GAP Insurance Recommendations Please

[Flopsy]

As per the title, have a new Fabia on PCP and wonder what others have learned as protecting their investment please?

[RickW]

Main dealer offered it to me for £299 I searched the net and bought it for £109.

 

I consider it worth it for a brand new car on PCP.

 

Dealers charge too much,shop around.

[Gripper]

Not got a GAP policy sorry but might be worth checking your own insurance? Some policies will pay out the full purchase price within your first year negating the need for GAP.  

[Rooted]

http://briskoda.net/forums/forum/309-gap-insurance

[Tom_vRS]

You should try the forum sponsor, gapinsurance.co.uk

 

I bought a 4 year policy and was astonished at the price, just under £94.13 for £10,000 of cover with your Briskoda difference, and a pleasure to deal with too

 

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/forum/309-gap-insurance/

Edited 4 May, 2016 by Tom_vRS

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

Hi,

Although we don't offer GAP insurance, we offer a cost effective alternative called Total Loss Protection which is worth considering. 

 

Take a look at this link: Click Here

 

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to drop me a PM.

Kind regards

Dan.

[georgef]

I purchased a GAP Replacement from GAPinsurance.co.uk - 3 year deferred start. £10k claim limit. £103. I didn't know about the tie in with tyhe forum so didn't ask. But even so, the premium was significantly better than the main dealer offering. A very easy purchase and a pleasure to deal with.

[DaniellP]

I feel the £500 I paid is a tad much now, good salesman though catching someone who sells insurance for a living out.......

[skodaTDI]

It's not worth it.. I didn't bother.. ignored the sales pitch.. I pay enough on insurance as it stands.. end of.

[georgef]

I have a 17 year-old who drives mine. I reckon the chances of a repair bill are quite high.

[threadbear]

It's not worth it.. I didn't bother.. ignored the sales pitch.. I pay enough on insurance as it stands.. end of.

 

Never taken out GAP insuance. Your standard comprehensive insurance should be sufficient. I would be more concerned about coming out of a car relatively unscathed after a big RTC and doing what it is designed to do than how much it is worth.

Edited 9 May, 2016 by threadbear

[LHVRS]

Another vote for Gapinsurance.co.uk    As much as I hate paying more for insurance if the worst did happen at least I'd get back what I originaly paid for. Mine was £202 for 20k replacement cover for 4 years, which is around 14p a day. Considering how well I look after my car and how little milage it will have in 4 years I'd hate to see what my standard car insurance would pay out if it was written off.   

[Bigdrive]

I have just ordered a new Fabia on PCP over 42 months and looking to buy GAP insurance. Although good advice has been provided on the merits and companies to consider can anybody help with some guidance on first year deferral? I've checked and my car policy will replace the car with a new one in the first year, so will I need to get a quote for a 3 year GAP policy or 4 years to cover the 42 months of the PCP agreement? I think it's the former but thought it best to ask. Thanks

[pyroking]

As someone who has just had an Octavia written off, GAP is WELL worth it! The car was 2 days off 2 years old when a (drunk) van driver decided to push it through my front garden wall...without the GAP I'd have had a £73 deposit, after the finance had been settled...but thanks to GAP it's nearer £8000. As a result, I'm picking up my new (to me!) Superb MkIII tomorrow. Policy cost £200 or so (NOT from a dealer!). Money well spent.

[Rybu79]

David you have a P.M

Regards

Ryan.

[Fabcol]

Hi,

 

When my wife Bron and I bought our new Fabia Monte Carlo just over two years we bought lots of trimmings with it such as Lifeshine; gap insurance and a three year servicing contract costing a lot of money. The gap insurance alone costing £399 for three years.

 

We've just traded Monte in for a pre-registered Yeti SE L with zero miles on its clock it being to all intents and purposes brand new? This time however we drove the Yeti away without servicing contract or gap insurance.

 

I'm an active member of UHM (Ultimatehandyman) forum so posted asking for advice; ALA Gap Insurance was highly recommended; the Yeti now has Gap insurance cover up to £12,500 costing only £128 for three years cover; I'll never buy gap insurance from a main dealer again. To add insult to the high rip off price there was still ten months to run on the gap insurance which we had paid in full; not a penny refund.

 

Regarding the servicing contract; this was set up at the main dealer on the Monte costing £18.18 per month over three years. Not a problem until I wanted to transfer the contract over to the Yeti then the fun started; The main dealer who set up the contract could not cancel the contract so I had to phone Skoda direct. Because the first service was cheaper than the second service the Monte having had its second service I was told this could possibly mean I owed money also whilst on the phone I was informed the mileage would have to be taken into account because excess mileage is charged so much per mile and even this wasn't straightforward; the cars mileage is averaged over the months so it is possible to run up excess mileage without being aware of it; never again will I bother with gap insurance or servicing contract from a main dealer; I just can't stand all the hassle and complication involved.

