[Vid]

I have just called the insurance to let them know that the car will have non-standard alloys and different rear light clusters, and they have nobbled me for an extra £140!! Not only that, but my excess has gone up £200!!!! I already was paying £800 a year premium!

How the f*ck can they justify that kind of increase, its beyond me, surely if someone wants to nick the car, they will do so because its the car it is, not the wheels it has. I used to own a heavily modified Vectra, with engine mods also, and that was much cheaper. (And yes I know it was a Vectra, but everything was modified).

[doughboy]

it's not really about the mods as much as it tells them what sort of person YOU are.

99% of drivers just use cars as transport, standard, never touched.

When you mod your car you enter the statistical group of phsyco / modder / petrol head / weirdo / speedfreak etc etc.

yep, you've entered the same risk group as the pilled up max power dudes in 400bhp vxr corsas.

[Yeltzer]

What doughboy said. Those mods per se don't make your car more stealable, however they have now put you in with the crowd who go cruising round retail parks late at night and enter street races etc. thereby putting you in a higher risk category. May as well go the full hog and put the under-chassis blue lighting and 1 trillion gigowatt stereo in the back now ;-)

[m1bjr]

Originally Posted by Yeltzer

May as well go the full hog and put the under-chassis blue lighting and 1 trillion gigowatt stereo in the back now ;-)

In your 320d?

Wouldn't work IMO.

[Carrera RSR]

Just an excuse to steal case out of your wallet in my opinion. If you are over 30, a few years no claims, professional job with £30k + BMW they use the mods to add 20, 30 or 40% more premium. The cash they reduced the premium by to gain your business in the first place. Thieving fuckers.

Didn't get an increase on my home premium when I bought a new plasma, dvd sound system or fitted the £10k kitchen!!!!

[SteveF1]

But those items aren't on show and left outdoors night after night.

As above mods ring bells with insurers and not positive ones either. Us decent modders get slammed for all those yobs that congregate at McDonalds car parks in their ridiculous cars late at night that will ultimately go and crash whilst doughnutting in ASDA car parks up and down the land.

I think that insurance companies should differentiate between genuine manufacturer mods and those normally awful aftermarket mods and price accordingly. Us that buy genuine BMW mods get burnt when we buy and then burn again when we insure.

You can always 'forget' to mention the mods to the insurer though and push your luck.....

[Vid]

Originally Posted by SteveF1

I think that insurance companies should differentiate between genuine manufacturer mods and those normally awful aftermarket mods and price accordingly. Us that buy genuine BMW mods get burnt when we buy and then burn again when we insure.

You can always 'forget' to mention the mods to the insurer though and push your luck.....

I was trying to press this point to the guy on the phone that the lights were BMW parts but they weren't interested, he just came to the conclusion that they were 'clear lens rear lights', they know nothing.

I was contemplating not telling them but I thought the rest of my premium would be a waste of money if anything was to happen and they wouldn't pay anything out if anything happened.

I can see why they would increase the premium, obviously new wheels means I am going to race everything I can, even the grannies on scooters, and as for changing my lights, that means my dognuts are extended tricks of taking a corner now!

Thanks for the comments guys, I have calmed down a bit now from the other day, I was fuming all afternoon.

[BGM]

why would you do the mods if this is going to be a cause for rage?

we all know they bum you for it... so unless you are going to pay the premium, just don't bother with the mod.

[Vid]

If I want them I am having them, I expect to pay more, was just shocked at how much more. Have modified in the past and never got stung so much as this time round

[m1bjr]

Originally Posted by SteveF1

Us decent modders get slammed for all those yobs that congregate at McDonalds car parks in their ridiculous cars late at night that will ultimately go and crash
whilst doughnutting in ASDA car parks up and down the land.

I think that insurance companies should differentiate between genuine manufacturer mods and those normally awful aftermarket mods and price accordingly.
Us that buy genuine BMW mods get burnt when we buy and then burn again when we insure.

Eh?

I don't have ANY BMW mods on my car.
Am I a bigger risk than you as a result?
I doubt it, and check out the TA6 postcode area for risk

Smacks of snobbery tbh.

[willhollin]

Originally Posted by m1bjr

Eh?

I don't have ANY BMW mods on my car.
Am I a bigger risk than you as a result?
I doubt it, and check out the TA6 postcode area for risk

Smacks of snobbery tbh.

Who makes your grills and M3 bushes?

[BGM]

Originally Posted by willhollin

Who makes your grills and M3 bushes?

wouldn't even bother telling insurers about the bushes, as if they would ever know!

[doughboy]

Originally Posted by SteveF1

But those items aren't on show and left outdoors night after night.

As above mods ring bells with insurers and not positive ones either. Us decent modders get slammed for all those yobs that congregate at McDonalds car parks in their ridiculous cars late at night that will ultimately go and crash whilst doughnutting in ASDA car parks up and down the land.

I think that insurance companies should differentiate between genuine manufacturer mods and those normally awful aftermarket mods and price accordingly. Us that buy genuine BMW mods get burnt when we buy and then burn again when we insure.

You can always 'forget' to mention the mods to the insurer though and push your luck.....

They do treat them differently.

A BMW accessory is not a mod for a start, its a manufacturers approved accessory.

