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*@%&>$^ Insurance Company!


Garthy
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So after finding out all the info on the styling kit I called my insurance company to make sure everything was cool on my policy, only to find out that everything was most certainly not cool.

After explaining about the kit and being put on hold I was then asked if it was to do with hands-free! No, it's a body kit. explained again, put on hold again. :duh:

This time they came back and said that they couldn't insure my car with the kit and were cancelling my policy with immediate affect! Couldn't believe it - i was left stranded at work with no cover and I'd effectively been driving around with no insurance for the past month!! :tsktsk:

Have found cover now, but what a headache. Good job I love the car so much :D

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This time they came back and said that they couldn't insure my car with the kit and were cancelling my policy with immediate affect! Couldn't believe it - i was left stranded at work with no cover and I'd effectively been driving around with no insurance for the past month!! :tsktsk:

Have found cover now, but what a headache. Good job I love the car so much :D

All mods need declaring before you drive, even changing from say 17" to 18" wheels. Lucky you were not involved in an accident as apart from not being covered insurance wise you would possibly also have been prosecuted for driving without insurance.

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That's not really a mod if it was fitted from new - what insurance company was that because that's pretty pathetic to not offer cover at all!

When I added the kit and wheels to mine it barely changed the premium........

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That's not really a mod if it was fitted from new - what insurance company was that because that's pretty pathetic to not offer cover at all!

When I added the kit and wheels to mine it barely changed the premium........

The one that cancelled my cover was 1st Central, the one I'm with now (where the quote went up steadily as I explained about the kit) is eSure.

I thought that as it was a factory-fitted option it shouldn't make that much difference, as the car is as it left the showroom (ish :winky: ).

Starting to think I may have been a bit hasty, is anyone out there with the styling kit from new (or not I guess) that could recommend an insurance company? It would be good to talk to a company that knows what the hell I'm talking about when I mention the styling kit, and doesn't charge me the earth for it!

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This whole area of "declaring mods" is a minefield. The attitude of IC's varies enormously. Some are fairly relaxed unless you go for performance upgrades to the engine. Others will INCREASE your premium (e.g. £80) for ADDING a tracker devise. They use the argument that you have must have made your car attractive to thieves if you feel the need for a tracker. Further, any car which is not as per spec from the factory has been modded. So if you replace tyres not to original spec then you can be in trouble. This goes for cars bought secondhand. How many dealers will point "differences" out when you buy.

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all that just for a styling mod ! unbelievable yet stav put a twin turbo lump in his is and his premium only went up by £42 lol .its all a great big steaming pile of BS! , just an excuse to put our premiums up , for every year i get another no claims bonus shouldnt my insurance go down ? im sure your all nodding but it never does does it ,then there is the womens only company's isnt sexism illegal? they come up with all these excuses and statistics , the one about your insurance being more if your car is black or red makes me laugh ,then they try to make us blame the non insured drivers that have accidents for putting up our premiums but how do we know there were more claims this year than last , its the insurance company that put up the premiums and noone else ,they divert the blame to others to take the attention away from themselves, why arent we shown proof of their claims , cos by law we have to have car insurance and they have got us by the balls to do what they like and they know it !

feel better now i got that off my chest lol :hehe:

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Most companies nowadays do ask for optional extras as well although some take it to extremes - my sister's mini with directline required every option declared, and even says on the policy documentation that it has parking sensors, climate control, etc which I just think is silly. I don't think it really affects the premium so not a huge deal but weird nonetheless.

An optional bodykit shouldn't really add much to a premium, so if you're paying a lot more it's not quite right (unless you were paying an unusually low premium before)

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i've been told in the past that it sometimes helps to make very clear if the mods are factory options, but still to declare them all the same

I think it's definately going to be worth phoning them up to make sure they undestand that it's all factory fitted. Failing that I have 14 days to cancel the policy so this weekend will be one of joyous insurance shopping!

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i've been told in the past that it sometimes helps to make very clear if the mods are factory options, but still to declare them all the same

I think it's definately going to be worth phoning them up to make sure they undestand that it's all factory fitted. Failing that I have 14 days to cancel the policy so this weekend will be one of joyous insurance shopping!

