Insurance value

[Thotos]

My classic car insurance policy is up for renewal and as usual it has gone up again. Also as usual, I am reconsidering the value of the cars when insuring them. The current values for both the Gamma and and Trevi are less than what I've spent restoring them   and Simon keeps telling me that the ?5000 value I have for the Sport is way too low (it was even lower until Simon convinced me to increase it!). So while getting quotations from a number of classic car specialists and declaring the value of the Sport as ?10000, I came across Hagerty Classic Car Insurance who have their own Classic Car Valuation tool (http://apps.hagerty.com/ukvaluation/index.html?showBacklink=1). And surprise, surprise, they give the value of the 131 Sport in Excellent condition as ?5000. And in fact reading their description of "Excellent" I think that would exclude my car and the best would be "Good" for my car at ?4200   
So how do we go about convincing the "experts" that their valuations are wrong?

[simon131]

I think the values of anything should be dictated by what's happening in the market place, not what some supposed 'expert' at an unknown insurance company thinks. The valuation table you have posted up Theo is quite simply ridiculous. You can't by a restoration project these days for ?5,000, indeed I know of such cars changing hands for in excess of ?6,500!!!

Everything is subjective and generally there are 'bandings' for a given condition of car, certainly not a single value.

I'd simply say to you trying buying your car and engine (Guy Croft Fast Road if I remember correctly) today  - you'd have to part with more than ?10k in my humble opinion, let alone ?5k!! I doubt that ?5k would buy the engine!

[jasonh131]

And if you use sids  car as an example more like ?35,000 inc labour    

[Thotos]

Unfortunately money spent on restoring a car is not reflected in its final value   

[kev131]

I have an agreed value policy at a value of ?15000 Theo I showed the insurers about half a dozen adverts straddling this value and they accepted them. The actual value didn't affect the premium ...unless you go very high. The cost is about ?180 for comp including vital (to me) European breakdown cover.

Chris has his cars insured for less and he might share the insurer name with you as I believe they cover the UK too. 

With regard to your cars value, I'd be looking at ?10k minimum and if the premium was not affected too much consider ?13/15.

[c.a.c131]

Try autoline

http://www.autoline.co.uk

[sid131]

I think the values of anything should be dictated by what's happening in the market place, not what some supposed 'expert' at an unknown insurance company thinks. The valuation table you have posted up Theo is quite simply ridiculous. You can't by a restoration project these days for ?5,000, indeed I know of such cars changing hands for in excess of ?6,500!!!

Everything is subjective and generally there are 'bandings' for a given condition of car, certainly not a single value.

I'd simply say to you trying buying your car and engine (Guy Croft Fast Road if I remember correctly) today  - you'd have to part with more than ?10k in my humble opinion, let alone ?5k!! I doubt that ?5k would buy the engine!

100% agree Simon! but how do we show these people that our cars are worth far more??

[sid131]

I have an agreed value policy at a value of ?15000 Theo I showed the insurers about half a dozen adverts straddling this value and they accepted them. The actual value didn't affect the premium ...unless you go very high. The cost is about ?180 for comp including vital (to me) European breakdown cover.

Chris has his cars insured for less and he might share the insurer name with you as I believe they cover the UK too. 

With regard to your cars value, I'd be looking at ?10k minimum and if the premium was not affected too much consider ?13/15.

I also have agreed values on my racing & celica but i doubt if they would ever cough up if the car was totalled or stolen etc?

[sid131]

And if you use sids  car as an example more like ?35,000 inc labour    

Nice one Jay
total was 26k & labour was free from me lol!

But if i added up over 5 years work wow would be plus 1/4 million lol!

[sid131]

i agree Theo if you spend 50/60k restoring a 131 its still only worth what someone will pay you for it!

[sid131]

Just thought of asking ye 3maers how do you fair for the mileage ye put up on the europe trip considering the Irish classic insurance policies have limited mileage?

[Thotos]

but how do we show these people that our cars are worth far more??

That was basically my question too  

I managed to get a good quote for revised values (?10K for the Sport) from Adrian Flux who are the official insurance brokers for the Lancia Motor Club (and hence I get a descent discount as a member). But while their price of ?283 for the 3 cars was very good, they didn't offer European-wide breakdown cover. So I called my existing insurers, RH Specialist Insurance, and asked them to quote for the revised values which pushed their premium to over ?400 but when told about my alternative quotation they managed to reduce it to ?330 for the 3 cars. On the principle of "better the devil I know" (I've been with them since 1997 and although my only claim was a replacement windscreen I feel safer with them than an insurance I've never heard of) and the fact that I get full European cover insurance and the breakdown cover, I renewed with them. Plus the insurance was running out today so I had to do something quickly!  

Regarding mileage, my cars are covered for 5000 miles a year which is enough for the short trip to Italy and back (circa 2000 miles) plus a few more miles around the UK. Although I must allow enough mileage for the M2M in Ireland this year!  

[Thotos]

and although my only claim was a replacement windscreen

I lie!    I also claimed for a replacement door skin for my Sport when a BMW tried to park on in at South Mimms services. The assessor was very good and even though I supplied the new Fiat door skin, they agreed to pay for it at Fiat's last published price list which showed the skin at ?600  I'm glad I decided to stay with the same insurers.... 

[sid131]

I have split mileage between the celica 500 & the 131 2500 miles ?330 fully comp with Autoline, but i only put up 36 miles on the celica last year
will have to use it a bit more but its hard to after driving the hooligan 131 

[simon131]

Theo, I have just renewed my three-131 policy again with RH Specialist Insurance, including the Abarth, for about ?425 inc Euro Breakdown cover, etc. I've got 5,000 miles limit on the Abarth and 3,000 on each of the Specials, but bear in mind my Abarth is insured for a fair bit more than ?10k.

I wish I knew what to do to get the values of 131s increased with the insurance companies.  I suppose we'll just have to keep referring them to adverts, but as we've already said elsewhere, asking price doesn't always determine sale price, although speed of sale (i.e time from first advert to sale) should also play a part.