Insurance + Gap Insurance

micky007

Hey everyone,

Quick question, get my new car in a few days, it has some optional extras on it such as upgraded Alloy Wheels, Tinted Windows and a few other bits and bobs. I'm taking Gap Insurance out on it as its a contract hire purchase, so when looking for insurance quotes will i need to let the insurance know about the modifications (optional extras) thats been added to the car since if i was to crash and they only pay out for example £30,000 when the cars worth £47,000 then the Gap Insurance will cover the other £17,000?

Not sure im explaining my question properly but what im trying to understand is is there any point in telling the insurance about the optional extras that will be on the car if im getting Gap Insurance anyway?

Thanks,
Mike

MX5huggy

The GAP insurance has no relevance in what you have to tell your main insurance company.

Answer their questions honestly, but factory fit options are NOT the same as modifications.

Hope you've shopped around for the GAP insurance dealer markup on it is huge

neilmcl

Who are you taking out the GAP insurance with, I hope it isn't the dealership otherwise I can pretty much guarantee you're being ripped off.

Search around for cheaper deals and look for good replacement vehicle insurance, rather than RTI. Companies like ALA are good but the best deal I got and can thoroughly recommend are gapinsurance.co.uk

If your normal car insurance requires you te let them know of any optional extras then you must tell them, regardless of whether you're taking out GAP insurance or not. It may add extra risk to your policy so they are required to know, you may find your policy void if you don't.

DoaM

neilmcl wrote: »

but the best deal I got and can thoroughly recommend are gapinsurance.co.uk

Did you have to claim on the insurance? (Just curious ... they might be good on price, but the crux is how they perform if you have to make a claim. That's where recommendations carry weight).

neilmcl

DoaM wrote: »

Did you have to claim on the insurance? (Just curious ... they might be good on price, but the crux is how they perform if you have to make a claim. That's where recommendations carry weight).

Not personally but I've read many a good review and when I spoke to them myself I was very impressed with their service. Obviously this is just my personal opinion, if you have other recommendations please feel free to contribute yourself.

DoaM

neilmcl wrote: »

Obviously this is just my personal opinion, if you have other recommendations please feel free to contribute yourself.

Why does a counter-argument or query have to automatically be a criticism, and therefore a lack of contribution? I apologise if you thought I was having a go at you ... I was simply trying to ascertain why you appeared to be recommending them so highly.

micky007

MX5huggy wrote: »

The GAP insurance has no relevance in what you have to tell your main insurance company.

Answer their questions honestly, but factory fit options are NOT the same as modifications.

Hope you've shopped around for the GAP insurance dealer markup on it is huge

Hey,

Ah ok, ill double check with the insurance people to see if factory fit options are classes as modifications. I've had a look around and found gapinsurance123.co.uk to be the cheapest and most reviewed.

Thanks

micky007

neilmcl wrote: »

Who are you taking out the GAP insurance with, I hope it isn't the dealership otherwise I can pretty much guarantee you're being ripped off.

Search around for cheaper deals and look for good replacement vehicle insurance, rather than RTI. Companies like ALA are good but the best deal I got and can thoroughly recommend are gapinsurance.co.uk

If your normal car insurance requires you te let them know of any optional extras then you must tell them, regardless of whether you're taking out GAP insurance or not. It may add extra risk to your policy so they are required to know, you may find your policy void if you don't.

I'm going to double check with the insurance people regarding the extras added on the car. I've had a look at GapInsurance.co.uk and i dont think id trust them as by looking at their company account history they dont seem to be very reputable, they've only been in business 2 years and in 2014 only had £4,000 in the bank and 2015 only £2000 in the bank, so think ill pass with them and if i was with you i'd possibly re-think about using them.

Thanks

neilmcl

gapinsurance.co.uk, or rather the brokers that run it have been in business for many years and are very reputable. Not to mention they also have a 5 start Defaqto rating, gapinsurance123 isn't even listed.

Online company searches do not necessarily show whether a company is "reputable" or not and the amount of money they have in a bank, and I'm not sure where you're getting that info from, means nothing. Each to their own though.

CB1878

neilmcl wrote: »

gapinsurance.co.uk, or rather the brokers that run it have been in business for many years and are very reputable. Not to mention they also have a 5 star Defaqto rating, gapinsurance123 isn't even listed.

Online company searches do not necessarily show whether a company is "reputable" or not and the amount of money they have in a bank, and I'm not sure where you're getting that info from, means nothing. Each to their own though.

Dafaqto lost their ability to compare products when they lost their FCA authorisation in 2013. Not sure how much weight you can give a rating when you have no idea how they have arrived at it, or the ability to compare products they list. I notice the latest Defaqto ratings do not even have the previously included handy tool to compare products nor did I see any statement to say that they list every provider.

The answer as to why Gapinsurance 123 do not have a Defaqto listing may be found (following a quick site search of their website) here https://gapinsurance123.co.uk/article/1137/defaqto-ratings-and-aequitas-gap-insurance-products which was posted on their website in March 2016. Seems quite a reasonable explanation.

I do agree that a company's accounts are not a basis for establishing a reputation but it is an indicator of a company's stability. After all if you buy a 5 year policy you want to know that the company will be there to assist with a claim or help you transfer your policy.

The company behind GapInsurance123 has a net worth of nearly £500,000 in its last accounts. The company behind Gapinsurance.co.uk has shown only two years trading and they were for two consectutive and increasing losses leading to a net worth of -£21k. The parent company that seem to run Pickles and Burns have been around for 50 years plus and have a net worth of £58,000. All found from a 5 minute search on companies house.

None of that means you should necessarily pick one above the other, indeed there are a good few other alternatives also in the market.

I completely agree the accounts of a company do nothing to confirm its reputation but it is a hefty indicator for stability in my view.

BJV

IMO I would never base anything I buy upon a Defaqto rating, remember Defqato are not regulated so should not be giving any opinion about anything.

A post someone once used " Defaqto are like trip adviser, they will tell you it has a swimming pool and a bar and even a plunge pool but it can not tell you how good it. It can not tell you if it is worth it"