It that time of year again...one month to go, so time to try & get some quotes. I found out to my cost last year that a car that is 'modified' (well they class it as 'modified' due to the 18"'s, Xenons, Jumbo box, reverse park etc) can be a little tricky to obtain 'full' insurance on - it even put me off spec'ing up the Mazda 5 Sport we just bought for the arrival of the twins !!!

Most of the online folk will provide cover but it's limited to the standard spec...so if the Xenons for example get damaged...tough luck.

I ended up going through Brentacre (policy with NIG) last year (wasn't much in it between them & Chris Knott)...but even most of the other 'specialist' brokers weren't that interested in providing a competitive quote...do you think that'll be any different this year, what with the 'credit crunch'.

Has anyone obtained quotes on their Octavia thro' these guys recently - any idea of who is currently the best VFM?

Any assistance is appreciated.

Maybe I'm being silly here but since when did genuine options/standard fitments like Xenons, Parking Sensors, etc etc. make a car modified!

Not sure why you have experienced insurers refusing to cover factory fitted options - never had that problem before. If you have a frontal with Xenons - you get xenon replacements!

Some insurers now ask for the factory options to be listed on the forms however.

Im with Chris Knott currently and cant speak highly enough about them.

Lee

I remember when I got my first quote when I got my new car, they asked if it has been modified...including factory options. So I told them I added ESP. First of all they didn't know what that was! Secondly my insurance went sky high cos it was modified. Now I wouldn't bother telling them about any factory fit options, it seems stupid that a safety device can double your premium!

I remember when I got my first quote when I got my new car, they asked if it has been modified...including factory options. So I told them I added ESP. First of all they didn't know what that was! Secondly my insurance went sky high cos it was modified. Now I wouldn't bother telling them about any factory fit options, it seems stupid that a safety device can double your premium!

Totally aggree with that. With the exception perhaps of sports suspension, which could loosly be termed as a performance enhancement,, most of the factory fit options only increase the value of the car in the cold light of day. If you are accurate with the stated value then surely you are being open and honest enough with the insurance companies.

But even if I had factory fit sport suspension, I don't think I would tell the insurance company. If it was aftermarket/Dealer fit then yeah I would.

I sure as hell wouldn't class a Jumbo Box, xenons, parking sensors as modified if they are factory fit!

I had the exact same conversations with the various companies last year...some refused to touch the car because of what they classed as 'mods' & like I say, some would cover the car but not the mods - so a frontal with xenons = no pay out for the xenons, therefore a complete waste of time/money.

Several people expressed their disbelief at this on here, last year, but several agreed, there are issues if you don't let them know & that you won't be covered even if you do. Believe me - from what we were told last year, unless you are with one of the specialists & have 'extra's' - factory fitted or otherwise...you probably ain't covered if you needed to make a claim that included 'an extra' i.e the xenons.

I agree it is ridiculous...but reality. I personally will think twice about ever buying a car with 'extra's' that are not part of the standard spec cos it's just hassle & an excuse for them to squeeze even more money out of you come renewal time !

I told my insurance company about all the extras, (yes, they didn't know what ESP was either!), but the premium did not increase because of this. I have an Elegance 2 litre FSI, and I'm with Prudential at the moment. Perhaps it's a combination of age, location, and model?

I told my insurance company about all the extras, (yes, they didn't know what ESP was either!), but the premium did not increase because of this. I have an Elegance 2 litre FSI, and I'm with Prudential at the moment. Perhaps it's a combination of age, location, and model?

Directline insured me no probs , when I said the sports suspension and bigger alloys were factory fitted from brand new I was told it's classed as standard , not Kev'd up afterwards .... my current insurer is the same (Swinton's)

You'll only know you are fully covered when you have to make a claim I suppose. Here's hoping none of us have to worry about that.

Directline insured me no probs , when I said the sports suspension and bigger alloys were factory fitted from brand new I was told it's classed as standard , not Kev'd up afterwards .... my current insurer is the same (Swinton's)

That's odd. I insured my car with DirectLine a couple of months ago and I declared all of the optional extras on the car as they deemed it had been "modified". They said it didn't affect the premium, but if the car was a write off they would only pay out to the value of the 'standard' car.

