Hey guys,

 

Just interested to know what the criteria for insurance groups is? My Dad's just swapped his '03 Focus hatchback for an '08 Focus C-Max. Both have more or less the same 1.6 petrol engine in them. The Focus was the LX trim level whilst the C-Max is a 'Style' which appears to be one up from the LX. Both have alloy wheels - not sure if that counts for anything.

 

The Focus is group 11 whilst the C-Max is group 12, and Dad had to pay an extra £100 to the insurance company to get insured on the C-Max.

 

I'm intrigued to know what it is about the C-Max that justifies the increase in premium for two drivers with over 25 years experience and clean licences?

 

Any ideas? Cheers!

Edited 14 December, 201510 yr by alessio92

5 years newer and worth more I'd assume? 

There will be loads for them to look into for it

 

Age - newer might be more likely to be stolen

Performance - Newer tech for engine might mean more/better performance

Risk - Number on road/number of accidents more likely to have an accident.

 

There will be loads more as well.

Insurance groups used to be based on performance, price, desirability to thieves and cost of repairs.

 

However, insurance premiums also factor in stuff like where you live, what job you do, the individual company's experience with that make and model, what the actuary and underwriter had for breakfast...

Cost of spares etc can be factored in as well

Did that £100 include any charge to change the insurance paperwork or was it at renewal? I know some insurers change £50 to change anything on a policy.

At a guess the c-max is more likely to be nicked. Although my experience has been the opposite - the more expensive and newer the car the cheaper the insurance, mind this is probably due to better safety etc.

2004 MKI Superb Comfort PD130 to (new) 2010 MKII Superb Elegance Estate 170CR near as damn it no difference (IIRC the MKII was slightly cheaper to insure)

2006 MKI Superb Edition 100 PD130 to (new) 2015 MKIII Superb L&K 190CR... again next to nothing in it. 

 

Im not complaining, just can’t see the logic

I have never understood Insurance, My brother made a recent change from a 1.6 TDCI Focus to a Focus ST2 and there was a significant drop from the diesel Focus to the ST. I think the majority of the drop would be that he is quite lazy and didn't look for a new insurer and just sticking with the same company. 

 

But again I can't quite understand the logic that he is paying that much less on a Warm Hatch rather than a runabout?

Vehicle Age

Vehicle Value

Engine size

Thatcham group vehicle rating (passenger/ pedestrian safety, chances of theft, performance of vehicle, accident reduction technology)

Security features

How long you've owned the vehicle

Changes to number of passenger seats

Repair costs

Colour (yes it's true!)

Modifications

 

All of the above (and more) details may affect which way your insurance swings. Some companies are different to others, some may prefer new vehicles due to safety, some may prefer old vehicles due to cost of replacing/ repairing - depends on how their policies are underwritten which is normally based on their own payout experiences, or information gathered from other companies/ publicly available information. I've known of an insurance company to apply up to 40% discount for how long you've owned the vehicle; change to pretty much any other vehicle - PRICE HIKE!

 

Premiums are calculated with a base premium (E.g £500) - then your response to their questions will apply a load, or a discount (Eg x.1.25, or x 0.75) and you'll end up with your end premium after all your details are calculated. Same with mid term changes, only the above calculations are made, divided over 365, and then multiplied by the amount of days left of cover (and on top of this you may find an adjustment fee is charged).

 

If you are due a refund for a change, some intermediaries will retain whatever commission they received. E.g - refund due £100, minus their 20% commission, minus their £30 fee, you're left with £50 refund. It's all in the small print.

 

It can be worth to cancel your current policy and take out a new one if it works out cheaper in the long run, but you have to consider cancellation costs, how many days of cover you have left, and the fact you won't earn a years NCB for a policy that's cancelled early (if you have max NCB this shouldn't matter - max NCB can be considered 4 or 5 years for most companies, but up to 9 for some companies). Also if you have a fault claim or ongoing claim - you will get no return premium if you cancel (if the ongoing claim does get settled none fault, you can contact the company once it's settled and you will be paid back the money you should have received from the day the policy cancelled).

 

Unfortunately no matter how precautious you are with your insurance, it's likely you'll end up being stung at some point!

Edited 30 January, 201610 yr by Orchideous