RIDICULOUS INSURANCE PRICES???

[C6Dave]

To put this all into context about getting to work.

When I first started work I took a bus (whose fairs were Government Subsidised) but found that restrictive stopping me working overtime to earn more money so... I rode a bicycle 5 miles each way as I was too young for a driving licence of any description.

When I was old enough, I bought a scooter, a 150cc Lambretta LD, took my test the 2nd week, passed and went to work on that.

I eventually sold that as I was then married with a child so needed something better to get the family around in (plus continue to work all those additional overtime shifts to get money to pay for it).

All I could afford was a Trotter Mobile (a Reliant Regal Van) as I could drive that on my motorcycle licence, so that is what we had.

Eventually, when I was 23, I took a car test, passed and bought my 1st car.

With 7 years driving experience behind me, insurance premiums weren't an issue.

Peoples expectations these days tend to be far to high and expect to be able to get what they want, when they want it.

Life just isn't like that I'm afraid and everyone posting on the subject that have had no connection to/experience working in the Insurance Industry, really need to think long and hard about the comments their making before pressing the 'Submit' key

Oh and at no time have I been making this into a 'political' debate, just trying to bring some reallity into the discussion

[LouiseM]

Dave - Kingzdjc's reference to political debate wasn't aimed at you. He was making the remark about himself but unfortunately a technical issue meant that his message was deleted so me quoting from his post makes it look a bit out of context

I grew up in a place with no public transport - just one bus a week - and did the same as you, first used a bike, then a scooter to get to work before finally saving up enough to buy a cheap old car. As you say though, expectations have changed.

everyone posting on the subject that have had no connection to/experience working in the Insurance Industry, really need to think long and hard about the comments their making before pressing the 'Submit' key

.

Seems a bit harsh under the circumstances as I can understand how an insurance quote for thousands of pounds would seem like a 'ridiculous' amount to someone who hasn't insured a car before or has no experience of how insurance works.

Insurance for young drivers is never going to be cheap but at least those driving Minors can get reasonably priced insurance via the club scheme

[Dean]

Simply up the minimum age of driving to 21 and reduce the maximum age to renew your licence to 60.

That'll reduce the wobbers on the roads and reduce the risk.

Then have the death penalty introduced to anyone who has a prang.

Risk now eliminated... cheap insurance all round.

Well I am over 60 and I had my second prang in fourty years last week , so that`s me finished

Congratulations... and off with your head at the same time!

[chrisd87]

Fortunately I'm about to escape the 'under 25' age bracket, but I agree that prices do seem to be spiralling out of control. From what other people have said, it would appear that prices for a 17 year old have doubled since I started driving - this cannot simply continue. Whether or not the new measures surrounding personal injury claims will have any difference remains to be seen. Obviously these are difficult issues to get right - access to justice vs. compensation culture is an argument with two very persuasive sides!

There are some interesting alternative systems in operation in Australia and New Zealand. Generally they involve combining 3rd party injury insurance and road tax, plus (in NZ at least) a levy on petrol. NZ is doubly interesting as they have effectively abolished the right to sue for personal injury damages in the event of an accident (be at work, on the roads, etc). Instead you're compensated by a central fund that everyone pays into via various means. Obviously this has pros and cons, as does the status quo.

Some people have mentioned that they had motorcycles when they were young - this is something we could do well to revisit, as motorcycle insurance is generally very cheap indeed. However I fear that many parents are too over-protective to let their kids have bikes, there's a lack of medium-sized 'utility' motorcycles on the market, and our continental overlords are continually making it more difficult for young'uns to get a licence to ride anything but the very smallest bikes.

[Dean]

I do agree to a certain extent, maybe capping newly qualified drivers to engine size, say nothing over a 1.4 litre.

I'm not convinced that's the answer. Young drivers have never been any diferent. I was young once and still got 100 mph out of my 1.0L Metro and yes I paid over £900 per year to insure it in 1989 at the age of 18.

Young driver will always complain, but the fact is they cause just about 90% of all the accidents on our roads. Sadly a lot of them are fatalities. Humans never listen to advice from politicians or peers as individuals we all know better. Therefore the only answer is to hit people where it hurts and that is their pocket.

It will never be any diferent and one day, your insurance like ours will get lower as you get older.

