iCarHireInsurance - Does making a claim affect cost of future premiums?

ToTo_Man · 23 January 2019 at 1:59PM

When taking out an annual Excess policy with iCarHireInsurance (or any other standalone Car Hire Excess Insurance provider), will the cost of the next policy be higher than the previous policy if you filed a claim during the previous policy, or is each annual policy sold afresh regardless of previous claims? Also, how many claims are you usually allowed during the one annual policy?

I've taken out annual policies with iCarHireInsurance for several years and have never had to claim. However I've just been charged £225 by my Car Rental company for cosmetic damage to the bumper (which I strongly suspect was already there but was so low down on the car I didn't notice it when I initially checked the car over!). Apparently £225 is the minimum amount chargeable for cosmetic damage with this Car Rental company.

I'm wondering if I should submit a claim to iCarHireInsurance for reimbursement of the £225 or just take the hit out of my own pocket and 'save' my claim for the future in case I get landed with a more expensive charge from a Car Rental company that I am less likely to be able to afford to pay myself? Logic says I should just claim the reimbursement from iCarHireInsurance, I am paying for insurance after all! But if every customer did this then how can it be a sustainable business model, having to payout £hundreds per claim when they only charge £40 for annual cover?

EveryWhere · 26 January 2019 at 1:16AM

What are you thinking? Do you fall off your bike and hit your head as a child??

You are willing to pay the equivalent of nearly six years of premiums in exchange for a imagined rise of say 10% or 20% in your premiums? So an extra £4 or £8 per annum against £225?

Forget your crazy idea. Your premiums won't change because you claim.

cubegame · 26 January 2019 at 10:37AM

Why would you OK think they stick the premiums up? None if these companies ask you for claim history when you buy a policy.

If you was want value for money from the policy you could just return just the wing mirror of your next hire car and say you lost the rest.

ToTo_Man · 26 January 2019 at 1:14PM

cubegame wrote: »

Why would you OK think they stick the premiums up? None if these companies ask you for claim history when you buy a policy.

If you was want value for money from the policy you could just return just the wing mirror of your next hire car and say you lost the rest.

Because that's what I would do if I was an insurer, and is standard practice for regular house and car insurance. Otherwise it's effectively a 'green light' or 'open season' for rental companies and/or customers to take the p*** with claims. But obviously this doesn't happen as often as I think, otherwise the insurers would need to charge more than £40 per annual policy.

Thank you both for your advice, it's good to know it is unlikely that my premiums will increase on my next policy. I will be submitting my claim today.

EveryWhere · 26 January 2019 at 2:30PM

ToTo_Man wrote: »

Because that's what I would do if I was an insurer, and is standard practice for regular house and car insurance. Otherwise it's effectively a 'green light' or 'open season' for rental companies and/or customers to take the p*** with claims. But obviously this doesn't happen as often as I think, otherwise the insurers would need to charge more than £40 per annual policy.

Thank you both for your advice, it's good to know it is unlikely that my premiums will increase on my next policy. I will be submitting my claim today.

I'm glad that you took both of the replies in good humour.

iCarHireInsurance - Does making a claim affect cost of future premiums?

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