Heya,

Im hoping someone can give me some advice here. I would like to purchase some alloys for my 1.4 16v comfort Fabia; I don't require anything of large value, my estimated value is around £300 and looking at something like these:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/4-17-Skoda-alloys-Excellent-condition_W0QQitemZ300018686530QQihZ020QQcategoryZ9888QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Can I get away with not telling my insurance company of having alloys on my car?

When I was looking for insurance qoutes I could not find anyone who was willing to insure me with modifications. If I don't tell my insurance company of having alloys will I:

A: Be covered for all damages apart from the wrecked alloys

B: Insurance void because I didn't tell them and I get in a lot of mess!

If it's A I will get them, as I would not mind losing £300 if a crash was to take place

Hope that makes sense

Thank you

Toggle

They will void your insurance and you'll be upto your neck in it!

I can't see a set of alloys require declaring tbh..

I would get them an not say a thing.. it does'nt really matter too much!!!

You could phone your insurance company and tell them what you would like to do, I'm sure there would be no increase in your policy price!!

I can't see a set of alloys require declaring tbh..

I would get them an not say a thing.. it does'nt really matter too much!!!

You must declare any and all modifications......

How can not being insured 'not matter much'?!?! :eek: :eek:

hmmm, theres alot of mixed views about this.

It's just different people I talk too give different oppinions. One of my work colleague was hit in her car and it was taken off to the garage, all damage was fixed apart from the alloys.

If this was the case I wouldn't mind, but I really do not want to be driving around with void insurance.

All, if not 99.9% of insurance policies will state somewhere that non-disclosure of anything non-standard about the vehicle will void the entire policy.

Tell them, or at least ask them if theres any chance you can put alloys on without a premium increase. Some may let you do it for free if you agree that they will not be replaced etc.

But to do it and not tell them is a very bad idea.

Ok, Ill give them a call.

Can i ask is there any beneficial reason for alloys beside looks?

Just incase they ask why I need them :P

Ok' date=' Ill give them a call.

Can i ask is there any beneficial reason for alloys beside looks?

Just incase they ask why I need them :P[/quote']

Normal alloys are just for looks unless your going for some super expensive light weight jobbies....

Who are you insured with?

I had this problem a few years ago however have since learned it depends who you're insured with. Some insurance companies will charge you an extra few pound a year for the alloys, however the big ones like Direct Line, Admiral etc won't insure any drivers under 25 on modified cars - at least they wouldn't insure me!

I can't see a set of alloys require declaring tbh..

I would get them an not say a thing.. it does'nt really matter too much!!!

That's a pretty naive attitude, and exactly the kind of comment that gets people into trouble. You must tell your insurance company if you make any modifications. Not telling them is giving them a reason to avoid paying up on any future claims.

That's a pretty naive attitude, and exactly the kind of comment that gets people into trouble. You must tell your insurance company if you make any modifications. Not telling them is giving them a reason to avoid paying up on any future claims.

When asked by my insurance Broker about any modifications that I have made, in the past I have mentioned that I have gone from 15 to 16 inch alloys. The Broker has generally waved his hand as it’s not an issue, referring more to mechanical enhancements. There are however some insurance companies that are a little bit more particular in this area. I and many of my friend’s have changed there alloy wheels on cars that we have owned in the past and not informed the insurance company of those changes. Whenever we have made a claim, the alloy wheels have never been an issue.

Maybe I should be clearer; if you are worried that the changes will make your insurance void, and then the simple and easiest answer is to give them a call and clarify before you go ahead and purchase the wheels.

In the past it has never really worried me, but maybe that’s down to my naivety, as has already been pointed out.

I have put a set of vrs alloys (16') on my 1.4 16v. My premium went up about 100 pounds, my insurance company is Direct Line. IMHO, declare ANY modification, full stop.

With 16' alloys, the car goes better round bend, and more stable on motorway. You might feel slower acceleration at low speed tho.

I'm swapping to some VW 17" wheels on the VRS and the insurance company has loaded the policy by 10%. Thats an increase form

I was in the same position a month ago , bought alloys / tyres ( 100+ wheels & cheapish 195/50x15 tyres ) , had them fitted to 1.4 td1 ambiente estate , phoned Skoda insurance to inform them half expecting some jobsworth to comment on ' modifications ' , instead got a pleasant surprise when I was told the wheels ( with locking nuts ) would now be covered on my policy at NO EXTRA CHARGE !

I'm with Direct line, and when I asked, they made a distinction between genuine Skoda alloys and aftermarket ones. I told them that I was upgrading to Skoda alloys from a higher spec model, and they didn't charge extra.

^ same here, but I am with Admiral. Told them that they could insure the car with it brand new stock 16" VRS alloys (cost 300 each to replace) or my cheap and cheerful ebay 17"s (genuine skoda VRS alloys but octavia and about 4 years old) at replacement cost of £0 to them.

Funnily enough they didnt charge me any extra. They were fine once I confirmed that yes they would still have locking wheelnuts.

I think alot of it is how you put things across to them. In my case I stated that I bought cheaper 2nd hand wheels (ready chipped and kerbed ) as I had a tendency to kerb wheels and didnt want the risk of damaging brand new wheels and then having to claim. Thus, eliminating any risk of them having to pay for 2 new wheels & tyres due to a parking 'mistake'

Yeah, really you need to declare everything. I didn't declare the stainless system on my Focus, and when some old dear went into the back of me I was bricking it for days until it was all repaired. Its bloody stupid, especially considering I work for an insurance company and know the risks! Luckily they just replaced the back box (the only damaged part of the system) with a standard ford one, which I was more than happy with! Was a big relief, but from now on I will be declaring all mods as its just not worth the stress.

Unfortunately, its a bit hit and miss with insurance companies. If you get on the phone with someone that knows nothing about cars, then its very difficult explaining what it is your on about sometimes. For example, I had a Corsa that I lowered. Phoned the company up before hand to check that it was ok to do. They said "Yeah, no problem. Just call us when its done." Phoned them back to discover that they now wanted a full engineers report! So I swapped it back to standard again. More than a little annoying!

At the end of the day alloy's are one of the most visible mods you can do to your car.... you've got more chance of getting away with a remap than you have alloy's

I have two sets of wheels for my car, the standard 15's and a set of original Skoda 16's. I swap them about from time to time so what should I do with regards to declaring mods?

Check with the insurance company. It could be that if you declare the different wheels as on, and pay any additional premium, swapping backwards and forwards between the standard wheels and the 16's shouldn't cause any problems. Your effectively paying for something thats not on there. I can't see an insurance company penalising you for declaring mods and then not using them. Phone them and check though, just in case.

I have two sets of wheels for my car, the standard 15's and a set of original Skoda 16's. I swap them about from time to time so what should I do with regards to declaring mods?

Ummm - tell your insurance company which ones you're currentl running......

Chris

The only problem with that is that most insurance companies charge an admin fee...

The only problem with that is that most insurance companies charge an admin fee...

Well, if you're gonna be changing wheels every week then that will add up, but if you just run steelies in the winter, I suspect it won't make much difference

Chris

Dunno if this has been said, cos I don't have time to read the whole thread.

I've worked for an insurance broker, and generally what happens is that if a car is modded and it's not declared, the insurance company will insist that you pay an additional premium for the mods before they will honour a claim. Therefore, although your insurance would be void, the insurer would still honour a claim after you paid for the loading for the mods.

Hope that makes sense...