[mrmoggy]

the problem was nothing to do with me being able to afford it but as i said its the same price for a modern car (iv got one) that was my point...

[EmmyP]

Insurance for young drivers is never going to be cheap but at least those driving Minors can get reasonably priced insurance via the club scheme

Really Louise? As a newly qualified 17 year old driver I got a (completely unaffordable) quote from the Footman James young driver MMOC scheme last week and for myself and my 20 year old brother was quoted £1923! And that is for a cheap Minor 1000 saloon kept on our driveway in rural Oxfordshire!
Now looking for some more realistic alternative.

[LouiseM]

Going by the recent discussions in this thread ( http://www.mmoc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=32872 ) insurance for young Minor drivers via FJ is an average of £700 tpft and £900 fully comp which compared to the cost of insuring a Corsa etc is very reasonable, hence my comment. It may be that including your brother on the policy has resulted in the increase and having yourself as the only named driver would have been cheaper but difficult to know for sure without knowing how the premium has been calculated and your specific circumstances. A lot of younger members are insured with FJ as there are very few insurance companies which will provide classic car insurance for under 25's.

[nr16020]

I went to Adrian Flux four years ago because I am a RoSPA Advanced Driving Tutor.

They treated me well for the first two years (my wife also went with them for her car insurance).

Last year they were 'iffy' but after 'negotiations' became reasonable.

This ye we have both left Adrian Flux as, once again, they attempted to extract the urine upon renewal (renewal offers of double last years premiums). There were no claims or points involved in either case.

I would not suggest that Adrian Flux will treat all of its 'valued clients' as they treated us.

[EmmyP]

Going by the recent discussions in this thread ( http://www.mmoc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=32872 ) insurance for young Minor drivers via FJ is an average of £700 tpft and £900 fully comp which compared to the cost of insuring a Corsa etc is very reasonable, hence my comment. It may be that including your brother on the policy has resulted in the increase and having yourself as the only named driver would have been cheaper but difficult to know for sure without knowing how the premium has been calculated and your specific circumstances. A lot of younger members are insured with FJ as there are very few insurance companies which will provide classic car insurance for under 25's.

The link you have shown is largely two years old so not very relevant to current insurance prices which seem to have risen considerably? Obviously adding my Brother will add to the total cost but he has had three years without any claim, convictions etc so should be a lower risk than me. I agree that few other companies cater for young drivers in classic cars but one of the reasons for buying the Morris was that the club claim to provide inexpensive insurance.....

[LouiseM]

The link you have shown is largely two years old so not very relevant to current insurance prices which seem to have risen considerably?

Yes, but the rough estimate figures of £700 & £900 were posted by a young member less than 2 weeks ago.

the club claim to provide inexpensive insurance.....

FJ state that they offer competitive premiums for younger club members but insurance for any young driver isn't going to be cheap, particularly as insurance premiums have risen across the board due to the huge increase in personal injuries claims. Insurance is risk based and unfortunately younger drivers seem to be bearing the brunt of the increases regardless of what car they drive: http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/ja ... otes-risen

Have you asked on the young members facebook group to see if someone can recommend any other insurers? Plus David Youngs from FJ visits there so might be able to advise you on how your quote has been calculated.

[EmmyP]

I didn't expect insurance to be "cheap" but I did hope that a Morris Minor would be less expensive to insure than the modern car I currently drive (which, so far it has not proved to be). Also, I hoped that the Footman James/MMOC young driver scheme would be cheaper than other insurance quotes I have for the Morris, which again has not proved to be the case. A good number of members do seem to be getting more competitive quotes from other insurers which is slightly suprising when the club promote Footman James so enthusiastically.

Footman James said there was no negotiation on the £1923 they quoted (that was with a £500 excess) so I'm not sure where the figures of £700/£900 you mention actually come from?

After the Bank Holiday I will do some further research and perhaps try to contact David Youngs at FJ to see if they wish to re-calculate.

[ASL642]

The trouble is as a newly qualified 17 year old driver (congratulations) as far as insurance companies are concerned you have no "driving history". Consequently they are taking a greater risk insuring you - hence the larger premium. This together with another young driver of 20 on the policy will mean a higher premium. When my children were insured through FJ driving my Morris the premium was a great deal higher. It dropped when they passed their tests and considerably more when they had a year's driving experience under their belts.

