- Stop winding him up HDi.
i agree but also think there is a distinction between what is their business and what is yours as its their business if you mess around and start lowering the suspension but none if you are actually improving safety at garage and have 12 month mot thats yours i wouldnt inform them every job had done to the car i would be on the phone to them every week it comes down to safety if you make engine more powerful then tell them if you feel you need to
i completly agree with u, it is safe to no that your completly insured, howeva, why is it, that when i tried to insure my car, because i have onli just passed my test, i had alot of trouble finding a company that wud insure me knowin that my car had alloys and a body kit, i dont think this is fair. i understand that rates may go up, but it givs the impression that we cant have the cars we want as insurance is too high! opinions any1?
so your saying if i put on a huge 6 pot set of brakes on the front with racing pad, braided lines etc then i shouldnt need to tell them ? because im making the car safer
im with admiral as they are by far the cheapest for me but they can be a pain. for one a woman ran into the back of me whilst sitting at red lights; even though she admitted fault and her insurance company covered all the costs, my insurance went up £40 (checked online making claim vs no claims), enquired about it and apparently even though it was not my fault I must obviously be a higher risk driver. go figure. also they charge extra for optional extras but dont replace them should they be damaged, how that works when there's a factory fitted body kit i'll never know :S
All insurance underwriters HATE car insurance. And any excuse to inflate premiums will be used. As will they use any excuse to refute a claim. This applies across the insurance business in general and stands to reason.
Car insurance is a necessary evil for insurance underwriters - if it was not available then no one could go anywhere in their cars and thereby not be able to afford to buy any other insurance service because they couldn't get to work in order to earn the money required to pay for that service or policy.
Modified cars are difficult for underwriters. How do they quantify the owner/driver? Not qualify - that's different.
You might think that people who modify cars are all intent on going as fast as possible at all times and therefore make the risk/stakes higher.
But, you could argue that driver/owners of modified cars have a better attitude to driving standards and safety. It's fair to say that anyone who modifies their car(s) has an interest in their driving of them. Perhaps they take more care than someone who drives a standard vehicle?
If you have a good history then you shouldn't have problems getting insurance for a modified car with a sensible insurer.
Don't buy on price of policy alone. But don't be ripped off either.
I've been with Privilege for 10 years (it's a Direct Line company) and they have been more than accomodating.
Endsleigh are currently offering me a guaranteed saving of £70 upon taking a policy with them. So, I made the call. They wanted all my details.
I said "NO, you don't need that. I just tell you the price that Privilege has quoted for renewal and you can subtract the £70 from it."
They didin't like that at all. yet that's the offer they made.
Brake modifications do not make your car safer!!!! This is a false truth!! Insurers see bigger brakes as a gaurantee you're going to speed. They will not see this as improving safety in anyway and trying to get away with not telling them based on this will result in fraud. I've worked in insurance for years and any alteration from the standard is a modification and will invalidate any policy. Even if the mod is a standard part from a slightly better model, even trim detail is a mod and an insurer can refuse to pay based on this.
You can report any company charging you extra for a non-fault claim as it is DISCRIMINATION. The magic word. It's the same as a company charging extra for a disabled person. Compensation me thinks or some free insurance. Oh and anything fitted by the factory has to have been done at purchase not afterwards, but a body kit fitted at purchase will be replaced like for like and is not a mod it is an option.
You can report any company charging you extra for a non-fault claim as it is DISCRIMINATION. The magic word. It's the same as a company charging extra for a disabled person. Compensation me thinks or some free insurance. Oh and anything fitted by the factory has to have been done at purchase not afterwards, but a body kit fitted at purchase will be replaced like for like and is not a mod it is an option.
With the price of insurance it makes me wonder how many people tell insurers about mods done to there cars?.
Not criticising this point but just adding some extra info from a case study I had whilst working as a broker.
We had a client who had 4 non fault claims in one year. The car was parked outside her house each time and someone drove into it. It was decided by the insurer that the location of her home and the fact she always parked on the end of the row was a high risk factor and one they wanted to load the premium for. We tried the discrimination route with them but the underwriters were undeterred at imposing terms.
Also as a note to those not in the industry you only truly get a non fault claim if you/your insurers can recover their costs.
Then to clarify the point about adding "dealer options" after purchase. Most insurers are happy for drivers to add dealer options to their car after purchase (wheels, radio, seats, ABS, HID lights and various internal trim levels etc...). The key here IMO is whether the car is modified from it's standard or usual specification. As long as your car could have come with those options from new you should be ok. IF IN DOUBT ALWAYS ASK THOUGH.