quid and you had no intention of claiming money, just enough to pass the frigging law.

[Pete-M]

My first premium in 1988 was £325 on a Cortina 2.0 Ghia.In '89 I paid £1400 fully comp on a 9 yr old RS2000 Escort'92 it was £1500 FC on a 13 yr old Mk2 RS2000In '96 it cost me £888 FC to insure a 4 yr old RS2000, but when the renewal came it jumped to £1868 - even though I'd not had any claims or anything untoward. So I asked them to quote me on a Sapphire Cosworth £768 FC, so I bought one of those instead.Insurance prices make no sense. I pay £600 a year for my trade policy, which is less than the 'limited mileage' classic quotes I've had for the Rangie alone. Never mind the rest of the shite I've got parked here and there..Hiking kids insurance premiums just means it's going to go back to the way it was in the early 90s. Kids pinching cars because they can't afford to insure 'em.

[babydriver]

I think Station has the right idea, charge 500 notes max for a no claim policy just to get youngsters on the road LEGALLY and help to stop all the hit & runs that seem rife nowadaysI was hit by a woman in her 40s last year who wasn't insured, couldn't afford it, also a lot of youngsters sign up to an insurance policy then default on the payments once they have that vital certificate in their paws so that they can fob you off at the road side once they have clonked you!!

[STUNO]

Start your own insurance company!Do you have 3rd party insurance there, where what you hit is covered but not your car, it's common here.

[dollywobbler]

Start your own insurance company!Do you have 3rd party insurance there, where what you hit is covered but not your car, it's common here.

No, we don't have any sort of automatic third party cover here. Maybe we should, but it'd just be another reason to put taxes up.

[mk1_4dr]

Insurance companies do seem to pick their quotes out of fresh air sometimes, Id love to know if there was actually a method in the madness.I have to say, I was stupid enough to pay £2800p/a for my first car, the car was a white 3dr mk2 Golf 1.6 Ryder (thats a driver without the GTi bodykit )I only had it a month before i was skint as it was so bloody thirsty, such a cool first car though

[Futuramic]

Makes no sense whatsoever. I'm paying about 370 notes for the Ginetta. I'm 21! The Volvo is about 300 odd as well. I have got 3 years' no claims though.

[Alpineandy]

Firstly I have to say that I do work in this business (not motor or household) although it is in a rather specialist side.Some Points here;

not all teenagers are hormonal power and speed merchants.

How does the insurance company know that your boy isn't one?

The insurance companies have really taken advantage over the fact that you have to be insured to drive a car.

If they had consistantly made money from motor insurance you'd be correct, but they don't. The cheaper insurance companies usually (not always as it's calculated risk not a science) pay out nearly 100% of the premium they get in but make any profit from either the investment income (which is very poor at the moment due to the financial situation) or by selling you more profitable insurance (life & pensions being the usual favourite for them).

Do you have 3rd party insurance there, where what you hit is covered but not your car, it's common here.

I think Mr Wobbler has misunderstood your coment (or maybe I have), Yes you can buy 3rd party only from most insurance companies, But as the 3rd party aspect is the most costly (by far) it isn't usually worth limiting it unless the value of your car is under £500.I agree that they're all a pain in the butt when us honest people make a genuine claim but there are so many un-insured tw4ts, thieving g1ts and lying sh1ts out there that they treat us all the same - good and bad.If you look along the street outside your house and just make a quick mental estimate of the cost to repair one Chav scrapping along 4 or 5 cars there. The govenments have recently pushed people toward newer cars but that has knock on effects. When I got my first car there was a reasonable mix of up to 20 year old motors and last 2/3 year old motors.Now nearly everything in the whole street is under 5 years old (ex my stuff and maybe 3 cars out of 50+). In my first car (which was 12 years old when I got it), if i'd hit a bollard, I'd try to fix it myself. Now I have friends who buy their kids 2 or 3 year old first cars. They don't teach them enything about the cars like maintenence so the use them as disposable items.The bottom line is that If insurance companies don't make a profit from it they'll stop doing it. Then what happens? Does anyone here think that the government can run such a business cheaper (not a hope in hell).They pay actuaries lots of money to come up with the prices from historical data but the actuaries only work from the info they're given. They could make a price for every individual person but the cost of them calculating it would probably quadruple everyones premium.The world has changed in the last 5 years (let alone 30 years) and will continue to do so, and that's what makes insurance more expensive than when I was a boy..... I'm not trying to start a fight on the subject!

[Station]

Insurance companies do seem to pick their quotes out of fresh air sometimes, Id love to know if there was actually a method in the madness.

I'm pretty sure part of the algorhythm that decides how much you pay also includes more sinister stuff like credit record, etc.I've always included my dad on the insurance, it knocks 50 - 100 quid off it.

[Richard]

I still say car insurance should be illegal instead of compulsory. Make a mistake and pay for it. Can't afford to pay? Don't make a mistake.

[babydriver]

Fair comment Alpineandy but if my insurance company has my ncb by the knackers that I have gained over 27 years of motoring and I am prepared to lay on the line for my son as I have been out with him in the car and feel he is pretty good behind the wheel then why come up with over 2k for insurance with him as a named driver.Admiral has just quoted £7700 for a multi car policy with him as a named driver both cars are not worth 1k between them.I guess he will have to take up that old fasioned pass time of walking!! say get the bus to him and he breaks out in a cold sweat.