Unfortunately ANYTHING fitted to the car that does not come as bog-standard for that model is a modification as far as Insurance Companies are concerned whether factory-fitted or not. Some even want to know it is metallic paint although most work it out from the colour (ie Silver can only be metallic etc). Many "mods" do not increase premiums, but companies who have pared down their basic prices will add increases at the slightest opportunity.

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Yes many insurance companies now want to know about factory fitted optional extras - like my example of directline and them wanting to know about stuff like parking sensors and climate control. I'm assuming it's because in the event of a write-off we're going to expect more because of those things, so I guess it makes sense.

In any case, the styling kit was never a factory fitted option anyway, the cars would arrive in the UK, and only then would the kit be fitted before being delivered to dealers.

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here in sweden i just phone them up and they say ... np.... take a picture and hold on to the recipts. and my insurance went down by 60 pound this year and i added a turbo and another 10000 pounds worth of stuff to the car and more than dubbling the bhp from 155 to 320. no a word from them just a thank you for calling. think you guys in the uk are being ripped off.

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Perhaps the right approach with mods is to carry them out just after your insurance is due and tell insurers of your plans. That way they will be competing for your business instead of having you over a barrel if you do it during the insurance year. If you do an on line search for prices this can be very difficult because the systems doesn't often cater for mods. Could be one of those situations where a broker would be a hell of a lot more convenient.

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i put the tte bumper trd side skirts and trd rear lip on my car lowered it and put on big wheels all around the same time phoned my insurance a very polite man said thanks thats it updated i asked how much extra oh not really worth bothering about factory fit stuff any thing? else eemmm no..... have a nice day good bye to say i was shocked is an understatment.....

after all my mods listed below i still only pay approx £200 fullycomp.....

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i put the tte bumper trd side skirts and trd rear lip on my car lowered it and put on big wheels all around the same time phoned my insurance a very polite man said thanks thats it updated i asked how much extra oh not really worth bothering about factory fit stuff any thing? else eemmm no..... have a nice day good bye to say i was shocked is an understatment.....

after all my mods listed below i still only pay approx £200 fullycomp.....

You make me sick :winky:

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on my previous car when i put on a factory bodykit and inquiered about the insurance going up, they just said to me as long as its a genuine part we can cover you in the event of an accident and if it is not genuine then we will only replace any part back to standard stock. e.g tte front bumber on my corolla, they will replace it with an orginal stock bumber.

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Ormi, your lucky you have a wife whose in the police force.. have you tried seeing how much it would cost if she wasnt on your insurance policy? also car insurance companies are all scammers if you ask me almost worse than bank brokers.

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Ormi, your lucky you have a wife whose in the police force.. have you tried seeing how much it would cost if she wasnt on your insurance policy? also car insurance companies are all scammers if you ask me almost worse than bank brokers.

yes i have and its about 5 times the price!!!ooouuuuccchhhhhhh but heres the funny thing it works the other way too my wife has a celica 2005 gt and on her own it is £670 but with me on it its £310 and some pennys........

but what also helps,

alarm etc

were you live(post code)

owning your own house(i do your seen as more secure)

were its kept (overnight and during the day)

mileage..(last year i only done 6k!!!!)

being married(i am but wish i wasn't lol)

your job(wifes in a low risk job traffic cop drives the evo's etc i'm a motor tec high risk job)

being honest from get go

also i'm a old bugger now!!!30!!

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i put the tte bumper trd side skirts and trd rear lip on my car lowered it and put on big wheels all around the same time phoned my insurance a very polite man said thanks thats it updated i asked how much extra oh not really worth bothering about factory fit stuff any thing? else eemmm no..... have a nice day good bye to say i was shocked is an understatment.....

after all my mods listed below i still only pay approx £200 fullycomp.....

ormi you must be an old man.. £200 for insurance.. i can only dream..... i do it the old fashioned way.. dont declare nothing kus once you have then its on the system and if sumthing happens then run round and remove the mods before the insurance investigator comes round. lol

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Ormi, your lucky you have a wife whose in the police force..

Ormi - Does your Mrs have any single police friends?! :D: (of the female persuasion naturally)

Not that I would ever be so shallow as to hook up with someone to save myself a couple of hundred quid on car insurance...

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