151 replies to this topic

[robelst]

All power to comparison sites.

The huge costs to run these websites will sooner or later be reflected in our premiums and/or skimmed down insurance products.

The UK economy seems to rely on selling baked air to gullible customers - no wonder we don't manage to come out of recession

I have been with CN for 13 years now - reasonable premiums with low rises, excellent extras and very helpful when you need them. I can't be bothered to move just to maybe save a few tenners on the few thousands that you spend on owning and riding a bike.

[treadman]

they do have an option to knock of all the frills www.just-motorcycleinsurance.com/
Neil

Edited by treadman, 24 April 2012 - 08:39 pm.

[dmmsta]

recieved my new quote for the year £150.76 up £27 on last year , so i did all the usual sites , go compare , money super market , meerkat , and finally carole nash , and the winner carol nash on line £127 so i phoneed up on saturday with the ref no from the web site and said that i would not be renewing with the quote they sent me but i would renew with the online quote , but i did ask why the difference and the nice lady said that it is cheaper to do it on line as there is no cost , but she still did all the work for me and i still got it for £127 plus a free security thingie for putting on the bike , cheers to good old auntie carole

Whats this you say - a freebie from Auntie C.

What is it? Did they just throw it in, or is it a deal they're doing at the mo. I'm up for renewal at the end of May - and always up for a freebie...

Just check the website - http://www.carolenas...arole-nash-dna/ - looks like a Datatag kinda thing. Wonder if it will be approved with other Insurers should one choose different next policy?

Edited by dmmsta, 25 April 2012 - 08:27 am.

[dicky1]

Have just changed to Carol Nash as one of few companies prepared to cover outside of EU including breakdown & recovery. Have not used smartwater before but the DNA+ liquid they include contains muliple small metal fragements (microdots) containing a unique code which you paint on as many parts of the bike as you can. These details are held on an international database

Some small shiny metalic labels warn that the bike is security coded.

Policy cost me £326 including a second bike

[Robodene]

C.N. includes breakdown Filo,, dont think you have an option not to take it......

I have gone with AA this year. They do not include recovery; you get that by joining the AA. You would think that their premium would be cheaper as a result. It is not obvious that it is.

[TKH]

When recently renewing my eldests insurance I tried her existing insurers web site plus all the searches. Existing insurer just shy of £1100, best search £895. Rang her insurer who quoted her renewal would be £840 but it was too soon to renew. Rang up at renewal, price was £776. I asked if waiting another 2 weeks would get it down again but apparently not.

She's working down in London at the moment, her renewal for up here was £476.

[drumwrecker]

The huge costs to run these websites will sooner or later be reflected in our premiums and/or skimmed down insurance products.

The UK economy seems to rely on selling baked air to gullible customers - no wonder we don't manage to come out of recession

I have been with CN for 13 years now - reasonable premiums with low rises, excellent extras and very helpful when you need them. I can't be bothered to move just to maybe save a few tenners on the few thousands that you spend on owning and riding a bike.

I agree. I get an annual phone call from Adelaide Insurance as I am a member of the IAM. thay are supposed to be cheaper and give better cover but when the breakdown and legal cover was added they were £100 dearer last year and I am now awaiting their quote tonight fo this year.
I have just come off the CN site and the quote I got was £33 cheaper with Zenith Insurance but with a £450 excess and no voluntary excess against my renewal with Equity Red Star and £250 excess. I know they pay out having had total loss with them with the claim being dealt with fairly and efficiently so depending on Adelaide's quote tonight I will stay where I am.
The thing to remember is you only know how good an insurer is when a claim is made and if you have have a good experience then it is worth the few extra pounds.

[jht]

I have been with CN for 13 years now - reasonable premiums with low rises, excellent extras and very helpful when you need them. I can't be bothered to move just to maybe save a few tenners on the few thousands that you spend on owning and riding a bike.

The thing to remember is you only know how good an insurer is when a claim is made and if you have have a good experience then it is worth the few extra pounds.

And having had to make use of both Aunty C's breakdown and claims service on 2 seperate occasions, the swift service i got is why she still gets me wonga come renewal time, oh that and that fact no one else seems to be able to match her on price like fer like

[Hornet]

Just used go-compare.com for an insurance quote and Motorcycle Direct come up as the cheapest - can anyone recommend them?

[copey]

I agree. I get an annual phone call from Adelaide Insurance as I am a member of the IAM. thay are supposed to be cheaper and give better cover but when the breakdown and legal cover was added they were £100 dearer last year and I am now awaiting their quote tonight fo this year.
I have just come off the CN site and the quote I got was £33 cheaper with Zenith Insurance but with a £450 excess and no voluntary excess against my renewal with Equity Red Star and £250 excess. I know they pay out having had total loss with them with the claim being dealt with fairly and efficiently so depending on Adelaide's quote tonight I will stay where I am.
The thing to remember is you only know how good an insurer is when a claim is made and if you have have a good experience then it is worth the few extra pounds.