 

What an absolute delight it was to deal with Charlotte and Dawn at ALA; delightful Dawn was very pleasant to chat to and Charlotte replied to my email enquiry. ALA offer two types of Gap insurance but in our case the cheaper worked out better. Not only is this ALA gap insurance so much cheaper it costs nothing to make changes such as change of address and if the car is traded in the ALA gap insurance is transferable to the new car without admin charges.

 

I'm no insurance expert but I'm a tight Yorkshireman who feels totally conned by the main dealer but never again; in future I'll do my homework as I've done with the Yeti.

 

I hope I never have to claim gap insurance and then I'll never know how good ALA is regarding settlement but so far ALA are tops for me.

 

https://www.ala.co.uk/

 

Kind regards, Col.

[David@GAPInsurance]

Hi,

 

When my wife Bron and I bought our new Fabia Monte Carlo just over two years we bought lots of trimmings with it such as Lifeshine; gap insurance and a three year servicing contract costing a lot of money. The gap insurance alone costing £399 for three years.

 

We've just traded Monte in for a pre-registered Yeti SE L with zero miles on its clock it being to all intents and purposes brand new? This time however we drove the Yeti away without servicing contract or gap insurance.

 

I'm an active member of UHM (Ultimatehandyman) forum so posted asking for advice; ALA Gap Insurance was highly recommended; the Yeti now has Gap insurance cover up to £12,500 costing only £128 for three years cover; I'll never buy gap insurance from a main dealer again. To add insult to the high rip off price there was still ten months to run on the gap insurance which we had paid in full; not a penny refund.

 

Regarding the servicing contract; this was set up at the main dealer on the Monte costing £18.18 per month over three years. Not a problem until I wanted to transfer the contract over to the Yeti then the fun started; The main dealer who set up the contract could not cancel the contract so I had to phone Skoda direct. Because the first service was cheaper than the second service the Monte having had its second service I was told this could possibly mean I owed money also whilst on the phone I was informed the mileage would have to be taken into account because excess mileage is charged so much per mile and even this wasn't straightforward; the cars mileage is averaged over the months so it is possible to run up excess mileage without being aware of it; never again will I bother with gap insurance or servicing contract from a main dealer; I just can't stand all the hassle and complication involved.

 

What an absolute delight it was to deal with Charlotte and Dawn at ALA; delightful Dawn was very pleasant to chat to and Charlotte replied to my email enquiry. ALA offer two types of Gap insurance but in our case the cheaper worked out better. Not only is this ALA gap insurance so much cheaper it costs nothing to make changes such as change of address and if the car is traded in the ALA gap insurance is transferable to the new car without admin charges.

 

I'm no insurance expert but I'm a tight Yorkshireman who feels totally conned by the main dealer but never again; in future I'll do my homework as I've done with the Yeti.

 

I hope I never have to claim gap insurance and then I'll never know how good ALA is regarding settlement but so far ALA are tops for me.

 

https://www.ala.co.uk/

 

Kind regards, Col.

 

I notice your location Col - I live in Holmfirth myself which looks like it may not be too far from you :-)

 

I regret that I lost your custom to a competitor but that's just the way the cookie crumbles some times... (though I would question the logic that the cheaper policy (presumably Invoice GAP insurance?) was the better cover option for you - this really shouldn't ever be the case).

 

I'd be interested to know if you did at least consider us and if we could have done anything better and/or differently to have won your custom.

 

In the meantime, for everyone else reading this... remember that as BRISKODA members we grant you a 10% discount off our full prices.  We can provide both Invoice & Replacement GAP insurance for durations up to 5-years and we're pretty confident that the terms and conditions of our policies make them some of (if not THE) best available.

 

Best wishes

 

David

[Fabcol]

Hi,

 

Many thanks David. Yes Holmfirth is quite near to Fenay Bridge. I hadn't realized you had lost me as a customer; DM Keith's arranged the gap insurance on our Monte Carlo and I confess I didn't take much notice of all the details. I didn't want to pay the same amount or even more to cover our Yeti with gap insurance hence I posted on UHM forum for suggestions; I don't visit Briskoda on a regular basis so am unaware of any special offers such as 10% discount off gap insurance. I'm no insurance whiz kid and didn't know there was both Invoice and Replacement gap insurance but I ensured the cover I took out would be sufficient in case of a write off. I hope I never have an accident to find out what both LV and ALA insurance companies are like but arranging both policies was easy and straightforward at good prices.

