Modifications - What are the insurance implications?

[emily_mx5]

Guran is correct, legal mods mean engineered and signed off.


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[Suspense]

Guran is correct, legal mods mean engineered and signed off.


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Not quite, the new laws allow self-certifying for certain basic mods.

VSI 6: Light Vehicle Modifications tells you what you need to know.

[Nevyn72]

Guran is correct, legal mods mean engineered and signed off.

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Not quite, the new laws allow self-certifying for certain basic mods.

VSI 6: Light Vehicle Modifications tells you what you need to know.

Yep VSI 6.v3 released in November 2013 gives you a rundown of the threasholds of modification (in NSW) beyond which engineering is required, here's a link to the PDF;

http://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/registration/ ... i/vsi6.pdf

It's not designed to be a definitive document, more to indicate in general terms, the limits of what you can do. For example, you can increase the power of your vehicle by up to 20%, anything beyond that requires engineering, that sort of thing.....

[trader]

Congrats on your purchase Endor and also selection of Shannon's. The proof of the pud is when you claim. I've had two claims and both have been
handled exceptionally. Only one repair quote of my choice. But like Gladiator I'm an old fart and long term client so get pref treatment! I've 60 odd mods and no hassles - only listed major stuff that could be nicked.

[Mr Morlock]

Agreed value- I was told by Shannons on more than one occasion in the lat 12 mths that they do not do agreed value- at least for bread and butter. My original understanding was that my cars were on market value- suited me- but now the insurance policy is updated yearly with the value the car is insured for and that is based on A Glass guide evaluation- I never had agreed value. The poster has gone with Shannons but I agree with Guran on one point- some and maybe many of the insurance cos will not quote on modded cars e.g. I could not get a quote on an MX5 from a major ins co as soon as a sports exhaust was mentioned- it was sorry cannot help you. If you don't list mods and get caught out with something a little over the top people should be aware that this is an insurance co not a welfare society.

[hks_kansei]

e.g. I could not get a quote on an MX5 from a major ins co as soon as a sports exhaust was mentioned- it was sorry cannot help you. If you don't list mods and get caught out with something a little over the top people should be aware that this is an insurance co not a welfare society.

Was this an online quote? or a discussion over the phone?

I found that a lot of companies will simply not do an online quote for a modified car, but were more than happy to provide a quote over the phone.
My current policy was setup this way.


Also, a lot of companies will be a LOT less likely to insure a modified car if the age is under 25.

[Mr Morlock]

I was told face to face by Shannons they do not do agreed value.

[speed freak]

I was told face to face by Shannons they do not do agreed value.

They do though. I got a quote from them just today and we discussed the agreed value for my mx5 including the mods.

As mentioned though alot of the companies wont insure a modified car.

I found that AAMI and Suncorp wont insure a car if its got a roll bar, roll cage, race seat or harness fitted.
RACQ and Allianz wouldnt insure a modified car full stop
NRMA wont insure you if you have a roll bar fitted.

So in the end it was out of Shannons or Just Car for me.

Im currently with Suncorp but need to change as Im getting a roll bar fitted soon. Shannons is the one Im going with, more then happy to insure a legal modified car, were really helpful on the phone especially for someone at my age (22) and had the highest agreed value that I agree with. Repayments are higher then what I have now but for the type of car, the mods covered, agreed value and my age its very good.

[Mr Morlock]

I reckon if one has a normal car it will merely be insured based on their std measure and that is a Glass guide. The value is shown each year and it therefore changes ie reduces. Folks may even see that the insured amount exceeds it's average market value. The old market value seems to have gone and replaced with a $ value. It's interesting that ins cos as noted by speed freak say no to roll bars. I have a mate who said he had an agreed value with Shannon's and was paid for a write off but the value was the same as the Glass guide. Not knocking Shannon's they seem good to deal with and not so prescriptive as others.

[Mr Morlock]

How do people know what the value is that Shannons or any other insurance co place on the car? Shannons state that its based on the Glass guide- if people doubt then ring them. The Glass guide is not the same as Redbook and the average punter never sees the Glass evaluation guide as far as I am aware- you pay for Glass values. Its seems that the Shannons insured amounts amply cover an insuree. Why would you pay extra or be concerned about an insured amount that is possibly more than the car sells in the market. You get an insured amount at the start of a year and it is not reviewed for 12 mths. What can you do to an MX5 to substantially increase its value? Many selling cars seem to think its better to remove modded items. The Glass guide does provide tables which allow adjustments for low KMs related to age but even allowing for a car being a pristine low KM vehicle it then has to be considered how much extra if its available should one pay for the premium.

Incidentally an Insurance co agreeing to cover one for what you pay for a car is misleading. If you pay a low price and the car is worth more how is that an advantage. What you py should not be the judgment and I don't understand why they ask that question.

Its interesting that as the MX5 drops in value the insurance premiums don't.

Shannons on balance seem good and I am a customer as well and seem to have hung their peg on being a bit different and more flexible

[CQYD]

How do people know what the value is that Shannons or any other insurance co place on the car?

Most people with Shannons that I know of have agreed value and pay the associated premium for it.

My NA8 was insured for $10k, this years renewal they dropped premiums but they also dropped the agreed amount value to $8800. So even with Shannons it pays to read the full document.

[Mr Morlock]

I concur that the insurance policies carry the term Agreed Value - applies to me as well. The point is how do they arrive at "agreed". What people need to understand is that they are insuring thousands of cars and plenty of those are just bread and butter vehicles- standard sedans and SUVs the whole shooting match. The insurance sales guy is looking at data made available to the Co and often sourced from outside specialists like Glass. With a plethora of cars the sales people cannot possibly do this without reference data.

[hks_kansei]

While I'm not a shannons customer, my partner is.

They do offer agreed value, which is as simple as requesting the car be insured for X dollars, and of course agreeing to a premium that reflects the higher cost.

Of course, Shannons are perfectly within their rights to say "no" if they believe the figure to be outrageous (ie: asking to insure an NA MX5 for $20,000 or somethign equally unlikely)

I imagine they work from Glass/Redbook/whoever's valuation and allow a certain degree of value either end of that. Where most companies may simply offer only that valuation.


In that respect, if you want to play semantics, the term should be "agreed value within a certain range either side of the average"

[CQYD]

Comparable values of other similar vehicles should have no bearing on the the value, as this would be market value.

I just tried obtaining a online quote through Shannons, $7000 appears to be the maximum for agreed value for a 97 NA8, much less than my renewal of $8800. So it looks like there is some kind of depreciation and market data algorithm up to a set value for each car model. Over this value they would need you to call up and make an assessment.

I suspect they don't determine agreed value, they calculate the risk profile and the payout amount you have requested to determine a premium and assess it as a business case.