Just renewed with Adelaide myself. My renewal quote came through at £147, but with a rise in compulsary excess up to £400. Got quotes off the internet as cheap as £105 with excess at £250

I called Adelaide and said your renewel quote's a bit heavy, so they looked at it again. Brought the excess down to £150 and a new quote of £120 including observing for the IAM, 90 days European cover, £1000 luggage cover. Brill, so i took it.

Insurance companies are only after new business, but if they looked after existing clients they wouldn't need to spend money on advertising, every one would stay where they are and use the same insurance company.

I try Carol Nash every year, but never had a good quote yet. This years was £247 ffs.

The thing that kills my insurance is the bike being kept on the drive at night with no security.

[dapleb]

Some very quick searching this year and renewal quote of £152.16 changed to £116.89, still up about 30squiddlers as others have reported. Happy with that though.

Must we do this EVERY year....sigh....they have now gone for the "reach around" at 40%+ increase.

[Robodene]

I see all these brokers mentioned here and elsewhere. But how many insurance companies that cover bikes are we talking about? Just a few?
Mine are Equity Red Star, and Zenith (through the AA)

Edited by Robodene, 16 December 2012 - 11:10 am.

[dapleb]

There are obviously more monkeys than organ grinders but I have found the same thing happens whenst using a monkey or going direct to the organ grinder.

I loike the steps set out on monkeysavingexpert but I first retrieve last years quote and refresh it, then go back to the peevious insurer (this is there chance to avoid me the hassle of looking further and their LAST chance to have me renew). If a deal can't be done, then I chuck them back in the pot wid the udders and waste time trawling through quotes and wondering how I can proove my no claims when the renewal says "5 years"....when its actually since I started roiding a boike.

[Studley Ramrod]

It might be saying 5 yrs if they only recognise 5yrs as the max ?

They should provide you with a paper copy of your NCD, upon request. Be careful that, what you declare re. NCD is the same as you can prove and don't always believe what your insurer tells you over the phone.

Noo insurers will accept any info you initially provide regarding this and then request proof from the previous insurer.

[dapleb]

It might be saying 5 yrs if they only recognise 5yrs as the max ?

Ed Zackery that. And then you go to the comparison forms and enter the actual NCD (which I probably no longer have proof of) and enter a whole world of doo doo.

I remember the fun you had SR!

[LewisBlackburn]

Mine came through the post a few days ago at £443.61 which I thought wasn't bad as it was cheaper than last year.
checked on http://www.thebikeinsurer.co.uk/ and cheapest was £289 but with a £1050 excess I'll be going for the next one up, £299 with a £550 xs. Fully comp, legal, breakdown and riding other bikes.

Something I found out today though

If your using comparison sites be careful adding mods as it doesn't always work properly (as in give you a good price). I was using Money Supermarket and Most of the company's either didn't quote me or put it silly high.
However if I added the mods afterwards with the individual company there was little or no difference to the price quoted by Money Supermarket.

The last 2 years have annoyed me though as I cant seem to get a quote for less than £800 with an excess less than £500. I'd be happy to pay another £50 for a smaller Excess,

[Studley Ramrod]

I'd be tempted to get 3rd party fire & theft if my excess was that high Lew.

Or, you could also get insurance cover on the excess, might only cost you £50.

Now companies are offering this service it wouldn't surprise me if most peeps excess starts to creep up over the next few years.

[LewisBlackburn]

I'd be tempted to get 3rd party fire & theft if my excess was that high Lew.

Or, you could also get insurance cover on the excess, might only cost you £50.

Now companies are offering this service it wouldn't surprise me if most peeps excess starts to creep up over the next few years.

Excess insurance sounds good, did think about it last year

But if I get a TPFT policy I wouldn't be entitled to free recovery in the event of an accident and my own insurance company wouldn't pursue a claim against a Third party. If it was a split liability I'd have to go directly to the Third Party insurer and with just me asking them for a percentage of a claim I wouldn't have much luck.

With a fully comp policy I'd get atleast £500 if I totalled my own bike or if it got robbed. If it did get robbed they wouldn't know the cosmetic condition and would have to give me market value which would put me around £1200 to £1300

Excess insurance sounds the best bet for me I think.

It seems in my case that the excess's have already started to creep up over the past few years, but it may just be because I'm 'young' and am driving a 14 year old bike.

[dapleb]

They should provide you with a paper copy of your NCD, upon request. Be careful that, what you declare re. NCD is the same as you can prove and don't always believe what your insurer tells you over the phone.

That sentence pretty much sums up what just happened. I phoned up and they immediately discounted the "admin fee" then knocked off an udder £4...woohoo. Since I have combined both policies they wont do no claims for both bikes!!!! So I now cant split the policies (which unlike 3 years ago, now seems to be the cheaper option). When I asked for a copy of my no claims to be sent, they said that they can't do that until the policy expires incase I make a claim atwix now and then. So as I phone the next monkey I peruse the paperwork more carefully to find they have already sent me proof of no claims. So they did provide a paper copy and it says 9 years (not the 5 previously mentioned) and you are right, I shouldnt have believed what they said on the phone.

[Studley Ramrod]

Makes you wonder how they manage to survive as a business.