Car too old to insure on regular policy. Not rare enough for classic

kiely182

I have a 95 starlet very good condition been off the road for a good few years. wanted to put it back on the road just to stop it from wasting away. cant get it insured by regular insurance companies. so i rang first ireland and was told that they don't insure massed produced cars. does this mean that its impossible to get these kinds of cars insured at all. if so i think we will lose out on a lot of the 90s cars in the future. as they will all just rot away from sitting around. i know a starlet isn't that rare. but they where a first car for many people and the nostalgia factor always comes into play in the classic car scene

piston

My everyday car is a 1990s Peugeot 205 which I've owned for many years and although it does look a little tatty due to minor knocks it's received it sitting in car parks over the years I've always maintained it well, it passed NCT first time this year, as it does most years, drives well, remains reliable, it's now different enough to really stand out, I like it and have no intention of changing it.

However, the insurance situation is getting ridiculous as basically no insurance company will give me a quote as this well maintained, low-powered petrol hatchback is such a high risk so I end up with having to just renew with my current company without question. I can get cheaper quotes on a 325i BMW and I would like an explanation as to why a 21 year old guy I work with after one year's driving experience is paying less for his insurance than I am after 22 years of driving without ever having made an insurance claim.

I've had insurance companies tell me that old cars are dangerous because they are badly maintained and unroadworthy. What is my NCT cert for? The NCT tester tells me that older cars are usually a pleasure to test as they're owned by people who look after them in comparison to many newer cars which never get serviced.

_Brian

piston wrote: »

My everyday car is a 1990s Peugeot 205 which I've owned for many years and although it does look a little tatty due to minor knocks it's received it sitting in car parks over the years I've always maintained it well, it passed NCT first time this year, as it does most years, drives well, remains reliable, it's now different enough to really stand out, I like it and have no intention of changing it.

However, the insurance situation is getting ridiculous as basically no insurance company will give me a quote as this well maintained, low-powered petrol hatchback is such a high risk so I end up with having to just renew with my current company without question. I can get cheaper quotes on a 325i BMW and I would like an explanation as to why a 21 year old guy I work with after one year's driving experience is paying less for his insurance than I am after 22 years of driving without ever having made an insurance claim.

I've had insurance companies tell me that old cars are dangerous because they are badly maintained and unroadworthy. What is my NCT cert for? The NCT tester tells me that older cars are usually a pleasure to test as they're owned by people who look after them in comparison to many newer cars which never get serviced.

No point in questioning this.
Their game, their ball so they make up the rules as they go along.

Companies won’t take on older “cheap” cars as they have been the car of choice for the professional crash and claim brigade. The nonsense about road worthiness is a distraction.

So you just have to play by their rules and that’s it.

dr.fuzzenstein

It's lack of thought and logic by insurance companies one could almost think, but perhaps not.
Because crooks use old, cheap cars for crash for cash scams, they have decided to use half the equasion in their risk asessment.
Going by complete logic, anyone with a checkered or no history who buys a €500 car should equal alarm.
But the insurance companies aren't doing that, because it means more work for them (at least 2 key strokes)
So they have decided to modify the equasion. It means that ANY car WILL turn into a crash-scam clunker the second it turns 15 years old.
That means any careful driver whose had a license for 10 years or more, never had a crash and drives a well maintained car WILL turn into a crash for cash scam artist overnight and cannot be insured anymore.
Solid and undeniable logic right there, right? It's along the same lines as 99% of drivers were wearing socks when they crashed. It therefore follows that socks cause accidents. This is the argument used by insurance companies.
But that is only the PR spin bullsh*t version. What they're really thinking IMO is "we are getting shafted here and nothing gets done as it gets worse and worse. Let's shaft them back until something is fcuking well done. How much pain in the rectum would Sir like?"
Sometimes the only method that works is the thumbscrews and sometime lessons are only learnt through pain. At some stage the government will have to consider if their cosy relationship whith the legal profession makes it worth that insurance becomes pretty much unaffordable in Ireland and finally people will have to drive without*, close businesses and cancel gigs and festivals.

I have to say that insurance companies are getting rode royally in Ireland through stupid claim levels, like "oh I think my neck hurts a bit" is an instant €12-15k. That wasn't enough, with the Buncranna case the legal profession is trying to establsih a precedent that if you happen across an accident as a completely unconnected randomer, you can now sue the dead for "stress" and trouser a small fortune for nothing whatsoever. A bigger accident with a few bystanders and first aiders and not forgetting police and ambulance staff tempted by a bit of cash could result in not only vast payouts to the few people genuinely (or not) hurt, but also big rewards for people who were simply lucky enough to happen across the accident. If there's a chance for a claim and money, people will go for it. And solicitors, who need to expand their business and maximise profits, will only be too glad to be of service. Out of the sheer goodness of their hearts naturally.
The legal profession has the government over some kind of barrel over this, but of course would any politician really unzip his fly and proceed to urninate in the soup of near and dear colleagues, friends and family members? Government and legal are so close-knit, they are almost inbred. You're looking for corruption in Ireland? There it is, right there.

*
Oh wait, they're already doing that!
https://www.rte.ie/news/2016/1219/839842-uninsured-drivers-motor-insurance/