As some other people have mentioned, I think it's best to declare abosolutley everything and don't give them a chance to back out of a claim if the worst should happen...

Cheers,

Balham

Why do they ask the value of the car when you apply for your insurance ?. Surely if you answer this question honestly (especially when insuring a new car) then the insurance company cannot pay out to the value of a standard car....

Is there such a thing as a standard car out there??.. Even the new stock in the showrooms usually have something added to the spec to make them more desireable.

I insured my 2005 PD105 Elegance this time for £295, plus a £65 cashback from quidco and free £25 fuel card on, effectively bringing the price down to £205.

I'm 27, 3 points and I live in S35. I've been with morethan the last couple of years and if I'd taken my renewal this time it would have been about £400, so I'm well chuffed with the deal I got!

Believe it covers £1000 of ICE too.

I went around the same loop recently and agree it’s confusing, partly because different Insurers have different attitudes.

A few key points:

1. An insurance contract is one of indemnity – it’s designed to put you (financially), in the same position after the insured event as you were before it. So I’d expect, for example, xenon lights to be replaced with xenon lights. But do ask your insurer/broker about this at the time of taking-out the cover; don’t wait until a claim to find-out.

2. Insurers will generally ask about modifications or factory fit extras and it’s your responsibility to answer the questions honestly.

3. Some Insurers charge additional premium for the extras and some don’t. This is inconsistent between insurers and some may only charge above a certain value.

4. The best article I’ve found about the consequences of non disclosure is this summary from the Financial Ombudsman issue 46 - non-disclosure in insurance cases (link previously published on this site)

I hope this is useful information.

I got mine through Adrian Flux last year when I modded the car. I believe it's like for like replacements on not just the car but any mods you have, and while I think it's ridiculus that factory fit options should be treated as 'mods' at least they should be covered properly by a modified specialist insurer. Also of note for me was that my modified quote (remap and filter) was cheaper through Adrian Flux than the standard quote from directline who I was with previously.

If factory fit extras genuinely require full disclosure to insurance companies then it would be a legal requirement for the dealers to advise EVERY customer who specifies everything from metallic paint and maxidot to the fantastic Columbus system to ensure that they are covered.

I can understand those who opt for re-maps and all that wonderful aftermarket suspension but how long would it take to get a quote and fill out a proposal, not forgetting how long you would have to hang on the phone in one of these dreaded queues unless they employ more call center staff in countries warmer than ours at extra expense!!

I insured my 2005 PD105 Elegance this time for £295, plus a £65 cashback from quidco and free £25 fuel card on, effectively bringing the price down to £205.

I'm 27, 3 points and I live in S35. I've been with morethan the last couple of years and if I'd taken my renewal this time it would have been about £400, so I'm well chuffed with the deal I got!

Believe it covers £1000 of ICE too.

Thats good, so who you insured with? thanks

This cropped up for me a few years ago with a Bora 150TDI Sports, where I'd specified the full sports pack with 17" longbeach alloys & uprated suspension (had to wait an extra 4 weeks for the factory delivery cos of it!). Esure said it was "modified" and passed me onto their underwritier who said it wasn't!! Eventually I was told that they accepted "manufacturers standard" had to cover a wide range! Basically as the car was new and ordered with the "options" it was produced to "a" manufacturers standard. Anything fitted afterwards however would be classed as a modifiction. There are loads of threads on here about this, and it seems the rough rule of thumb for most companies is anything which increases the value/desireability/performance and therefore "risk"; after manufacture will be seen as a modification, and "might" cause an increase in premium!

I just think, "where do you stop?" as what constitues "modifiaction" is not properly explained or asked about. Madness!! So from point one when getting a quote I ask for the companies pollicy on factory options, you won't be suprised to know that many call centres haven't a clue, and few policy documents make it clear! Others are much more lenient. You just have to check it out!

jamesmckelvie - sorry I forgot to say who it was with! It's with morethan via quidco.

