Who is the most common insurer/best value??

[Chook]

Hi All,

Seeking some feedback and discussion as to who is the best insurer for cobras?
Can obviously been determined a few ways; price, claims, extras, excess, etc

What's your thoughts or suggestions?

[Mrs flatchat]

Shannons -- and Suncorp for ctp --good for me

[750hp]

Shannons have been perfect for me. Great prices, very competitive with their inclusions, good multi-policy discounts.

[itempany]

Glad someone asked the question. I have been thinking about same question!

[BJ's Snake]

Originally Posted by 750hp

Shannons have been perfect for me. Great prices, very competitive with their inclusions, good multi-policy discounts.

Also for me

Cheers

[400TT]

We are authorised repairers for Shannon's.

Having been involved with the claims process, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them. In our experience they are more than fair when it comes to these type of vehicles. They are prompt and provide a quality service.

Have also used Lumleys, they were great to deal with, although never claimed with them.


Craig White

[Paintwerks]

Originally Posted by 400TT

We are authorised repairers for Shannon's.

Having been involved with the claims process, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them. In our experience they are more than fair when it comes to these type of vehicles. They are prompt and provide a quality service.

Have also used Lumleys, they were great to deal with, although never claimed with them.


Craig White

Same here...we're an authorised Shannons repairer in Melbourne.

I've dealt with most all insurance companies, their assessors and their claims teams, and Shannons assessors by far are the friendliest, fairest and enthusiastic about getting a customer's vehicle back on the road, and repaired to a condition as good as, or better than it's pre-accident state.

From a repairer's standpoint, I really like the fact that they will often approve an estimate without hesitation (given that the estimate is fair in the first place). Other insurers tend to cut the crap out of estimates (even when the estimate is very competitive to begin with) and this basically means they're expecting you to do more for less. Can create a bad 'feeling' between repairer and insurer - it is a very popular topic of discussion in the industry. OTOH, Shannons give us the right amount of money to perform the repairs....everybody wins.

Wouldn't hesitate to recommend them!

[Paintwerks]

Just wanted to add.....there is little to no correlation between the best insurer and the best value. Budget priced policies come with many conditions including the inability to choose your repairer, and the likelihood of poor quality repairs from the 'sausage factories' they make you use for repairs.

The insurers who provide better services charge more for their policies. With Shannons, they are not cheap, but you do get what you pay for. On a custom vehicle such as a Cobra, you absolutely need an insurer who understands (and will cover) not just the physical value of what you're insuring, but the intrinsic value of what the car means to you.

[stiffy]

Chook,

LSV Lumley Special Vehicle insurance are what the majority of the

Cobra Club of Victoria use, they were a aponsor of Shelbyfest for a number

of years.


STIFFY

[Donunder]

Chook, I don't know the situation in your state but up here Shannons are the only company that didn't go rushing off in a panic when I mentioned "fibreglass" and "one piece body", so it was more or less deal with the only company that was prepared to offer me a policy.

On the other hand I have my bike insured with QBE who are way cheaper than others I tried, and they have been a pleasure to deal with.

[Wazza]

My opinion only...

But,

I recon there's some very important things to consider when you are insuring a Cobra.

1. Do you have the SALVAGE RIGHTS in the case of the Cobra being written off ?

2. Do you have choice of repairer when you need to make a claim?

3. Are the repairs then given a LIFETIME warranty ?

When getting any quotes...ask these specific questions...

I have been insured with LUMLEY SPECIAL VEHICLES, based in Melbourne, for many years.

I was recently shopping around to check that my current policy was competitive...and when I spoke to SHANNONS about Salvage Rights...
they advised that they "USED to include Salvage Rights, but now they DON'T".

I didn't go any further...

My theory has been that these Cobras never get stolen...(Touch wood ! Touch Wood ! ),
but plenty have been smashed.

Of course the insurance covers me if the car is pinched....
but getting all the really expensive bits back in the case of a bad prang ( Write off )...as well as getting the full payout....is VERY important to me.

I just phoned them now to again confirm...

They give salvage rights to cars OVER 25 years old...
AND,
Replicas of the old cars...i.e. COBRAS

They also charge REDUCED premiums for "Recreational cover"

I think there's two levels of this cover...
1. Drive it twice a month ?
2. Drive it 3 times a week.

Both are cheaper than FULL USE cover.
It's still Full Comprehensive Insurance, but tailored to our type of vehicle use.

Another tip...

If they ask if your engine is "modified"...be careful how you answer......what they are really looking for here is the "hoon" that builds up an engine on a normal production vehicle, to a point where it's unsafe...

I spoke to the manager of Lumleys about this ,because they had given an expensive quote to one of my club members who I had referred to them.

I explained to Lumleys that almost EVERY engine in an I.C.V. would be considered "Modified", and after explaining the difference to them , they agreed that this should not come into the calculation of insurance cover for Cobras.

Any problems...speak to Patricia De La Paz...She's the boss at LUMLEYS , Phone 133578 ...and we've discussed all of this.

Just in case anyone thinks I'm getting a spotters fee for any new customers...I aint...
It's just that I often get asked these questions from new or prospective Cobra owners.
I wish someone had been able to steer me in the right direction when I got the first Cobra...It would have saved me a lot of hassle!

Anyway...

That's ONLY my opinion...probably not worth two cents

Cheers,
Warren.

[itempany]

Rang up Shannons this morning and got a quote estimate for a Cobra. Came back at $450 for 12 months. For exercise I gave info for vehicle value $45000 and $500 excess......Not too bad. Better than last off the cuff estimate of $1200 from another company giving same value.

[Beejay]

I used Lumley's for the last few years and had no problems. Premiums were much better than Shannons.

If I was looking now I would get a price from Ryno for comparison too.

Cheers,

Ben

[750hp]

Originally Posted by Wazza

I was recently shopping around to check that my current policy was competitive...and when I spoke to SHANNONS about Salvage Rights...
they advised that they "USED to include Salvage Rights, but now they DON'T".

I didn't go any further...

Well that sucks. I just had a look at my policies. The other cars all have salvage rights noted on the Shannons policy except the Cobra. Downloaded the PDS and found that anything over 35 years old has salvage rights. The Cobra, at 32 years old, is my newest car!

I will give Lumley's a call to see how they compare for a multi-vehicle policy. Shannons have included all the mods in the policies (8/71 blower, roll cage, custom brakes and suspension, V8 in Healey, big block in Falcon, the whole lot!), so let's see if I get the enthusiast rates or bogan rates...

[guye]

Great thread guys, very useful!

[Chook]

Hi All,

Thanks to everyone for all the great responses. You can't buy information and knowledge like this! Wazza you make some great points and thanks for the 2c!

[Chook]

...and its just been confirmed by an insurance company that the biggest determinant of premium is the postcode. Therefore if you're fortunate to have multiple properties, get quotes for both postcodes.