Insurance fads
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Insurance brokers take as few chances as possible, while substantially increasing their charges. Those who cover press test cars have the curious idea that if we are over 65, or in a few cases older than 70, we are so terribly senile that we can not be trusted to try their clients’ new cars. You may be able to drive 400 or so miles in a day, doing some reporting work in-between, without going to sleep, be able to read a number plate easily at the statutory 20.5 metres, have a long no-claims record and have been driving horseless-carriages since Kingdom come. But still they won’t insure you. Sadly. I have ceased to road-test cars for this reason.
Brokers take minimum risks with the old cars, too. My so-called vintage vehicles are covered by Norwich Union, but although this is driver-only cover and I do not see how I can drive more than one car at a time, I have to pay a full premium on each one, to obtain comprehensive road insurance. If I have to lay-up one of these vintage cars (they call them ‘collectors’ cars) I can get a rebate, for fire-and-theft cover only. But Boncaster, the broker, then refuses reinstatement of road cover for a year.
Why? This is useless to those who use old vehicles at specified times of the year or lay them up for periodic repairs. It saves paperwork, I suppose, but certainly doesn’t serve the luckless client.
Insurance represents a large proportion of motoring costs. There may be others. With my new driving licence came a list of 64 offences under which a driver can be given penalty-points or be fined. You need a lot of luck to motor penalty-free and insurance-happy!