Had the same issue. Cant use any comparison sites, as nearly all insurers websites dont support mods (even factory fitted) and ours is on a private lease deal with Lex. Again these wont quote.

So you have to cheat the system, find the best deals, then ring the firms direct. What they save on not paying the comparison site means often they wont charge any extra for factory mods!

Did this at renewal early Oct, and current were cheaper than confused so simply did nothing to auto-renew (full payment)

I just think, "where do you stop?" as what constitues "modifiaction" is not properly explained or asked about. Madness!! So from point one when getting a quote I ask for the companies pollicy on factory options, you won't be suprised to know that many call centres haven't a clue, and few policy documents make it clear! Others are much more lenient. You just have to check it out!

Whilst in some areas I think the FSA is as much use as a chocolate teapot (great job of regulating Northern Rock!), one area that they do seem to be pretty hot on is unfair (including unclear) contract terms. They have an ongoing campaign on this, so if you ever end up with a contract where the insurer refuses to cover factory-fitted options, or where it's not even clear, then I would suggest that you complain to the FSA - they have a habit of getting firms to change or clarify policy terms, plus they do circulate the industry with details with a covering note which basically says "we didn't like this contract term in company X's policy, so we've got them to change it. If you have a similar term in your policies, you might want to give some serious thought to changing yours too."

Examples of cases they've acted on are at Unfair contracts : FSA Money made clear ? Product news and an outline of what they will and won't look at is at Unfair contract terms : FSA Money made clear - about the FSA along with a link on how to report unfair terms.

I think I'd be tempted to report any quotes which were unclear on the matter as well - after all, how are you supposed to make an informed decision if their quote doesn't make clear what is covered and subsequent enquiries to the insurer shed no further light?

Some sections of the insurance industry would not know a modified vehicle from their backside.

If you have a vehicle with listed factory options then it can not be regarded as modified.

Add something or alter your new vehicle in any way then you now have a modified vehicle, which may or may not alter your insurance rating. Fit a tow bar and this should not effect your insurance, but lower the suspension and you probably will and it certainly will if you fail to tell them and have an accident.

Yes, just as I thought, we all agree it's a ridiculous situation to be in...I don't consider my car modified...however read all the replies in the thread & no two are the same - some of us think it can't be, won't be & certainly shouldn't be classed as modified, others think it might be & could be, others think it will be...& for some...it has been. Do we really know?

Thanks for all the replies, links etc...all I do know is - it's a minefield...& not helped when the folk selling the product...aren't even sure themselves (i.e two people in the same company give two different answers) & half the time can't even understand the question...often because they are on the other side of the world.

Getting back to the point - so who are doing the best deals right now...I've seen Adrian Flux, More than (definitely said last year - won't pay out on mods) & Chris Knott mentioned above...any others?

I agree it's messy and we're not supposed to understand how the Insurance industry works. Heck I've worked in it and sometimes I'm not sure.

But I go back to the point in my earlier post - answer the questions you're asked, honestly and accurately and you should be OK, subject to the point about Call Centre staff not always being clued-up, or at least operating fron scripts.

Also, if you're not happy the cover does what you want it to ask questions and double-check. Only buy when you're confident about what you're buying

Good Luck!

I've done some quotes...on Moneysupermarket & Confused...if I tick the mods box & select them as interior decorative & exterior decorative (cos they don't seem to fall into any other category)...I only get a handful of quotes, & they are all over twice the price of the cheapest I get with no mods declared (when I get loads of quotes)...I think I will call the cheapest with no mods - More Than & AA to discuss further...should be interesting...I'll also see what Brentacre do with the renewal price & also speak to Chris Knott...(although I filled in some details online with Sky Insurance & stipulated I wanted them to email me the quote, not call, but if they had to call...make it Sat p.m between 2 & 5pm which is what their website offered...and have subsequently been deluged with emails...saying they haven't been able to contact me & they don't open between 2 & 5 on a Saturday...what!!!