Getting the quotes in. Recommendations welcomed.

[Fenhopper 22]

So I spent a bit of time on the phone today, trying to get insurance quotes for my soon to be lightly modified GT86; here's how it went:

Greenlight:
Polite and friendly, but wouldn't insure me, because my annual mileage is greater than 15000 miles.

Chris Knott:
Quoted price was 'OK', quick to quote; they are in contention.

Prestige:
Polite and friendly, but took ages to get me a quote, and when they did, it was way too high.

Brentacre:
Polite and friendly, phoned back with a quote quickly after I'd filled out my details on their web site. The quoted price seemed good, significantly better than the quote from Chris Knott, but did not include a courtesy car for accident repair; this is probably a deal breaker for me.

I'd be very grateful for any more insurance company/broker recommendations.

Thanks in advance,

Matt.

[HariboPenguin 116]

Sky Insurance are pretty well recommended for modified cars. When I spoke to them they were very helpful, friendly and also don't charge for non-power mods, they were also the only other company that would quote me other than Adrian Flux.

Only reason I didn't go with them was because AF matched their quote and included a few extras such as protected NCB and ability to drive other cars which clinched the deal.

[Fenhopper 22]

14 minutes ago, HariboPenguin said:

Sky Insurance are pretty well recommended for modified cars. When I spoke to them they were very helpful, friendly and also don't charge for non-power mods, they were also the only other company that would quote me other than Adrian Flux.

Only reason I didn't go with them was because AF matched their quote and included a few extras such as protected NCB and ability to drive other cars which clinched the deal.

Thanks for that. I'll give them a call in the morning.

[Fenhopper 22]

This evening I got a really cheap quote from a company called 'Zenith', but the online reviews for them are dreadful; however, this 5 star review for them was particularly amusing:

"I don't even have a licence and they never checked and gave me fully comp cover even though dvla have revoked my licence due to my mental health. They are so lovely on the phone and even when there's no money in my bank they still keep me insured and speak to me like I'm royalty. Due to them insuring me I won't ever be pulled over for no licence....happy days"

 

[Ch1L5t3R 9]

22 minutes ago, Fenhopper said:

This evening I got a really cheap quote from a company called 'Zenith', but the online reviews for them are dreadful; however, this 5 star review for them was particularly amusing:

"I don't even have a licence and they never checked and gave me fully comp cover even though dvla have revoked my licence due to my mental health. They are so lovely on the phone and even when there's no money in my bank they still keep me insured and speak to me like I'm royalty. Due to them insuring me I won't ever be pulled over for no licence....happy days"

 

That's Brilliant xD 

[Rich 378]

11 hours ago, Fenhopper said:

This evening I got a really cheap quote from a company called 'Zenith', but the online reviews for them are dreadful; however, this 5 star review for them was particularly amusing:

"I don't even have a licence and they never checked and gave me fully comp cover even though dvla have revoked my licence due to my mental health. They are so lovely on the phone and even when there's no money in my bank they still keep me insured and speak to me like I'm royalty. Due to them insuring me I won't ever be pulled over for no licence....happy days"

 

I was with Zenith and they were fine TBH. They paid up pretty quickly when my car was written off, offer wasn't anything special, but was sufficient for my Gap insurer so I just accepted it. They transferred the policy to my new car after the write off too. Bear in mind that most people only post a review when they have something to grumble about.

One thing to note is that they're not particularly mod friendly, so if you are planing to do more to your car, they may be a poor choice.

[Brentacre 0]

On 21/09/2017 at 8:42 PM, Fenhopper said:

So I spent a bit of time on the phone today, trying to get insurance quotes for my soon to be lightly modified GT86; here's how it went:

Greenlight:
Polite and friendly, but wouldn't insure me, because my annual mileage is greater than 15000 miles.

Chris Knott:
Quoted price was 'OK', quick to quote; they are in contention.

Prestige:
Polite and friendly, but took ages to get me a quote, and when they did, it was way too high.

Brentacre:
Polite and friendly, phoned back with a quote quickly after I'd filled out my details on their web site. The quoted price seemed good, significantly better than the quote from Chris Knott, but did not include a courtesy car for accident repair; this is probably a deal breaker for me.

I'd be very grateful for any more insurance company/broker recommendations.

Thanks in advance,

Matt.

Hi Matt, Sorry to jump in, I scour the forums for mentions of our names to keep an eye on problems.

All comprehensive policies do have a courtesy car, and if you could PM me your name and postcode, I'd like to find out who said otherwise for some blunt stick re-education

We also have an addon for a guaranteed courtesy car which extends it to fire, theft and write-off claims which don't qualify, and if you take our legal option, there's also a hire car available in non-fault claims.

[Fenhopper 22]

On 22/09/2017 at 9:57 AM, Rich said:

Bear in mind that most people only post a review when they have something to grumble about.

Agreed, and a lot of people seem to have been compelled to post reviews on Zenith!

[VAD17 479]

Thought I would share some experience as well...

 

I have 2 cars (the other is Lexus NX), 12yrs no claims. Had GT86 for 5mth, time to renew insurance. Plan to drive 3-4k miles p.a with occasional track day. No mods at this point (will not have any power mods yet apart from filter, will change wheels and tyres though next year).

 

Greenlight - told me they do not insure in SW19 (one of the safest affluent areas in London).

 

Chris Knott - told me i need to own the car for at least a year before qualifying for main underwriters. Quote was nearly 2x of my renewal quite (more than 2x of best i can get using comparison website).

 

Adrian Flux - more than 2x more expensive than best quote i can get using comparison website.

