Car Insurance - Mileage

[Peoplesoft bloke]

And how exactly do they check how many miles you've done?

they dont ask you mileage at the start of the policy. Surely only way would be to check MOT certificates but they're unlikely to prove anything unless they're from same date as insurance started.

For my every day insurance, they don't, but if I wrote the car off, I suspect they would ask for service and MOT records etc. and then refuse to pay if the mileage I'd done was wildly different from my estimate.

For my Classic which has a limited mileage, they do ask me how many miles I've done each year.

[psychocandy]

And how exactly do they check how many miles you've done?

they dont ask you mileage at the start of the policy. Surely only way would be to check MOT certificates but they're unlikely to prove anything unless they're from same date as insurance started.

[SueEllen]

Doesnt matter when you're out and about. At home, do you park on a drive or the street most of the time? If you have a drive, even if you dont park on it all the time just select driveway.

Definitely don't do that as the insurer will use it as an excuse to not pay out if some vehicle damages your car if it's parked on the road outside your house.

Funny thing is that due to increased car security more cars are stolen from driveways as burglars/car thieves know which house to get the keys from. Therefore parking on the street in some areas may reduce your premium.

If you need tips on brokers/companies to approach, ways to tweak policies/quotes to get the best price, just let me know as I have a bit of experience in that regard.

1. Play around with your job title - as long as you aren't clearly telling porkies it's legal. (Ask a thicker mate/family member if you can be described as the title if you aren't sure.)
2. Put your partner on your insurance and let them drive the car twice a year.
3. Play around with your excess particularly if your car is old. As you may find comprehensive insurance with a massive excess is cheaper than TPFT.

[ASB]

And you think they don't record quotes and know about this truck

I'm not a complete cretin. The point which obviously went straight over your head was this:-

10,000 = £123
11,000 = £123
12,000 = £123
13,000 = £140

The above does happen with some providers. So, put in with a mileage of 12,000 not 10,000.

[VectraMan]

WHS. If it's a limited mileage policy (which you can get), then they make that clear at the start, but an estimate doesn't mean you're obliged to do anything as long as the estimate was reasonable at the time you made it.

But it is tricky. I've had short term gigs where I was doing 1000 miles a week, but I wasn't going to put down 52,000 as my estimated annual mileage.

I suppose the question is: would they give you a refund if you phoned up and told them your estimated mileage was now going to be lower than you thought?

[Freamon]

The insurer asks you for an estimated annual mileage at the point of quoting. But an estimate is only an estimate. What exactly can they do if it turns out your estimate was wrong? Circumstances change all the time.

Does the policy document ask you to inform them if you subsequently have reason to believe the estimate is materially incorrect? This raises all kinds of questions, like how often do they expect you to re-estimate the mileage? Monthly? Weekly? What basis should you be estimating on? etc.

Reductio ad absurdum: If you had estimated 10,000 annual mileage and at 1 week before the end of the policy you were at 9,990 miles for the year, and had no intention to use the car in the final week, then you suddenly found out you had to make an emergency visit from London to Scotland on a 1000 mile round-trip, this would leave you 10% over your estimate (which is definitely material) - but would your insurer expect you to inform them before making the trip? What if you had to set off at 6:01pm, 1 minute after their call center closed?

[wim121]

One "trick" I used was, having found the quote I wanted, to requote slowly increasing the mileage until the premium went up. Gives more leeway imv.

Also at the point the mileage is exceeded (or about to be) tell the insurer and pay up the extra (if any). The consequence of exceeding it will vary from company to company; it is a material fact and part of the contract.

And you think they don't record quotes and know about this truck

Exactly Sas ....

I give each company the same details, as they cross reference quotes, etc. However, after you recieve a quote, then you can ask the agent to tweak the mileage, etc etc, to alter the price as a theoretical question.

Bear in mind, sometimes, not having an immobiliser or alarm, opting for comp instead of TPFT or upping the mileage, can actually save you money.

[sasguru]

One "trick" I used was, having found the quote I wanted, to requote slowly increasing the mileage until the premium went up. Gives more leeway imv.

.

And you think they don't record quotes and know about this truck

[ASB]

Well if you can, maybe shove down 19k, if not, 24k or so .... The lower you can keep your estimate, without vastly underestimating, the better ....

One "trick" I used was, having found the quote I wanted, to requote slowly increasing the mileage until the premium went up. Gives more leeway imv.

Also at the point the mileage is exceeded (or about to be) tell the insurer and pay up the extra (if any). The consequence of exceeding it will vary from company to company; it is a material fact and part of the contract.

[wim121]

Well if you can, maybe shove down 19k, if not, 24k or so .... The lower you can keep your estimate, without vastly underestimating, the better ....

[Peoplesoft bloke]

It is tricky, but estimate a normal weeks usage even if you are using the train. For me, it might be 100 miles a week which is just over 5k a year, yet other times when commuting in my car, it can easily be 260 miles a week. A median figure is around 180 miles a week or 9k a year roughly. Just keep it under 10k if you can.
.

Most recent years it's been 25K plus so 9K isn't going to fly if anyone looks at insurance/MOT recs - that said 4 years ago I had a 1+ yr gig that started as 3 months in the smokehole - that year I did about 6K.

[wim121]

I seem to be asked for my annual mileage on every quote and proposal now - but in this game it's very difficult. If you get a gig in tuliphole London and you don't live there you are pretty much guaranteed to have to use the train - hence 6+ months of minimal car usage - gig elsewhere may or may not involve significant miles.

It is tricky, but estimate a normal weeks usage even if you are using the train. For me, it might be 100 miles a week which is just over 5k a year, yet other times when commuting in my car, it can easily be 260 miles a week. A median figure is around 180 miles a week or 9k a year roughly. Just keep it under 10k if you can.

I am also bothered by "where is the vehicle usually kept overnight" - the truthful answer to which (if usually means most often) may be "in a hotel car park". What say the panel?

Doesnt matter when you're out and about. At home, do you park on a drive or the street most of the time? If you have a drive, even if you dont park on it all the time just select driveway.




If you need tips on brokers/companies to approach, ways to tweak policies/quotes to get the best price, just let me know as I have a bit of experience in that regard.

[Peoplesoft bloke]

I seem to be asked for my annual mileage on every quote and proposal now - but in this game it's very difficult. If you get a gig in tuliphole London and you don't live there you are pretty much guaranteed to have to use the train - hence 6+ months of minimal car usage - gig elsewhere may or may not involve significant miles. I am also bothered by "where is the vehicle usually kept overnight" - the truthful answer to which (if usually means most often) may be "in a hotel car park". What say the panel?