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New Member looking for Insurance Advice


philak

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As the post says i'm new here and new to Land Rover in general. I'm looking to buy a Defender 90 , purely as a weekend recreational vehicle as i have a company car. Therein lies the problem it seems. Even though i've been driving for 30 years and do roughly 35,000 miles a year for work with no convictions or accidents in the last 6 years, and have 7 years NCD on motorbikes, the last 15 years in cars have all been with company vehicles so i have no NCD to use.

Not really a problem i thought as i rang the first of many brokers, how much can they charge a 47 year old for a £9000 vehicle that does 0-60 in 16 seconds and won't go over 85mph? The answer seems to be an awful lot, Land Rover Insurance wanted over a grand , and most companies won't even contemplate specific off road insurance, even though i don't want to compete off road. Sureterm will do it for £500 ish but that's with a strict 5000 mile per year limit.

After searching threads on here i saw a mention of Elephant.com and tried them out . Even entering 0 years NCD they still came back with a quote of £290. The online forms make no mention of off roading though so do people here have specific insurance that covers them off road or are most of you paying through the nose? Do people insure for general road use and not worry about off road insurance?

I can't believe at my age, with my experience and clean licence, that im going to get stung like an 18 year old trying to insure a hot hatch.Unreal.

Phil

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get a quote from Sureterm. As its only a weekend car, get a limited mileage policy, 3000 or 6000 miles a year, makes a big difference.

It'll get cheaper still if you're in club or if your 90's special in some way - ex mod policies are very cheap.

They were ok with me not having no claims due to a company car, and i only pay £140 per year fully comp.

insurance off-road? Doubt you would get it on any cover as it would be classed as 'motor sport' probably - if you're on a green lane etc then you are on road and covered same as on a motorway.

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Thanks for the replies. In order : All the brokers i have spoken to say they can take into account my driving history and give me some NCD (typically 3 or 4 years) BUT ONLY if i have stopped driving the company car. Don't ask me for the technicalities behind this but they all said it and giving up my job isn't a viable option unfortunately :(

I haven't tried Adrian Flux yet or the NFU ( but although i live in Wiltshire i wouldn't class it as the countryside....does it need to be to get insured by the NFU?). I'll call them both today.

As my original posts said i did get a quote from Sureterm on a limited(5000) mileage policy and that was still £506. As for specific off-road insurance several companies offer it (incl the Sureterm quote and Land Rover Insurance) as long as you are NOT competing. From biking off road i know it can be a grey area as to where road insurance stops . For example some greeen lanes would be covered, others not, and whilst i'm not so worried about car damage off road i am concerned about liability to pedestrians etc. Is this being overly careful?

YAS, i live in a low risk area and my bike insurance is very cheap. Without comparing like for like though its hard to say why your insurance was only £100 at 19 years old. That's pretty unusual from what i've read here and in my own experience ,unless it was a £1000 car insured for only Third party or something similar?

Cheers

Phil

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No normal motor insurer will cover for 'OFF ROAD' or Competition use, there are specialist insurers for that, normal motor insurance will cover you for green lanes [public rights of way] as they are public usage roads. the NFU will cover vehiles in rural counties witlshire being one of them.

see the other 110 insurance thread & use the NFU link to find your local agents office & go & talk to them in person.

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Thanks again all. I've talked to Sureterm again today and the price has somehow now come down to around £250, the policy specifically inclding green lane cover. Seems like i was either mistakenly given wrong info by the first agent i spoke to there or else they saw me coming ! I'll try the NFU as well though.

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Be warned that 'normal' insurance companies for 'normal' cars are likely to throw a wobbler if you even contemplate modifying your landy once you have it, you only have to patiently explain what a winch is down the phone to someone in Bangalore once to never want to do it again :lol:

A 4x4 'specialist' company would be the way to go... I have used sureterm before and they were cr@p when I had to claim after a break in... tried to write off my 110 for a broken window, scratched door and broken steering lock :o

Heard good things about NFU (don't ring, go to local office) and am with Adrian Flux for very modified 110 and my bike.