[retrogeezer]

Well, you can't use no claims bonus on 2 separate policies - I thought everyone knew that.

I wish there was a company that insured jalopies that were worth 100 - 200 quid and you had no intention of claiming money, just enough to pass the frigging law.

Great idea, but would you be happy being the insurer if the £200 jalopy crashes into a 3rd party's £200,000 Bentley?It's not the actual car you are insuring, it's the 'risk' and the risk of new drivers crashing is high so premiums are high.The risk of crashing a high powered car is higher so the premium is higher.I know I'm stating the obvious but then I thought the no claims thing only being on one policy was pretty obvious.

[Alpineandy]

I have been out with him in the car and feel he is pretty good behind the wheel.

I do feel sorry for the lad because he may well be a very careful driver (which would make him one of the very very few at that age), but Insurance companies don't know that.When I got my first car I always drove real carefully with any of my family members in the car. But when I was with my mates we would have races down the country lanes and had many many near misses. This was early 80s when there were less cars on the road and generally the standard of driving was better. I know that I wouldn't get away with doing the same things now as some guy tuning his radio would be coming the other way and I'd probably be dead.The 1st accident I've had involving another car was only last year (in 30 years which included a number of 'on my own = no insurance claim' accidents) and It would have cost the insurance companies the main part of £15k. The NCAP safety rating that every new parent thinks is great is also to blame as a smallish shunt can easily write off a new car due to the crumple zones including the roof. The energy is dissipated throughout the whole car which is good at keeping the occupants alive at 70 or 80 mph but just makes a 30mph accident horrendously expensive.In many ways no insurance would be a good idea, but it would also encourange more hit and runs. It'd also make lorries the best/safest form of transport for everyone.

[IanF]

Insurance is a strange old beast, that's for sure.I remember when had a '91 Golf Mk2 GTi 16v five door at 23 and was paying £1600 with Direct Line in 2002, which I thought was extortionate, until I found out that it would be £4k to insure a three door with them...

[STUNO]

Compare. I have just had to dig out my car policy papers.Car 1999 Nissan Laurel 2.0 litremarket value max payout $5000.00 (in your dreams!)Excess $300.00Named driver ME Other drivers extra $200.00 excessNO COVER IF A PERSON UNDER 25 IS DRIVINGWindscreen breakage, no excess payableCost $380.00 (that's about 135 pounds)

[Albert Ross]

I'm paying £84 a year to insure the Land R0ver at the Mo. Classic policy with Adrian Flux. At Christmas I scraped a car in Asda Car park, and left my details. It was a £70,000 Merc S-Class, and she claimed. I wait now for the increase later in the year.My very first car cost £137 Fully comp, a 1965 Super Minx in 1984, I paid up front. I got done for drink driving in 1985, and the next car I insured was a few years later, after I got my licence back.That was a Mk2 Cavalier Estate, £770 a year fully comp. I paid in full. Since then I have been clean, save for a day without insurance and getting stopped on my way home from work! I had forgotten to renew! That cost me 8 points and a £300 fine, due to my job I was made an example of! (MOT Tester) My wife insures our 3 year old Focus Ghia for £320, and she's been driving 6 years. The Sierra Sapphire is £160.We live in a high crime area, and have had one car stolen from outside the house. It's a lottery.

[Alpineandy]

Cost $380.00 (that's about 135 pounds)

I'm tempted to make a comment about sheep being less litigious or 'utes' not being fast enough, but the truth is there are a lot less cars on the road over there (a lot less people) and therefore a lot less accidents.

[STUNO]

I'm tempted to make a comment about sheep being less litigious

I've never hit a sheep. But I had to push a stupid cow out of the way once. another factor here is that most cars are kept off road. It's actually unusual to see a car parked on the road at night round here.

[gtd2000]

About 9/10 years ago my mate who was then 30 years old and a lorry driver, bought a Subaru Impreza Sport and called up his insurance company to change the details. He was advised that they would not insure him as he was too high a risk, he explained he drove 1000's of miles a week in a truck (with a clean driving record and full no-claims) and was flabbergasted at being too high a risk They were still not interested in giving him coverage for the new car and he was starting to flap a bit as he'd paid quite a lot for the car (it was only a year old) so he asked about getting the car insured through his girlfriend who was 24 and had passed her test only a few weeks before...No problem they said... Bloody madness

[Father Ted]

My first fully comp policy was somewhere in the region of £355 back in 1989 on a 3 year old Mini Metro - I had a years NCD at that point. Since then its been about the same ever since, though I now pay £120 for a Micra, and thats with several accidents over the years, some my fault, some not.Annoyingly they insurance on my motorbike showed a claim of £1000 for the spill last year, despite no claim going through ( I told them as the police had become involved in the incident - otherwise I would have kept quiet). Apparently they have to treat it like a claim for so long before it comes off - sounds like a load of ball-locks to me.

[carlo]

I still say car insurance should be illegal instead of compulsory. Make a mistake and pay for it. Can't afford to pay? Don't make a mistake.

What an excellent idea

[Mr_Bo11ox]

What if you make a mistake then cant afford to pay though.

[dollywobbler]

What if you make a mistake then cant afford to pay though.

Yup - just leads to you chasing skint idiots through the courts before agreeing that they'll pay you back at the rate of 50p a month or something. It's those with no money who have no insurance anyway.