Expensive repair

dieselbug

Think of this one the next time you think you have an expensive repair or looking at your insurance renewal.



http://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/rowan-atkinson-sets-record-for-biggest-ever-car-insurance-claim-091922086.html

aujopimur

I wonder what his excess was?.

TGi666

Could somebody summarise the link please?

john kinsella

TGi666 wrote: »

Could somebody summarise the link please?

Big crash, engine 20m from car, insurance paid lots

dgt

TGi666 wrote: »

Could somebody summarise the link please?

For those of us who don't want the distress of a yahoo page with hidden links and pop-ups everywhere...

Link wrote:

We may grumble about our premiums, but sometimes something happens that might even make you feel sorry for insurers.

For example, the people covering one of Rowan Atkinson's cars have just forked out a staggering £900,000 to fix it - the biggest repair bill in British history.

Atkinson, 58, suffered a shoulder injury in 2011 when he crashed his beloved McLaren F1 for the second time, but it wasn't the medical expenses that did the damage.

While the comic recovered quickly, his 240mph supercar spent more than a year in the hands of McLaren’s expert technicians in Woking, Surrey.

The result was a £910,000 repair bill for a car which Atkinson paid £640,000 for in 1997 - making the bill three times bigger than the most expensive repair claim previously documented, a £300,000 claim paid by Aviva to fix a crashed Pagani Zonda in 2010.

Atkinson, worth a reported £71 million, hit a slippery patch of road near Peterborough in August 2011, he lost control of the F1 and hit a tree - leaving the car’s 6.1-litre engine 20-yards away from the rest of the vehicle. It was the second time Atkinson had crashed his F1, with the actor front-ending it into a Rover Metro in 1999.

Technicians at McLaren Special Operations spent four weeks calculating how much the car would cost to repair, with the figure standing at £910,000.

The job was given the go-ahead by the insurance company because the F1’s value has soared, with one immaculate model selling for £3.5 million last year.

Now, 16-months after the accident, Atkinson is back on the road in the car and wants to continue to use it as regularly as possible and not keep it hidden away.

The star’s full experience is documented in this month’s ‘Classic and Sports Car’ where he explained getting behind the wheel after more than a year was like "putting a familiar sweater on".

He told the magazine: "I'm not a collector. I don't like the toy cupboard syndrome that causes so many good cars to evaporate.

"It depresses me that they are hidden away like investment art, or gold ingots in a Swiss vault.

"The McLaren is just so usable, it is a crime not to use it. No gritted teeth, you just get in and drive."

TLDR: Rowan Atkinson's McLaren F1 holds the record for the biggest claim for a vehicle at £900,000 after he crashed it again

Edser

2nd time he's crashed it - what must his premiums be like? :eek:

_Kaiser_

I was reading through that wondering why they didn't just write it off until I saw the current value for one! :eek:

While I admire his desire to use the thing rather than seal it up for life as so many people do with cars like that, I'm not sure it's really much use as a roadcar, unless you happen to have a Nurburgring between your front door and office/studio

_Kaiser_

OSI wrote: »

Supposedly it's very easy to drive as an everyday car. And being a central drivers seat, plenty of room for the shopping either side of ya

Must be a pain at toll booths/parking machines tho! :P

Interceptor

If you've got it, flaunt it and if you flaunt it don't be afraid to crash it...

'cptr

_Kaiser_

Interceptor wrote: »

If you've got it, flaunt it and if you flaunt it don't be afraid to crash it...

'cptr

If I was worth £71 million I don't think I'd be too concerned either

TGi666

Cheers Folks, internet here in work is blocked for most sites

dgt

TGi666 wrote: »

Cheers Folks, internet here in work is blocked for most sites

I'd say more blocking yahoo, because yahoo is a load of sh*te :pac:

TGi666

also I though yahoo was being wound up and shut down or is it still generating a few pound?

ThreeLineWhip

If I was that rich I wouldn't bother with insurance.

colm_mcm

ThreeLineWhip wrote: »

If I was that rich I wouldn't bother with insurance.

If I had a history like that I'd definitely have insurance

ThreeLineWhip

You could lodge a bond with the government which avoids the need for insurance.