 

Not impressed... will do couple more calls...

 

 

 

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[Rich 378]

I have not managed to get any of the specialist insurers within a country mile of mainstream people off the comparison websites. They seem good for some, but they really restrict themselves to the safest of the safe it seems like.

[Paul 442]

Exact opposite for me, specialists come in half the price.

[Guest 86guns]

My main car (520d) has 20+ NCD and insured with Direct Line. I’m the only driver as wifey has her own car and won’t drive mine. DL gave me 5 yrs NCD free when I bought the GT86 because “I can only drive one car at a time”. 

[VAD17 479]

And another update

 

Sky - could not insure Lexus. About 40% more expensive than cheapest quote from main insurers (although smaller excess ). No cost for mods not increasing power (apart from £25 admin fee), fairly reasonable cost for modest (up to 20hp) increase (well, no FI for now).

 

Direct line - cheapest quote for Lexus, extra discount for 2nd car (although not the cheapest overall). Told me changing wheels and keeping same level of cover does not need to be declared. Spend a lot of time on the phone talking about increase in premium if i upgrade brake discs and change suspension/ lower the car (for some reason they keep asking whether mods will be done by the manufacturer - i guess this can only mean authorised dealer in the UK). Estimate came to less than £50 higher than original quote (but I may call again to double check tomorrow).

 

If i consider non power mods the difference between Sky and DL is just over £110.

 

Do i save me some headache in the future and go with Sky?

 

And considering Greenlight dont want to insure me in SW19, no luck finding insurance with track days included...

 

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[Paul 442]

If you're going to mod, avoid a mainstream insurer. Not worth the hassle down the line.

[NJay 10]

I changed from 1.6L auris to gt-86 as my daily driver only 4 months into a policy with direct line. They charged £65 extra for the remaining 8months (I have business class 1 insurance) so I have put any after market mods (declared sat Nav, rear parking sensors and leather interior as these as not standard on a gt-86) on hold until renewal

My supercharged gen7 celica is with green light who did me a really competitive price at a similar price to my Auris which sky couldn't get anywhere near so left them. It better be the same this year or I will move insurers again 😁

[VAD17 479]

I changed from 1.6L auris to gt-86 as my daily driver only 4 months into a policy with direct line. They charged £65 extra for the remaining 8months (I have business class 1 insurance) so I have put any after market mods (declared sat Nav, rear parking sensors and leather interior as these as not standard on a gt-86) on hold until renewal

My supercharged gen7 celica is with green light who did me a really competitive price at a similar price to my Auris which sky couldn't get anywhere near so left them. It better be the same this year or I will move insurers again

Well, Greenlight thinks Wimbledon has lot of dodgy drivers claiming on their "under 20k" policies. Well, with all the Porsches around and very few modified cars (i have seen 1 that might be under 20k) I dont know, but they told me no.

 

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[VAD17 479]

If you're going to mod, avoid a mainstream insurer. Not worth the hassle down the line.

Thanks

 

Just had a call also with Admiral (my current insurer). They did try to match the cheaper quotes (not there but close), but my question about potential mods made the rest of discussion very amusing.

 

Interestingly they must have some guidance from underwriters (for example also said that wheels and suspension mods will cost nothing extra if lowered by no more than 5sm) but anything not on that "list" needs to be discussed with underwriters.

 

Not sure if I would want this discussion every time i change pads...

 

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[Lauren 2259]

26 minutes ago, VAD17 said:

 

Not sure if I would want this discussion every time i change pads...

 

 

 

Do people really tell their insurer when they fit different brake pads? I really had no idea. 

[VAD17 479]

26 minutes ago, VAD17 said:  

Not sure if I would want this discussion every time i change pads...

 

 

 

Do people really tell their insurer when they fit different brake pads? I really had no idea. 

I would guess not, but reading the small print (and from experience I'd say it would not hurt) it says "any" modifications from manufacturer standard... as a minimum i would inform the insurance company that the call is recorded, note time and date and clearly confirm what changed either do not need to be declared (pads, tyres, wheels...) or will not result in an increase in premium.

 

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[Lauren 2259]

When you think about it, it's much like calling your insurance company to tell them you've changed brands of tyres. 

[Rich 378]

I don't declare anything that's a wear and tear part replacement if it's like for like in size. So tyres, brake pads that sort of thing.

[Mikey P 32]

I also find all the specialist insurance companies are way more exspencive for me too (all over £450, but using comparison site is under £250, even with modifications). Shame as would like to use specialists like green light as good rep and option for cheap track cover, I think they calculate risk on a very different model to main stream companies which works for some but not others.

[Rich196 103]

Paceward are good.

[VAD17 479]

Ended up going with Sky for GT86. They came down on price a bit and although still more expensive than main insureinsurers i decided to pay for an option of having mods added later on.

 

But, frankly, Sky was the only specialist insurance broker I had on the shortlist left.

 

(DL for Lexus as they were cheapest and seem ok when i called them with questions).

 

Well, thats insurance sorted for 1 more year.

 

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[Fenhopper 22]

In the end, I went with Chris Knott. They were able to beat the best quote I got online, and their service so far has been excellent; fast and professional.

Obviously, you don't find out how good your insurance broker is until the day you have to make a claim, but at the moment I highly recommend Chris Knott (if they are able to insure you). They have insured me with the same underwriter that I was with under Adrian flux, but with a better policy (with mods) and at a lower cost.

I think Chris Knott must be a fairly small brokerage; I haven't had to wait in any long queues on the phone, and I was instantly transferred to the sales rep that I had been speaking with previously. All very stress free.

Matt.