What is better to take fine and points or course?

booter

When OH was flashed by GATSO the first time (!!) he took the course - £100. He told me he didn't feel patronised, and found it quite interesting.

The 2nd time :cool: he had no option but to take the points and fine. When I renewed his car insurance, it cost an extra £30. When I renewed my insurance a couple of months later, it cost me an extra £25 :eek:(he's named driver on my insurance). It then cost him another £20 on his motorbike insurance

So for this conviction, on insurance alone, by my reckoning it's costing an extra £325 (if you assume it remains the same over the 5 years the conviction stays on the licence).

Last year, he went and did it again :wall: - another £10 added to each car insurance, and an extra £5 on the bike insurance.

So over 5 years, a total of £500 extra just on insurance :eek: and this doesn't include cost of the course or the fines he's paid.
(This is all assuming I've done me sums right:))

For me, I'd choose the course every time. And bl**dy well learn from it :cool: (Rant over!)

mikey72

booter wrote: »

When OH was flashed by GATSO the first time (!!) he took the course - £100. He told me he didn't feel patronised, and found it quite interesting.

The 2nd time :cool: he had no option but to take the points and fine. When I renewed his car insurance, it cost an extra £30. When I renewed my insurance a couple of months later, it cost me an extra £25 :eek:(he's named driver on my insurance). It then cost him another £20 on his motorbike insurance

So for this conviction, on insurance alone, by my reckoning it's costing an extra £325 (if you assume it remains the same over the 5 years the conviction stays on the licence).

Last year, he went and did it again :wall: - another £10 added to each car insurance, and an extra £5 on the bike insurance.

So over 5 years, a total of £500 extra just on insurance :eek: and this doesn't include cost of the course or the fines he's paid.
(This is all assuming I've done me sums right:))

For me, I'd choose the course every time. And bl**dy well learn from it :cool: (Rant over!)

Maybe he's just not a very good driver?

brownie4583

If i had no points,which at the moment i have(touch wood),i would take the points and fine i think.Bet the course is really boring!

Joe_Horner

booter wrote: »

... over the 5 years the conviction stays on the licence.

Not forgetting that there's nothing in law to stop insurers loading beyond that point if they want. You don't have to declare the conviction any more, but they're perfectly entitled to keep the fact of it in their history file for you, just like any previously disclosed risk factor.

The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act only protects you in law against having to tell people about a spent conviction, not in contract with people who have prior knowledge of it.

Whether they do "keep" them or not I have no idea, and there's probably no way of ever knowing seeing as it's virtually impossible to compare "like for like" between your renewal price and a "new" quote.

If I had points I'd be seriously inclined to change insurers once they were off though, just to make sure!

Kite2010

Some areas run the courses on Saturdays, which is good if you don't work week-ends.

Insurance companies will use any excuse to raise your premiums.

sarahg1969

booter wrote: »

When OH was flashed by GATSO the first time (!!) he took the course - £100. He told me he didn't feel patronised, and found it quite interesting.

The 2nd time :cool: he had no option but to take the points and fine. When I renewed his car insurance, it cost an extra £30. When I renewed my insurance a couple of months later, it cost me an extra £25 :eek:(he's named driver on my insurance). It then cost him another £20 on his motorbike insurance

So for this conviction, on insurance alone, by my reckoning it's costing an extra £325 (if you assume it remains the same over the 5 years the conviction stays on the licence).

Last year, he went and did it again :wall: - another £10 added to each car insurance, and an extra £5 on the bike insurance.

So over 5 years, a total of £500 extra just on insurance :eek: and this doesn't include cost of the course or the fines he's paid.
(This is all assuming I've done me sums right:))

For me, I'd choose the course every time. And bl**dy well learn from it :cool: (Rant over!)

Maybe if he'd taken the points the first time, it would have been a better lesson for him?

booter

mikey72 wrote: »

Maybe he's just not a very good driver?

Hmmm - you could be right. I blame his mid life crisis (thinks he's a boy racer?), the attention span of a goldfish and a very heavy right foot.:cool:

sarahg1969 wrote: »

Maybe if he'd taken the points the first time, it would have been a better lesson for him?

Since he's as tight as a duck's bum, you'd think that the £100 he paid for the awareness course would've taught him a lesson - apparently not :cool:

Oh, don't get me started again :mad:

neilmcl

booter wrote: »

When OH was flashed by GATSO the first time (!!) he took the course - £100. He told me he didn't feel patronised, and found it quite interesting.

The 2nd time :cool: he had no option but to take the points and fine. When I renewed his car insurance, it cost an extra £30. When I renewed my insurance a couple of months later, it cost me an extra £25 :eek:(he's named driver on my insurance). It then cost him another £20 on his motorbike insurance

So for this conviction, on insurance alone, by my reckoning it's costing an extra £325 (if you assume it remains the same over the 5 years the conviction stays on the licence).

Last year, he went and did it again :wall: - another £10 added to each car insurance, and an extra £5 on the bike insurance.

So over 5 years, a total of £500 extra just on insurance :eek: and this doesn't include cost of the course or the fines he's paid.
(This is all assuming I've done me sums right:))

For me, I'd choose the course every time. And bl**dy well learn from it :cool: (Rant over!)

You assume that his premium wouldn't have risen regardless. I've had a clean license for years yet my insurance premiums have generally risen over the last 5 years.

booter

neilmcl wrote: »

You assume that his premium wouldn't have risen regardless. I've had a clean license for years yet my insurance premiums have generally risen over the last 5 years.

The amounts for the speeding conviction(s) were in addition to the increase in premiums (although as a good MSEer, I shop around every year to get the best deal and can generally negate any rise in premium ).

antrobus

vikingaero wrote: »

... spent 4 hours perving at the fantastic norks on the Course Director.

Norks?

Had to look that one up on Urban Dictionary.:)