 

Kind regards, Col. 

[David@GAPInsurance]

Hi,

 

Many thanks David. Yes Holmfirth is quite near to Fenay Bridge. I hadn't realized you had lost me as a customer; DM Keith's arranged the gap insurance on our Monte Carlo and I confess I didn't take much notice of all the details. I didn't want to pay the same amount or even more to cover our Yeti with gap insurance hence I posted on UHM forum for suggestions; I don't visit Briskoda on a regular basis so am unaware of any special offers such as 10% discount off gap insurance. I'm no insurance whiz kid and didn't know there was both Invoice and Replacement gap insurance but I ensured the cover I took out would be sufficient in case of a write off. I hope I never have an accident to find out what both LV and ALA insurance companies are like but arranging both policies was easy and straightforward at good prices.

 

Kind regards, Col. 

 

Hi Col,

 

Sorry... I'd assumed you'd known about us sponsoring this forum and therefore the discount we provide, yet decided to purchase elsewhere anyway.  As the saying goes... 'you know what "assume" does....` (although clearly only me in this case :peek: ).

 

Best wishes

 

David

[Fabcol]

Hi,

 

Thanks David. I'm pleased to now add an update regarding the £399 gap insurance bought when Bron and I bought the new Fabia Monte; when I asking about the gap insurance with still ten months to run on the Fabia at DMK whilst buying our Yeti I was informed that the gap insurance wasn't transferable and also there would be no refund. This rattled my cage and I've posted on a couple of forums stating my disgust at this also I've completed surveys again stating my disgust.

 

Yesterday afternoon we received a very pleasant phone call from DMK in Huddersfield to inform us that we will now be receiving a £68 refund on our Fabia gap insurance so I can stop moaning and complaining about this at last. I just wanted to be honest and put the record straight. 

 

Kind regards, Col.

[David@GAPInsurance]

Hi,

 

Thanks David. I'm pleased to now add an update regarding the £399 gap insurance bought when Bron and I bought the new Fabia Monte; when I asking about the gap insurance with still ten months to run on the Fabia at DMK whilst buying our Yeti I was informed that the gap insurance wasn't transferable and also there would be no refund. This rattled my cage and I've posted on a couple of forums stating my disgust at this also I've completed surveys again stating my disgust.

 

Yesterday afternoon we received a very pleasant phone call from DMK in Huddersfield to inform us that we will now be receiving a £68 refund on our Fabia gap insurance so I can stop moaning and complaining about this at last. I just wanted to be honest and put the record straight. 

 

Kind regards, Col.

 

Col, you should have mentioned that the dealer had told you this (if you did, I missed it - sorry), I could have given you some ammunition to use against them.

 

Briefly, a while back the ABI (Association of British Insurers) issued a voluntary code of conduct for GAP insurance providers, part of this code was a recommendation that pro-rata rebates should be provided in the event of a mid-term cancellation (the "better" online providers already did, but almost all motor-dealer-sourced policies didn't).  To my knowledge every single GAP provider adopted this as standard practice (although some continued to charge cancellation/admin fees in the process).  Crucially, most insurers elected to apply it retrospectively to policies already on risk too. Thus, because it all but became an industry-standard approach, any insurer refusing to give you a pro-rata rebate of unused premium these days would be deemed to be being unfair to the policyholder -  an accusation they won't want to be on the receiving end of.

 

Incidentally if your policy originally cost you £399 and you had 10-months remaining I'd have expected the rebate to have been in the region of £110, but with cancellation fees (from companies that charge them) usually being circa £40, the £68 that you're receiving back looks not too unreasonable. 

 

Personally though, I'd have pressed them for a refund of the cancellation fee too.  As it happens we were the subject of our annual compliance audit from our underwriter yesterday and I was chatting with the auditor about policy cancellations etc. He advised that the FCA have already made noises about an intention to move to ban them and that in advance of that, they (our underwriters) are recommending that all of their brokers/outlets stop charging them (not that it affects us because we haven't charged them for quite some time now). This being the case I reckon with a little bit of persuasion you could probably also receive a refund of the amount they've deducted as a cancellation fee too (assming of course, you were so inclined).

 

Best wishes

 

David

[Brian69]

I'm looking into GAP insurance for the first time - ran a quote through Chris Knott via this site and was surprised how cheap it was (£120 including IPT for three years), which almost makes me wary (I need to take the time to read the policy wording). Arnold wants £12.99 a month...

[David@GAPInsurance]

I'm looking into GAP insurance for the first time - ran a quote through Chris Knott via this site and was surprised how cheap it was (£120 including IPT for three years), which almost makes me wary (I need to take the time to read the policy wording). Arnold wants £12.99 a month...

