Car Insurance Options

[mrpseudonym]

Maybe, but it will come down to perspective.

I paid NRMA around $1580 in September 2023 for Comprehensive Plus coverage on my brand new MY RWD with agreed value of $72000.

On December 26 I lodged a hail damage claim which turned out to be a $34,000 repair, and will be completed after 3 months. Over those three months I have had a hire car at no cost to me (assuming a bulk deal rate of $50 per day, that's another $4500 of cost on the claim).

All of that will cost me my excess of $1000, and I have no claim bonus protection included on the policy - so even if "hail" was classed as my fault, no effect on my future premiums.

I figure that policy was good value for money, and covers 20 years and more of future/past premiums.

I do get it - in the absence of a claim, insurance premiums are often viewed (including by me) as an impost. It takes a single claim to see the other side of the coin.

Its no so much the impost of the premium, it is the premium that applies to tesla insurance premiums and that is for the companies that will actually insure them. I have more than one car, and insuring the tesla each year is by far the hardest.

Edited to add: oh and if you got the best deal on your premium from NRMA you are very definitely in the minority

 

[paulp]

Its no so much the impost of the premium, it is the premium that applies to tesla insurance premiums and that is for the companies that will actually insure them. I have more than one car, and insuring the tesla each year is by far the hardest.

Edited to add: oh and if you got the best deal on your premium from NRMA you are very definitely in the minority

Yep its a tesla thing. My new eqe ev is worth 3 times the insurance replacement cost of the model S, and the premiums are $20 different. Same nominated drivers, same garage.

 

[Midnight Man]

Its no so much the impost of the premium, it is the premium that applies to tesla insurance premiums and that is for the companies that will actually insure them. I have more than one car, and insuring the tesla each year is by far the hardest.

Edited to add: oh and if you got the best deal on your premium from NRMA you are very definitely in the minority

Interestingly enough, the best deal of the insurers I am prepared to insure with (there are some I refuse to deal with, as I have no faith of being looked after in a claim) was NRMA.

As a comparison, the year prior, I renewed my now-traded 2020 Subaru Forester insurance with less features (no hire car, no excess free windscreen) for about $1200. Considering the Forester, brand new, was worth around $46,000, I considered the $1580 at NRMA to be "equivalent" in terms of risk value (though I didn't then, and haven't now done the comparative math).

Of course, insurance premiums take a lot of factors into account - and I will admit I was pleasantly surprised when I sent shopping around for insurance, as I wasn't expecting the NRMA to be competitive.

 

[Vostok]

I have this not necessarily mathematically or actuarially rigorous approach to vehicle insurance premiums.

After about 5 years, when the “market value” or “agreed value” often reaches desultory levels on a comprehensive policy, I go into the policy and increase the excess until it roughly equals the premium and buy at that level. After a few years, policy premiums seem more influenced by the age of the vehicle rather than the insured value. So I’ll probably do that with my Tesla as it turns 5 later this year.

And if and when the insured value falls to around 3x-4x the premium (probably during the 10-15 year period), I switch to a third-party property damage only policy. You should certainly do it well before the value reaches 2x, because at that point a write-off claim on comprehensive insurance would effectively provide no benefit (the policy fee plus excess equals the agreed value).

 

[Maximillan]

Worth a read to get a sense of the broader change that still needs to occur in the Australian claims and repair sector.

'It was a disaster': The big problem with electric car insurance claims

Electric car owners have been warned of delays and malpractice when it comes to insurance claims.

www.drive.com.au

 

[Midnight Man]

Worth a read to get a sense of the broader change that still needs to occur in the Australian claims and repair sector.

Interesting article.

My Model Y RWD went through a hail storm on 26 December. As of 2 April it's still being repaired - I live in the Hunter Valley, so not in a capital city, probably not as remote as the folks in this article, but still with more limited options than a capital city.

Based on this, here is what I think one should look for in an insurer, particularly for those outside of a capital city. Note, I'm talking here in terms of Tesla mainly, where repairs should be carried out at authorised repairers:

- Don't go with a "penny-pincher" insurer. I won't name names, but stick with one of high repute.
- Always, always, always take choice of repairer. This way, the muppet who doesn't understand the need to take it to an approved repairer can be "short-circuited" by you, who do understand this, by nominating the approved repairer from the get-go. This alone would have saved me countless hours of effort trying to obtain spare parts myself and having them shipped to non-approved repairers, and causing a 2 week delay.
- If you depend on your car, always take unlimited hire car coverage. If you live outside a capital city, you know you need your car for transport, it's way less optional than in a city area. Sure, you get a hire car anyway if the incident is not your fault, but in the case of hail damage, I would have (by now) had to pay around $9000 in hire car costs.
- Take agreed value wherever possible, make sure you have that set to the CURRENT value of the car EXCLUDING any rebates or discounts you may have gotten, and make sure to include ALL the extras you put in it or on it. Don't forget window tinting, PPF, ceramic coating, seat covers, chargers and cables (if in the vehicle normally) etc.

The difference in premium at any insurer to include all the above versus a "normal" policy is not usually much as far as I have found - it was by chance when I took out my policy in September having just bought the car that all the above (less choice of repairer - my mistake) cost an extra $80 for the year.

 

[Vostok]

Tesla recently opened a body shop in Alexandria, so it will be interesting to see if that improves things on the repair front.

 

[paulp]

Tesla recently opened a body shop in Alexandria, so it will be interesting to see if that improves things on the repair front.

Only in Sydney, so I cannot see insurance costs falling because of it

 

[Goneincognito]

Only in Sydney, so I cannot see insurance costs falling because of it

Yes, Alexandria is in Sydney.
Nothing was mentioned about repair costs falling, just possible repair timeframes.

 

[schnaxxl]

Yes, Alexandria is in Sydney.
Nothing was mentioned about repair costs falling, just possible repair timeframes.

yep
I got the email about that
sadly my car is booked in with another NRMA approved place for minor panel work following an altercation last month with a food courier on an e-bike*

*there could be a joke in there or an irony, but I’m not amused

 

[Maximillan]

One colleague finally has his 3 in for some panel work, it's been a three month wait due to parts.

Another colleague has been waiting since January for Tesla to supply a bonnet for a Y. You'd expect that replacement bonnets would be needed in decent numbers by panel beaters for repairs. The wait times don't bode well for insurance premiums.

 

[Vostok]

Another colleague has been waiting since January for Tesla to supply a bonnet for a Y. You'd expect that replacement bonnets would be needed in decent numbers by panel beaters for repairs. The wait times don't bode well for insurance premiums.

People used to wait many months for replacement windscreens too. I don’t know if that’s still the case. Hopefully it’s improved.

Parts that are the most likely to be damaged should be stocked in quantity by Tesla - windscreens, bonnets, nosecones and bumpers at a minimum.

 

[Midnight Man]

One colleague finally has his 3 in for some panel work, it's been a three month wait due to parts.

Another colleague has been waiting since January for Tesla to supply a bonnet for a Y. You'd expect that replacement bonnets would be needed in decent numbers by panel beaters for repairs. The wait times don't bode well for insurance premiums.

Interesting, my MY needs a new bonnet among other things - maybe that's what's holding up my repair (been in since 2nd January).