I'm 18, just got my A2 license, turns out I can't insure any of the bikes I wanted to

TheW1zard wrote: »

Saw a learner on a gsxr600 what a joke. Way too much bike for them

I'd say there's a lot of learners on them, just that one was wearing their vest.

Jimmy Bottlehead wrote: »

They've a surprising amount of pep to them for a 400, and physically they look bigger than you'd expect from a 400.
Quick acceleration does start to run out of steam after about 80km/h, but I did a year commuting up and down the M1 at 120km/h on mine.
It's not ideal for longer drives due to the lack of wind protection, but they're absolutely savage for city driving and non-motorway roads.

The fact I was happy with mine for five years speaks to how good they are, so hopefully they're insurable for younger riders.
The chap I did my first IBT with said if it wasn't for insurance companies requiring newer bikes, he'd still be using the CB400s with learners.

I had one myself. I only retired her because the clutch cable kept snapping, left me stranded a good few times.

Right, I'm in the same boat, 18yo looking for insurance after moving up from an A1. Doing a year on a 125 doesn't mean anything to the insurers. Liberty told me that I can't insure any 250 until I have a full license. I have searched far and wide for bikes I could actually insure and only came across one, and I'm 90% sure it's an error on liberty's system. For some reason the Honley Rx3 is learner legal, no idea why, and also no idea where you would go about getting one, or whether you'd want one considering it's a single cylinder Chinese bike with no spare parts market, but it's there.

I ended up selling my single cylinder 125 air cooled cruiser, getting shafted by insurance, and then buying another single cylinder 125 air cooled cruiser to get me through the summer, and more importantly to keep my skills up for the test in September. As far as the price of insurance is concerned, although I paid 1000e the first year, down from 1400e having done a liberty course, my renewal was only 240e, which is of course infinitely better than anything you'll be paying on a car, and that's not even bringing tax into the equation.

Carole Nash, AXA and principle are weird, because they will insure me, but they will only give me comprehensive cover, which is going to cost 3k or some kind of nonsense number. This number didn't change much based on the bike either, it was similar for a cbf250, dragstar 250 or a cb250f for example, even though those bikes perform completely differently to one another.

Put simply mate, this is just one of those things where it sucks to be young, go off and get a 125 and sit your test on a rental bike. The 125 market is ridiculous because of young lads doing the exact same thing as I did and what you will probably end up doing, so you can be nearly guaranteed to get your money back. Then go and get your ninja 250, your cb250 or whatever. The auld fellas on here will be bragging about their 600cc super sports and their "ability to actually exceed the speed limit" but you'll be able to get off the bike without pulling your bad back. You're just gonna have to live with it for the time being. And trust me, it's infinitely better than getting mammy to ferry you around the place.

Also worth noting, I only checked this with liberty and carole nash, but they won't insure you on a 500 until you've been on the road 3 years, so do with that information what you will.

TheWarChicken wrote: »

Right, I'm in the same boat, 18yo looking for insurance after moving up from an A1. Doing a year on a 125 doesn't mean anything to the insurers. Liberty told me that I can't insure any 250 until I have a full license. I have searched far and wide for bikes I could actually insure and only came across one, and I'm 90% sure it's an error on liberty's system. For some reason the Honley Rx3 is learner legal, no idea why, and also no idea where you would go about getting one, or whether you'd want one considering it's a single cylinder Chinese bike with no spare parts market, but it's there.

I ended up selling my single cylinder 125 air cooled cruiser, getting shafted by insurance, and then buying another single cylinder 125 air cooled cruiser to get me through the summer, and more importantly to keep my skills up for the test in September. As far as the price of insurance is concerned, although I paid 1000e the first year, down from 1400e having done a liberty course, my renewal was only 240e, which is of course infinitely better than anything you'll be paying on a car, and that's not even bringing tax into the equation.

Carole Nash, AXA and principle are weird, because they will insure me, but they will only give me comprehensive cover, which is going to cost 3k or some kind of nonsense number. This number didn't change much based on the bike either, it was similar for a cbf250, dragstar 250 or a cb250f for example, even though those bikes perform completely differently to one another.

Put simply mate, this is just one of those things where it sucks to be young, go off and get a 125 and sit your test on a rental bike. The 125 market is ridiculous because of young lads doing the exact same thing as I did and what you will probably end up doing, so you can be nearly guaranteed to get your money back. Then go and get your ninja 250, your cb250 or whatever. The auld fellas on here will be bragging about their 600cc super sports and their "ability to actually exceed the speed limit" but you'll be able to get off the bike without pulling your bad back. You're just gonna have to live with it for the time being. And trust me, it's infinitely better than getting mammy to ferry you around the place.

Also worth noting, I only checked this with liberty and carole nash, but they won't insure you on a 500 until you've been on the road 3 years, so do with that information what you will.

Apt username

zubair wrote: »

We may be auld but we don't brag and we're too old for super sports... it hurts our wrists and back. Now that I've clarified that I can get back to my nap.

my auld fella hates super bikes,they were never his thing xD
He would brag more about having a Suzuki DR650, by far his favourite bike out of his collection.

I remember trying to insure and Evo 4 at 19 I think it was, I got it for 2500€ in the end. I remember people saying you'll get it for cheaper when your older. At around 30 now, they won't even quote it. I dunno what to say, I am still alive. Insurance companies would have you believe you'd kill yourself straight off the bat.

My first quote on the FZ after 1 year on a full licence was about 400€ in my late 20s. I remember riding the bike and saying to myself 'this is ****ing mental', riding this bike for 400€ insurance and the Evo at 2500€.

Moral of the story, insurance makes zero sense. It's all statistics and it works for them. Sadly.

galwaytt wrote: »

Question for you: I assume you did your year on A1 on an A1 Learner Permit ?

So, which test are you doing in September- A1 or...A2 ?

If its A2, did you resit all the A2 IBT modules and get a new A2 LP...or... ?

I did my IBT with an A1 then did an A2 IBT when I turned 18. I turned in my A1 permit when I got the A2. So I did all the modules again. I don't regret doing it, it was a needs must situation at the time and I knew I'd end up doing the A2 IBT again. I'm sitting the A2 exam in September.
I would have had the whole lot sorted ages ago were it not for the bloody 6 month rule.