 

Brian,  the truth is you should be wary the other way around.  Consider that most independant providers will be roughly the same price because their prices are affected by market forces far more so than a motor dealer... e.g. someone searching online for GAP insurance is really just a mouse click away from a competitor so it has to be "best foot forward" for the companies in question, whereas with GAP insurance from a Motor Dealer, often the customer will not have heard before and (even despite laws dictating that it now shouldn't happen) motor dealers will give the impression that they're the only outlet they can source GAP insurance from so, can all but make up the price they want to charge for it.

 

Motor dealers are renowned for overcharging for GAP insurance (a short while ago the Financial Conduct Authority claimed they conservatively estimated that UK motor dealers were overcharging the UK consumer by as much as £76m per year!) and £12.99 per month for 36 months is £467.64 which is an insane price for GAP insurance!  Also consider that it will amost certainly be for just an Invoice GAP insurance policy rather than the superior Replacement GAP insurance that you should probably also consider.

 

I don't know what the purchase price of your vehicle is, but as an alternative example if was say, between £15,000 and £25,000 our prices for a 3yr policy would be as follows (based on you having bought the vehicle less than 6-months ago OR not yet bought it):

 

3yr, Invoice GAP, £15,000 Claim Limit = £108.46 less 10% BRISKODA discount = £97.61

3yr, Replacement GAP, £17,500 Claim Limit = £155.76 less 10% BRISKODA discount = £140.19

 

Note that we can provide quotes for 1-5 years with Claim Limits ranging from £5k to the whole purchase price of your vehicle.

 

Check out www.gapinsurance.co.uk for more details of either policy type and of course, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

 

David

[SollyRed]

Most garages will try to sell GAPP - its good commission for them.

 

Normally if you buy a brand new car your comprehensive insurance will replace your car if it's a write off in the first 12 months - after that you will get market price.

 

I didnt take GAPP - my stepson did on his Corsa (fell for the salesman at the dealers) I think he paid £299, however it was the best thing he did, his car was written off Aug16 (not his fault) & the difference between the settlement (car value) & finance outstanding was about £2500. If he hadn't taken the GAPP he would have no car & finance o/s!!!

 

Dealing with the GAPP insurance claim was really hard work - but they did settle eventually.

I know somebody else who also claimed on their GAPP insurance - again she would have been faced with no car & a large o/s loan.

 

So now I certainly think it is worth considering and again shopping around for the best deal - do check the small print & you will need to return loads of information before they pay out. 

[Brian69]

Brian,  the truth is you should be wary the other way around.  Consider that most independant providers will be roughly the same price because their prices are affected by market forces far more so than a motor dealer... e.g. someone searching online for GAP insurance is really just a mouse click away from a competitor so it has to be "best foot forward" for the companies in question, whereas with GAP insurance from a Motor Dealer, often the customer will not have heard before and (even despite laws dictating that it now shouldn't happen) motor dealers will give the impression that they're the only outlet they can source GAP insurance from so, can all but make up the price they want to charge for it.

 

Motor dealers are renowned for overcharging for GAP insurance (a short while ago the Financial Conduct Authority claimed they conservatively estimated that UK motor dealers were overcharging the UK consumer by as much as £76m per year!) and £12.99 per month for 36 months is £467.64 which is an insane price for GAP insurance!  Also consider that it will amost certainly be for just an Invoice GAP insurance policy rather than the superior Replacement GAP insurance that you should probably also consider.

 

I don't know what the purchase price of your vehicle is, but as an alternative example if was say, between £15,000 and £25,000 our prices for a 3yr policy would be as follows (based on you having bought the vehicle less than 6-months ago OR not yet bought it):

 

3yr, Invoice GAP, £15,000 Claim Limit = £108.46 less 10% BRISKODA discount = £97.61

3yr, Replacement GAP, £17,500 Claim Limit = £155.76 less 10% BRISKODA discount = £140.19

 

Note that we can provide quotes for 1-5 years with Claim Limits ranging from £5k to the whole purchase price of your vehicle.

 

Check out www.gapinsurance.co.uk for more details of either policy type and of course, if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

 

David

David - thanks for such a comprehensive response. Yeah, the dealer price is crazy - I knocked back all their 'upsells' (GAP, paint protection, interior trim protection...) as I know all can be obtained cheaper elsewhere. I don't pick up the car until 26 January but I'll certainly check out www.gapinsurance.co.uk for a quote - I've taken out my insurance with Direct Line and I think they only offer market value (even in the first 6 months / year) - yet to read the policy wording properly.

 

Cheers

Edited 7 January, 2017 by Brian69