Mike

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NFU is indeed good.Only had time to call my local office rather than pop in but it's like dealing with a different world , one of 20 or 30 years ago.Personal service springs to mind and the price is good too. I'm down to £195ish now and that will do me if i can find the right Defender.

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I have been with NFU for the 110 since about 2002, when I had to switch insurers when I fitted a winch. They are excellent. I use an agency in North Oxfordshire (details not to hand at the moment) but there is one in Marlborough - well worth a try. I have now insured the Mercedes with them as well, their quote being about 50% of my renewal quote from Swintons :o

If you want the details of the North Oxon agency, PM me and I will dig them out.

Where in Wiltshire are you? There are quite a few forum members in the area. Welcome to LR4x4 :D

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Thanks for the welcome Dr Goon. I'm in chippenham and there is an NFU branch at Kington Langley, about 5 miles from me. Even though they said they were closing at 1pm today they called me back with the quote at 1:15.

My take on "green lane cover " is that the insurer understands the nature of Rupps, Boats and any other variations of old rights of way. From my biking history i know that many insurers don't have a clue what you are talking about when you mention this stuff so i am instantly more comfortable talking to one who says a policy covers green laning. Should the worst ever happen hopefully they wont be stumped if i can't give them a road number like the A4.

It may not mean much in practice but i still feel more comfortable dealing with people who sing from the same sheet.

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Thanks for the welcome Dr Goon. I'm in chippenham and there is an NFU branch at Kington Langley, about 5 miles from me. Even though they said they were closing at 1pm today they called me back with the quote at 1:15.

My take on "green lane cover " is that the insurer understands the nature of Rupps, Boats and any other variations of old rights of way. From my biking history i know that many insurers don't have a clue what you are talking about when you mention this stuff so i am instantly more comfortable talking to one who says a policy covers green laning. Should the worst ever happen hopefully they wont be stumped if i can't give them a road number like the A4.

It may not mean much in practice but i still feel more comfortable dealing with people who sing from the same sheet.

Philak, welcome to LR4x4, nice bunch here, though I say it myself :rolleyes:

I bought my nas in 1997 and insured with a 'specialist insurer' who charged me about £450 and I am now 50 plus (no rude comment please Mr Watts) and had 60% NCD from another vehicle.

The following year I went with NFU (Meopham Kent Branch) and paid £175, I tried to tell them it was a V8 left hooker, with winch, roll cage etc and all that the nice young lady on the phone wanted to know was IS IT A LAND ROVER!

NFU will cover you in UK and most of EU, either on tarmac, green lanes or fields or pay and play days. They will NOT cover you for any speed trials :rolleyes: competitions or off-road winch challenges if it is a competition. Basically if you use your LR like a Farmer you're covered!

The EU bit is good because I normally go to France at least once per year and unlike other insurance companies who charge a minimum of £25 for 2 weeks outside UK there is of course no charge from NFU, just go to France with your documents.

I use Land Rover recovery also because they cover UK and most of EU so no added charges when you pop over the Channel :lol:

My Ford Connect van at work is with NFU, my business insurance is with NFU and my house insurance is with NFU, could be that NFU is pretty good?

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When I tried to insure my 90 (1988) I tried various "specialist" LR insurers as well as the many

offering geat deals. Mention of Land Rover to one "big name" insurer resulted in a definite NO.

Another refused because its modified (after market steel 8 spokes), another wanted to know what

I meant by "wheels!" had to explain they were the round things at each corner, then refused to quote.

Another kept telling me to call back the next day for quote and then asking for more info. Never did

get a quote from these "specialists".

Finally tried Adrian Flux, spoke to a young man who knew exactly what we were talking about, and

came up with an agreed value quote (limited milage, ok. for second motor). Pleasure to deal with

them. (no connection otherwise!)

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Just got insured on my 1964 Series 2 with

FOOTMAN JAMES ,FC with mods (200tdi ,snorkel ,big tyres ) unlimited mileage ,break down cover (UK/EU) up to 30 days EU cover ,all for £99 valued @ £2000

not sureterm direct D'oh! :blink:
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