Motor insurance 'admin' charges [OT in uk.d-i-y]

[Roger Mills]

That is precisely what I've done, via their complaints procedure. I shall await the reply with interest - especially in the light of the ABI document cited by another poster.

[Roger Mills]

The construction and formulation of winter tyres is different from summer tyres. They use a softer rubber which remains flexible in cold conditions, and the tread pattern is divided into a larger number of smaller blocks - which can flex independently to grip the surface better (allegedly!). However, their grip in warm conditions is inferior to that of summer tyres, and they wear out faster - so need to be used only when the temperature is predominantly below 7degC.

Some vehicle manufacturers - mine included - recommend a different wheel and tyre size combination in the winter. My summer tyres are 225/45-17 which are totally useless in snow. The winter tyres are 205/55-16 which, being slightly narrower and higher profile in addition to their 'winter tyre' specification, makes them a lot better. There's no significant change to the gearing despite being on 16" wheels rather than 17" because the higher profile gives them virtually the same rolling radius, within a couple of percent.

[Roger Mills]

With my standard tyres, I struggle to get out of my road when there's as much as a light dusting of snow - but the winter tyres are infinitely better. Much safer.

[Mr Pounder]

RAC charged us a quid for removing one 5 year old no blame accident whilst I was shopping online for the best quotes. I went back with them after the usual nasty phone call. I rang up just to find out what the quid was for. Okay, its only a quid, but if 100,000 people do it ............

[Tim Watts]

On 23/11/14 18:55, "Nightjar

[Adrian]

Fitting winter tyres - assuming they meet the approved size and speed and load ratings - isn't a modification or a departure from vehicle specification, so there's no need to inform your insurer, any more than there'd be a need to inform them you've changed brand of tyre.

[Adrian]

Don't confuse an answer from a clueless call-centre muppet with an official requirement.

[fred]

If you find in future you are with an insurer that requires winter disclosure then simply make a single disclosure, "During winter months I fit winter tyres to my vehicle" which covers your use in winter and summer from now until whenever.

[fred]

In article , ARW writes

Not that much different from the treatment in other snow zones requiring you to have either snow tyres or chain up when conditions dictate: France, US or Canada as examples.

[Chris Bartram]

One issue is speed rating. My car usually wears 225/45 WR 17 tyres IIRC, the winters are HR or VR. The car probably can't exceed the HR rating anyway, but some might see it as a modification, especially if you fit steels instead of alloys (I have a spare set of alloys).

I just asked when taking out the policy, and they didn't care.

[Chris Bartram]

Problem is, quite ordinary cars, like my Leon, have high-speed tyres as standard (WR IIRC), and winters are hard to come by with that rating. It turned out my insurers don't care, though.

[Adrian]

And what is the smallest/lowest-rated "official" option for your particular spec of car? I'll bet it isn't 45 profile W-rated 17".

[Roland Perry]

In message , at 16:46:09 on Sun, 23 Nov 2014, Tim Watts remarked:

They work better in the Winter.

[Adrian]

Just because they're the tyres it came on as standard doesn't mean they're the only standard-fit tyre size.

Quick google says that the 225/45 17 size you gave in another answer is part of a "sport pack" option on relatively cooking sections of the range. A little more checking shows that standard fit with that engine goes down to 195/65 15 V-rated.

[Dave Liquorice]

But not the road/surface conditions you are driving on. Winter tyres have a softer compound than normal tyres at low temperatures. The blocks of the tread pattern will have lots of sipes, narrow cuts across the width of the tyre face.

The tyres that came with the current disco were some form of "go faster" type with quite large blocks and not a sipe in sight. Even on fresh deepish (4 to 6") snow it couldn't pull the skin of a rice pudding let alone get back up a very shallow hill that it had just come down. The only way was down, which involved at 1:7 also snow covered hill. With proper Vredestein Wintrac's fitted it just drives up that 1:7 covered in snow without batting an eyelid.

A true winter tyre will out perform an wet weather tyre, on snow... I've worn the wintracs out after 45,000 miles and I'm now on Pirelli Scorpion STR's not quite as good on snow as the Wintrac's but still better than a "normal" tyre.

I've certainly never come across such a requirement. Do people tell their insurers when they replace a tyre after a puncture or when they are worn out? Does everyone do absolute like for like replacement? That I very much doubt, I expect most people just take it to a tyre place and get the cheapest that will fit.

Another set of rims is the way to do it if you are going to swap them yourself. Getting a tyre off a rim by hand isn't easy...

Mud != snow != winter tyre. A more generic M+S (Mud and Snow) all season tyre is probably a better bet that a real winter tyre. Just keep an eye on the number of sipes.

[Dave Liquorice]

Can't say I noticed this summer as I squeezed the last few thousand miles out of a set of Vredestein Wintracs. They were getting a bit iffy in the wet towards the end of life but by then they were only just legal on tread depth.

As for wear 45,000 miles from the set of Vredstein's isn't to shabby. Other tyres like Pirelli Scorpian STR, Michelin or Goodyear I've struggled to get 30,000 miles from. Winter tyres have more natural rubber to remain softer at low temperatures, they also contain more silica to make them tougher.

[Chris Bartram]

Yeah, mine has the sport pack, on a otherwise cooking 140BHP diesel. Still wonder (as mine is insured as the Sport) if some insurance companies may try to query if you have a lover speed rating?

Winter tyre options are listed somewhere too, and include 16" (and maybe the 15" you quote) but does that count as "standard" given the precise spec of any particular car? Many insurers make it a condition to quote options, even if factory-fitted.

[DavidR]

[Nightjar]

[Nightjar]

On 23/11/2014 20:12, Tim Watts wrote: ...

Depending upon the car, you may need to be careful of speed ratings. My winter tyres are only rated to 130mph, so I need to programme that into the car as its maximum speed when they are fitted.