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

Most insurance companies seem to charge an administration fee these days if you make a change to your policy - such as adding another driver, or adding business use - part-way through the year, and that is probably reasonable.

Insurers demand to be told when you make the slightest change to the vehicle specification - including things like fitting winter tyres. In the past, my insurer - when told that I have fitted or removed winter tyres - has simply made a note on the policy without levying an admin charge. However, when I phoned a couple of days ago to report that I had just fitted winter tyres, they tried to impose a charge of £17.50 on me. When I complained, they went into a huddle and then agreed to waive the charge "on this occasion" - with the implication that they would try it on again when I remove the tyres in the Spring.

Have any others had a similar experience? Considering that winter tyres are a safety feature which reduces the likelihood of having to make a claim in the winter, I would take a dim view of the situation if my insurance were to cost an additional £35 p.a. simply as a result of fitting/removing them.

Reply to
Roger Mills
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Why do you have to tell them? Does your policy say so explicity?

I don't see any difference between fitting winter tyres and any other tyre change - after all, each time I get a new tyre I choose from what is available and make the best choice/money I can.

Reply to
Tim Watts

It is probably an indication of just how competitive the insurance market is. Companies try to make the customer pay for every little extra. Personally I don't think it is a good business model.

Reply to
Peter Crosland

Change insurer

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Reply to
Richard

I don't swap between summer/winter tyres, but if I did, I doubt I'd consider it a "modification" necessary to report to the insurer, does yours /actually/ demand you notify them of this?

The only mention of the word "tyre" in my policy is to exclude them from cover for damage.

Reply to
Andy Burns

Really? Do they need to be informed when you add winter screenwash too? ;-)

Reply to
Dave Plowman

Is a winter tyre mentioned in the owners handbook? I would have thought that if it's a manufacturers listed option, there shouldn't be any requirement to inform your insurance company.

Tim

Reply to
Tim+

That has always been my assumption when fitting winter tyres and it determined my choice of tyre when buying them.

Reply to
Nightjar

Mine just lists what size they have to be, not any makes/types.

Reply to
Andrew Gabriel

If I were you, I would contact the insurance company in writing to ask for their policy on exactly that issue. Depending on the response, you might have ammunition for the reversal in spring, or another question for next year's renewal with all the other companies.

Reply to
polygonum

fitting/removing them.

I've had all sorts of makes of tyres over the years. None of them "manufacturer listed".

What makes winter tyres special?

Reply to
Tim Watts

unfortunately, it's the one that the rise of internet comparison sites has foisted upon us

tim

Reply to
tim.....

do you mean technically?

or something else

Reply to
tim.....

I mean in the context of this discussion.

I buy my tyres by:

size load rating max speed runflat (where applicable)

These are the criteria that make the tyre suitable or not suitable for the car.

Within that criteria being met there are 100s of makes and versions of tyres, all with different abilities and prices. I used to buy tyres that were good at clearing water (Zeon ZV4s) but 2 years ago I discovered they were rubbish in snow.

So now I'm looking at winter tyres[1] as I have my fronts coming up for replacement anyway.

I see no difference in mounting "winter tyres" to "wet weather tyres" except the latter were not branded as such - they were just highly rated in that ability.

I certainly do not think I need to tell my insurers - though I will run a search over the policy docs to double check. It occurred to me no more than changing the brand of my screenwash.

[1] I was talking to a local garage which excelled themselves sorting out SWMBOs Mini when the antiroll bush went.

I used to thing winter tyres = another set of rims. It's now been explained to me that they can and do regularly demount and remount a full set of tyres for a lot of customers and this works well if you have somewhere to store them - which I now do.

My car's never been fun in the ice (well, it's "fun" but only if you don't need to go anywhere fast!) so I thought I might try it this year, especially as we are doing a week in the Forest of Dean for a winter holiday and there are some nice slopy roads around there.

Reply to
Tim Watts

Where on earth did you get that info from?

Reply to
ARW

Compared to summer or all weather tyres: A softer compound that has better grip when the temperature drops to 7C or less. A tread pattern that is designed to provide better grip on snow; for road use this does not have to be a mud and snow pattern, which can be noisy.

In Germany, the Police can stop you continuing your journey if you don't have winter tyres fitted when the conditions call for them.

Reply to
Nightjar

Many thanks for that link. My insurer is listed among those not needing to be told about winter tyres, and for which there is no effect on the premium! So why didn't they say "You don't need to tell us" when I phoned them the other day?

I have invoked their complaints procedure about the way my call was handled, anyway - and this link will provide very useful ammunition if I get a less than satisfactory reply.

Several people have asked why I bothered to tell them in the first place. All insurers have clauses about being able to repudiate claims if you have failed to disclose any material facts - and usually give advice along the lines of "If you're not sure whether it's material, tell us anyway in order to be safe". I haven't found anything in my documentation which specifically refers to winter tyres - but there are lots of references to "modifications" without defining exactly what is meant by the term. I've had conversations with my insurer at renewal time, stating that I would be using winter tyres in the winter - and they have always asked me to let them know when I fit and remove them, and have always confirmed that there would be no change to the premium. This is the first time that they've tried to impose an admin fee.

Reply to
Roger Mills

Vot sort of tyres do you have? Ver is your paperwork?

Reply to
ARW

A few years ago I asked my insurers about this very issue. They were extremely iffy. In the end, I could not get any that were the right size for my car so did not need to go further. They appeared to take the view that anyone who fits winter tyres will be out on the roads in severe conditions which everyone else would avoid - hence an overall increase in risk.

Reply to
polygonum

Yes they are, but they're a sort of optional extra rather than alternative - because the recommended size is different from the standard tyre - so you need different rims as well.

Reply to
Roger Mills

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