picking up new lexus next week and was offered a number of insurance policies are they worth it ???

[Voxismylife69]

Gap Insurance. ( will offer FREE with car)

Tyre and Allow (£300)

Paint and Dents (£300)

SMART

 

Are any of the worth worth the additional monies ????

 

Any help much appreciated as this is my first brand new car...

[Neo_gsf]

Welcome to the forum.

All insurance policies sold by the dealers generally net them commissions, hence they like to push them.  As for if they are worth it, then that is a difficult question to answer and depends on how risk-averse you are

Gap insurance - this will "top up" any insurance payout if the car is a TOTAL WRITE OFF from what the insurance pays out to the original purchase price.  The chances of a car being totally written off are very, very small (check on the internet for actual claim rates on GAP insurance).  The insurance company payout should enable you to replace your written off car with a like for like so you should not be disadvantaged.  If you have bought the car brand new and if the car is written off in that first year, then most insurance companies will replace the written off with a brand new car anyway, so if you decide to take out GAP insurance, it should only start after the car is 1 year old.

Tyre and Alloy - this covers repairs to alloys if you scuff them (subject to an excess) - Note they don't normally cover Diamond Cut alloys so check the small print.  Also this policy covers the tyres if they are damaged and need replacing (not wear and tear)

Paint and Dents - this normally covers any scratches/dents smaller than a specified size (subject to an excess probably).

Really, it is up to you as to whether you think you would ever claim on these insurances vs the costs of them.  e.g. an alloy wheel repair is typically around £80, so if you damage 1 in the lifetime of the cover, then it wouldn't be worth the £300 cost of the policy.  A tyre could be £150 so you would have to have to replace 2 tyres (not for wear and tear) in the lifetime of the policy for it to be worth it.

Hope this helps

[ColinBarber]

Typically you can take out similar polices cheaper if you shop around.

As will all insurance, you need to decide if they are worth the money for you. Also check the small print - many of these policies have an excess to pay on each claim, or limit the number of times you can use them in a year.