A while back i was looking into fitting the BMW performance suspension kit, my insurers said no increase for that as it was a manufacturers approved item.

I ended up fitting the birds kit, and of course had to pay a premium increase as its not a BMW kit.

[m1bjr]

Originally Posted by willhollin

Who makes your grills and M3 bushes?

You're quite right of course.
But they had no impact upon premium.

My point being to imply that fitting BMWs own 'tuner' parts instead of other designs makes for a lower risk driver is ridiculous.
Even if its true, which it appears is often the case.

[SteveF1]

I am neither a snob nor was I implying that you are more of a risk than anyone else.

What I am saying is that by buying a BMW designed, approved and sold modification it should in theory be of a build and quality comparable to that of the original part which cannot always be said for a lot of the poor mods that are generally bought in Halfords or the like. OEM mods tend to be more subtle in their design, attract less attention and generally look in keeping with the original look of the car and therefore not only make them less noticeable to those that may either want to steal it but also to those mindless idiots that may want to damage it because it stands out (for the wrong reasons).

As a result of this, and the fact that I am trying to keep the car as original BMW as possible, I would like the insurance companies to reflect this in their premium increase.

At the end of the day mods have a bad reputation because of the Saxo brigade that congregate in McDonalds car parks that tend not to have a massive amount of money to spend and therefore buy the cheapest and tackiest mods they can get their hands on. Its these that bump our premiums up as they tend to be white males around 17-25yrs and that as we all know is the biggest risk group for insurers to insure.

Its a generalisation I know but insurance is pretty much based around this assumption and I should know as my mate works in motor insurance.

They do treat them differently.

A BMW accessory is not a mod for a start, its a manufacturers approved accessory

Try telling that to most insurers. Most state in their small print that ANY modification from the cars original specification is classed as a mod and therefore you will be charged for it. Most mods either alter the appearance of performance and regardless of who makes the part the insurers will penalise you for changing the vehicle no matter how small the mod is. Admiral wanted £75 for an M3 lip on my bootlid and its the smallest and most discreet lip ever. In fact my missus hasn't even picked up on it and its been there for two months!

[Carrera RSR]

Originally Posted by SteveF1

But those items aren't on show and left outdoors night after night.

As above mods ring bells with insurers and not positive ones either. Us decent modders get slammed for all those yobs that congregate at McDonalds car parks in their ridiculous cars late at night that will ultimately go and crash whilst doughnutting in ASDA car parks up and down the land.

I think that insurance companies should differentiate between genuine manufacturer mods and those normally awful aftermarket mods and price accordingly. Us that buy genuine BMW mods get burnt when we buy and then burn again when we insure.

You can always 'forget' to mention the mods to the insurer though and push your luck.....

Winter 16 or 17'' alloys/tyres increase grip in poor cold conditions. Summer 18 or 19'' alloys/tyres increase grip in warm dry conditions. However if you admit to adding bigger alloys then I'll suspect there will be an added premium!!

So should your insurer add a premium to OEM BMW logo car matts, tow bar, roof bars, roof box, Winter alloys/tyres. All are on show equally, none add performance.

Then why add premium to blackline rear lights and black grills. Both of which add premium for most insurers and add no performance.

[KadeSdad]

Insurance companies are a business and like all businesses they are out to make money. Its just another way to screw you for a few quid more!

[doughboy]

Originally Posted by KadeSdad

Insurance companies are a business and like all businesses they are out to make money. Its just another way to screw you for a few quid more!

+1.

Most mainstream insurers don't want modders, so they penalise you heavily, although the mod-menu-system that most of them operate now is pretty quick and easy to choose and get a price.


Try a mod friendly specialist next time.

[chrisbin]

Answer to OP

Because they can!!!

SEOT!

[BanziBarn]

What would happen if I changed my wheels to ones which are an option from when you buy the car from new?

I.e. put wheels on which if they had been speced from new would mean you wouldn't be declaring any mods.

[doughboy]

Originally Posted by BanziBarn

What would happen if I changed my wheels to ones which are an option from when you buy the car from new?

I.e. put wheels on which if they had been speced from new would mean you wouldn't be declaring any mods.

Always a tricky one that kind of thing, but it depends on the insurer and how anal they are (or how stupid the call centre person is).

What if you buy a used car that has some optional rims fitted, but not the ones actually fitted when the car was new? I.e some alternative style that might have been ordered from new.

How would you know they were not 'original' and therefore not fall foul of these pitfalls?

I called to tell my insurer about my winters and rep wheels, and they said no increase as I kept the same 'style' of wheel at the same diameter.

As for tyres, they couldn't care less as long as they are suitably rated for the vehicle.

[toxicnerve]

So the concensus is that BMW OEM parts, even if retro-fitted are considered "manufacturer approved accessories" and should have no impact on your insurance premium?

If that is the case, do they even need declaring? I have been wanting to do a few mods to my car but have no bothered due to the insurance implications.

Also what about GAP insurance? I understands mods are not covered by gap policies but does having a mod/manufacturer approved accessory installed void your GAP insurance entirely (i.e. no GAP coverage in the event of total loss) or does it just mean the mods/accessories themselves are not covered but you would still get a payout up to the original invoice price?

If someone could clarify this that would be much appreciated....