[Alex'n'Ane]

Its presumably because you are in fact insuring two young drivers, both with the high risk. The £1923 total, split between the two of you is the £900 as quoted. Get a quote for just one of you, and see. I also presume this is unlimited milage, and parked on the road at night? And possibly in a higher risk area? But as stated, join the fb young members group, and ask dave youngs on his opinion, and he will endeavour to do his best for you.

[kingzdjc]

Hi,

I'm 22, passed my test when I was 17, and my insurance for my 55 Minor cost just £190.
You just have to shop around.

It will be more expensive obviously for yourself, as you have only just passed, and are only 17, but try LANCASTER INSURANCE.

It was set up by some members of the MG club, and specialises in classsic car insurance.

I'm with them, and my insurance quote, even though I've been driving longer, is excellent.

BE AWARE however, that I can only cover a certain amount of miles per year on this insurance policy, I believe others will also have restrictions. This for me, however, is fine, as I only use Audrey my Minor for short journeys, and I dont use her everday

[EmmyP]

The trouble is as a newly qualified 17 year old driver (congratulations) as far as insurance companies are concerned you have no "driving history". Consequently they are taking a greater risk insuring you - hence the larger premium. This together with another young driver of 20 on the policy will mean a higher premium. When my children were insured through FJ driving my Morris the premium was a great deal higher. It dropped when they passed their tests and considerably more when they had a year's driving experience under their belts.

Yes, I understand that as a young driver I am considered more of a risk and that the premium is therefore higher, but like the original poster of this thread I am suprised that insurance on a Morris Minor seems no longer a less expensive option than a modern car, which is what I have, insured and in use, at present.

I have always wanted to drive a Minor and when we looked at insurance prices less than 12 months ago the Minor was cheaper to insure, so seemed the way to go .

My other concern is not that I am unable to obtain other quotes to insure the Minor, but that the quote from Footman James is somewhat more than other quotes I have had despite the club promoting the FJ scheme as something "exclusive".

[EmmyP]

Its presumably because you are in fact insuring two young drivers, both with the high risk. The £1923 total, split between the two of you is the £900 as quoted. Get a quote for just one of you, and see. I also presume this is unlimited milage, and parked on the road at night? And possibly in a higher risk area? But as stated, join the fb young members group, and ask dave youngs on his opinion, and he will endeavour to do his best for you.

I will do that after the holiday

I cannot see that the risk is DOUBLE because the car is insured for two drivers? After all, it can only be driven by one at a time? Neither of us will drive it daily and, as I said earlier, the price quoted was for the car being parked on our driveway in rural Oxfordshire.

A 17year old friend had her premium REDUCED when she added her 20year old Brother as a named driver because the insurer said that when he was driving, the risk was reduced as he had more experience than her!

Footman James hadn't suggested a mileage limit. That would be worth considering as the car will get limited use. Actually, if there is a limit on the total mileage, why should the number of drivers insured make any real difference to the premium?

[EmmyP]

Hi,

I'm 22, passed my test when I was 17, and my insurance for my 55 Minor cost just £190.
You just have to shop around.

It will be more expensive obviously for yourself, as you have only just passed, and are only 17, but try LANCASTER INSURANCE.

Thanks . I have shopped around and had less expensive quotes than Footman James already. I had already tried Lancaster, who were very helpful and made useful suggestions but do not offer classic car policies now for anyone under 22

[mrmoggy]

iv just been given a much more reasonable insurace quote of 1,000 so a little cheaper but get this i asked them to quote a price with a full uk licence and they quoted double other quoted triple they said that newly quilified driverys are more likly to be inviolved in a accident collingwood are the best price iv got so far

[kingzdjc]

Hi,

I'm 22, passed my test when I was 17, and my insurance for my 55 Minor cost just £190.
You just have to shop around.

It will be more expensive obviously for yourself, as you have only just passed, and are only 17, but try LANCASTER INSURANCE.

Thanks . I have shopped around and had less expensive quotes than Footman James already. I had already tried Lancaster, who were very helpful and made useful suggestions but do not offer classic car policies now for anyone under 22

Ah, ashame that, but nevermind. I've known of some insurance companies not providing classic car insurance to anyone under 25! Good luck anyway