Car Insurance- Admiral v Elephant v Diamond

Comstock

Hi there.

Whenever I use GoCompare for a car insurance quote, these three insurers come within a few pounds of each other- on my last quote the difference was just £6 for the same cover so I could use any of them. Are any of them particularly good or bad?

Which one should I go for?

vikingaero

Admiral, Elephant and Diamond are all part of the Admiral Group!

As long as you have a bog standard car with no modifications, don't go abroad in it and don't plan to move then they are OK - but at the lower end of the market for decent Insurers. They operate like Ryanair in price gouging and ethics: Google Admiral attempting to charge drivers more for attending speed awareness courses.

Sally_A

Agree with vikingaero, on the plus side, during office hours you get to speak to someone in the UK (Cardiff or Swansea usually), and I've always found the staff helpful and friendly. Most importantly they seem to have a sense of humour, rather than being corporate dullards, and yes, you can negotiate re admin fees .

However READ the policy, eg windscreen claims have to go via them, no cover for own vehicle damage, and the right to recover TP costs if you were drink driivng, theft where the keys were used gets investigated with a fine toothed comb. And other stuff.

But they are better than a lot of the cheapo's out there.

As for claims, rather than paper shuffling, they tend to sort the claim out a s a p, and that's if you are the fault driver, or a non fault third party. A lot of the larger well known insurers could learn a few things from them.

Comstock

Doesn't sound too bad then. The next dearest is over £100 difference.....

No issue on drink driving (I don't and never would) nor on speed awareness courses (I only drive on roads within 15 miles of home and I know every speed limit of every inch)

What do you mean by "no cover for own vehicle damage"?

Sally_A

Comstock wrote: »

What do you mean by "no cover for own vehicle damage"?

If you were over the limit, I believe they hold the option to deal with RTA claim only, ie TP damage/injury, and also state they can come back to you to recover their outlay.

This is becoming more common amongst all mainstream insurers.

One thing I've never checked on as irrelevant to me, and possibly to you, is the cover given for towing, eg do you have to pay extra to tow (RSA say yes), does it cover the trailer or just TP liability.

No insurance policy is the same, no matter what info you put on the comparison site quote engine.

People only read their policy when the $h1t has hit the fan.

By dealing direct, you have no broker to back you up, or to talk through your needs for the forthcoming year, or to talk over the "what if's".

I still think Admiral group are one of the better ones in the bunch when it comes to direct dealing.

Edit to say: you can view their policies online - however these should be read in conjunction with the policy schedule and certificate of insurance, which you won't have until you take out cover.

rev_henry

I've been with them 3 years. Probably moving away shortly though as another are cheaper. I have to say they're pretty good. Welsh callcentres great if you can get through to them. Indian ones not actually so bad. Don't seem to charge admin fees for minor changes either. Changed my address recently and they gave me £10 back (when aviva wanted another £50 or something ridiculous from my mother, who is obviously much older than me with full NCD, driving a less powerful car than me). On my old car I performed a minor modification which gave me 20bhp more - they charged me an extra £20, then at renewal no loading at all. AND when I got my first car they gave me a years NCD for being a named driver previously with another insurer. So I think they're pretty good!

Gloomendoom

vikingaero wrote: »

Admiral, Elephant and Diamond are all part of the Admiral Group!

As long as you have a bog standard car with no modifications, don't go abroad in it and don't plan to move then they are OK -

Ha ha! I was with them for the last couple of years. My car isn't bog standard, it has several modifications and I go abroad in it. I don't plan to move (house?) though.

However, I'm not with them any more because my wife had an accident in her car and claimed on her insurance. She's a named driver on my policy and, as a result, Admiral wanted to up my premium by 20%. In contrast, my wife's insurers only charged her an extra £7 at renewal, despite the claim.

I would actually recommend them if the price is right and you are happy to accept their T & C's

rev_henry

I don't get what all this fuss is about exclusions for drunk or drug driving? Why should any insurer, or I through increased premiums, pay extra for someone to do such a stupid thing?

vikingaero

Gloomendoom wrote: »

Ha ha! I was with them for the last couple of years. My car isn't bog standard, it has several modifications and I go abroad in it. I don't plan to move (house?) though.

However, I'm not with them any more because my wife had an accident in her car and claimed on her insurance. She's a named driver on my policy and, as a result, Admiral wanted to up my premium by 20%. In contrast, my wife's insurers only charged her an extra £7 at renewal, despite the claim.

I would actually recommend them if the price is right and you are happy to accept their T & C's

The main reason I dislike Admiral Group is for their terms and conditions in regards to modifications. Loads of people with mods insure through Admiral companies but most of them don't realise that they have something called The Standard Parts Replacement Clause.

What this means is that you get a quote and declare your lowered suspension and larger alloys. They charge you £100 additional premium to cover these items. You have an accident where one corner of the car is damaged. Admiral can turn around and say: "We will only pay out for a standard Ford spring/damper and a standard 15" alloy wheel."

You think: "Hang on. I paid an extra £100 to make sure I was covered." But Admiral will point to the SPRC as their skanky get out.

sj999

I've always insured my car through Admiral and Elephant, which ever is cheaper.

vikingaero

sj999 wrote: »

I've always insured my car through Admiral and Elephant, which ever is cheaper.

Don't get me wrong. There is nothing wrong with Admiral as long as you fit the standard profile that they are seeking - in which case the can be good value.