Insurance for Spider LE Contract Hire

Hi all,

Just wondered if anyone that has contract hire cars can recommend good insurers. I've noticed a huge price difference between quotes depending if I am the legal owner/registered keeper compared to the contract hire company being legal owner/keeper.

I have one quote that seems ok, but the choice of insurers is much less.

Any help would be much appreciated!

Thanks

Try Kwik Fit

Try Swinton insurance

I'd be interested in who you go with - ill be insuring a contract hire car next month - like you say the quotes I have are at least 200 pounds more than for privately owned cars.

I will be calling my insurance company shortly to chjeck this out as I have placed an order for an LE on contract hire.

I would not have thought you are any more risk than if youowned the car - sounds like profitering to me.

Just checked with my insurance company and my premium will go up by 12 a year.

Try swiftcover.com

My total premium is £38 a month so around £440 a year.

Thanks for the responses so far. It seems I am not at the list of what most insurers want at the moment

I have one goodish quote with performance direct at £600. KwiK-Fit and Swinton both over £1200. Swift not as bad at £800.

I'll keep on trying, tbh £600 is not end of the world.

Main reason for the post is when I used the comparison sites such as compare the market and go compare half the insurers say they will not insure if not legal owner. Another 40% of quotes are over £1400 and 10% fight it out within a couple of hundred of what I expected. I was not aware the legal owner thing would be such an issue. Maybe they expect you not to care for the car??

Originally Posted by SPPalfa

Just checked with my insurance company and my premium will go up by 12 a year.

Try swiftcover.com

My total premium is £38 a month so around £440 a year.

Out of interest do you know if you are registered keeper with Fiat Auto Contracts? My brother has a contract Audi and he is not legal owner but is registered keeper.

When I asked the question of Alfa I'm not sure the guy understood what I meant. But I have noticed that the main difference in price is dependant on if registered keeper or not. Legal owner limits the choice even more, but does not effect the price.

My dealer said that FAC would be the legal owner of the car.

I was expecting mine to go up by a hell of a lump but £12 a year I can live with.

When I double checked with Direct Line - the price came DOWN!

Be careful though, if you write the car off they pay market value - but that doesnt get you out of your contract, even after paying them the insurance value you will still owe 40% of the remaining payments, as, in effect, you are terminating early

Ask your dealer about GAP insurance to cover this, I got it, peace of mind,

Originally Posted by cj romeo

When I double checked with Direct Line - the price came DOWN!

Be careful though, if you write the car off they pay market value - but that doesnt get you out of your contract, even after paying them the insurance value you will still owe 40% of the remaining payments, as, in effect, you are terminating early

Ask your dealer about GAP insurance to cover this, I got it, peace of mind,

Very good point - will have to look at that when / if I get an LE

Originally Posted by cj romeo

When I double checked with Direct Line - the price came DOWN!

Be careful though, if you write the car off they pay market value - but that doesnt get you out of your contract, even after paying them the insurance value you will still owe 40% of the remaining payments, as, in effect, you are terminating early

Ask your dealer about GAP insurance to cover this, I got it, peace of mind,

Cheers, I was going to ask about this when I collect it. I think it's usually about a £300 one off payment?

Originally Posted by MORGANO

Cheers, I was going to ask about this when I collect it. I think it's usually about a £300 one off payment?

Something like that mate.

Originally Posted by MORGANO

Out of interest do you know if you are registered keeper with Fiat Auto Contracts? My brother has a contract Audi and he is not legal owner but is registered keeper.

When I asked the question of Alfa I'm not sure the guy understood what I meant. But I have noticed that the main difference in price is dependant on if registered keeper or not. Legal owner limits the choice even more, but does not effect the price.

I lease my Brera through FAC and am the registered keeper.

With respect to GAP insurance some insurance companies provide "back to invoice" for a set period of normally either one or two years. This pays out the full invoice cost of the vehicle if it is written off in that time period rather than a market value number. IIRC Tesco are one of these providers.

The comparison sites proved to be absolutely useless when I was insuring my car and I ended going via APlan brokers who found me what was the best deal out there at the time - 3.2 Brera, 35 yr old, 3pts, 2 yrs NCB, return to invoice at £600 p.a.

Back to invoice doesnt cover it, honest.

Originally Posted by cj romeo

Back to invoice doesnt cover it, honest.

How so ? Can you explain because if that's the case I need to take precautions

You're saying that if the car is written off FAC expect both the market value for the vehicle and the statuatory 40% of remaining monthly payments to end the contract. Sadly writing off one's car doesn't terminate the contract !

I'm guessing that return to invoice would work depending on the time at which a write off occured. Suppose the invoice value of a vehicle was £25k and after 1 year it was written off but at a market value of £20K. If the 40% outstanding fees were less than £5k would that not cover it or would the policy not work that way ?

Am genuinely confused because when my dealer tried to sell me GAP and I said that I had back to invoice on my insurance policy he said that I would be OK. Similarly insurance providers infer that the product negates the need for GAP cover in the time period that the RTI is in effect.

Originally Posted by RSK

You're saying that if the car is written off FAC expect both the market value for the vehicle and the statuatory 40% of remaining monthly payments to end the contract. Sadly writing off one's car doesn't terminate the contract !

Thats what I mean, yes.

Obviously 'return to invoice' might cover you later on in the contract, when the market value is lower and you have only a few payments left,

But say for example you write it off early in the contract, you owe them virtually the full £25K or whatever and in my case plus about £7500 to cover the 40% of the remaining payments....

Same as I would owe them if I wanted to return the car early.

The gap insurance I have covers me up to £10K in the difference between pay out and settlement

I'm confused by that I will ask my dealer to have a look at when I see him.

So if I write the car the day collecting it and my insurance pays out the full value - I still owe 40% of the contract cost to FAC.

Originally Posted by cj romeo

Thats what I mean, yes.

Obviously 'return to invoice' might cover you later on in the contract, when the market value is lower and you have only a few payments left,

But say for example you write it off early in the contract, you owe them virtually the full £25K or whatever and in my case plus about £7500 to cover the 40% of the remaining payments....

Same as I would owe them if I wanted to return the car early.

The gap insurance I have covers me up to £10K in the difference between pay out and settlement

Unless I've missed something in my RTI GAP agreement (through the same dealer as you ) then there's no risk - all I'll have is a replacement car for the duration of the contract and perhaps some discussion with FAC as to why the car I give back to them is not the car they gave me. This is always assuming that I want to continue with the contract.

In terms of insurance I'm with Privilege who will cover vehicles for which I'm not the registered keeper whereas Direct Line wouldn't .

For those of you taking Contract Hire be aware of the extra charges that can build up. If you take the car abroad you need written authority which needs to be renewed annually, if you have a private plate you pay an admin fee for the transfer (both ways) and woe betide you if you fall victim to the congestion charge as Red Ken made it impossible for FAC to send the charge on to you - they pay it on your behalf (therefore accepting guilt) and send you the bill + £60 for their troubles

Dont intend taking it abroad or anywhere near London - thats what plains and trains are for.

How much is the admin fee for the private plate.

Originally Posted by SPPalfa

Dont intend taking it abroad or anywhere near London - thats what plains and trains are for.

My daily drive to the office in Switzerland would disagree

Originally Posted by SPPalfa

How much is the admin fee for the private plate.

Honestly can't remember but £50 (+VAT of course) rings a bell. To be fair the process was slick but just another unexpected cost.

I cant see the point in driving to london pay red kens charges whne I can take a train.

May just leave the PP off the car then as people can see I have an 08 plate car.

Just had the first comment re the thing being so unreliable i needed to change at 10 months old or it would break down.