Northern Auto Tech - ECU and Blue & Me Repairs

General gap insurance

Currently reading:
General gap insurance

M

marvtab

New member
Joined
Nov 8, 2009
Messages
10
Points
2
Location
york
Does anyone have any advice about return to invoice insurance for new cars? My fiat dealer has recommended their own (obviously) but a bit of googling shows me there are a LOT of different gap insurances. I've never bought a brand new car before but am expecting delivery of my 500 next month and haven't decided yet if this is something I really ought to buy or if it's an unnecessary rip-off by insurance companies.
ETA I'm sure someone will point out I should have posted this query on the 'insurance' thread but it currently has 0 viewers as opposed to 23 in the '500' area - thought I'd be more likely to get a response here. Thanks.
 
Last edited:
There are plenty about and you may find cheaper. Depends on how long your keeping the car, most insrurance policies will give you a replacement car if written off or stolen in the first 12 months if your the 1st registered keeper.
 
marvtab said:
Does anyone have any advice about return to invoice insurance for new cars? My fiat dealer has recommended their own (obviously) but a bit of googling shows me there are a LOT of different gap insurances. I've never bought a brand new car before but am expecting delivery of my 500 next month and haven't decided yet if this is something I really ought to buy or if it's an unnecessary rip-off by insurance companies.
ETA I'm sure someone will point out I should have posted this query on the 'insurance' thread but it currently has 0 viewers as opposed to 23 in the '500' area - thought I'd be more likely to get a response here. Thanks.
Click to expand...
Can't remember who exactly we bought ours from but I think it was underwritten by Axa and it was quite a bit cheaper than the insurance the dealer offered.
 
yeah gap insurance is essential on a new car, but equally essential not to fall for the dealers spiel about buying it from them. you should be able to get a 3 yr 'return to invoice' cover online for around £120-£130.

the stealers will tell you its not safe to buy online, or that its not the same level of cover etc etc but its all crap - if you buy from an established company online with the relevant insurance ABI certification and underwritten properly then its EXACTLY the same, only a heck of a lot cheaper!


think i used click4gap for my abarth - stealer wanted £300+ for their cover.gave me a laugh if nothing else :)
 
Last edited:
gib1970 said:
yeah gap insurance is essential on a new car, but equally essential not to fall for the dealers spiel about buying it from them. you should be able to get a 3 yr 'return to invoice' cover online for around £120-£130.

the stealers will tell you its not safe to buy online, or that its not the same level of cover etc etc but its all crap - if you buy from an established company online with the relevant insurance ABI certification and underwritten properly then its EXACTLY the same, only a heck of a lot cheaper!


think i used click4gap for my abarth - stealer wanted £300+ for their cover.gave me a laugh if nothing else :)
Click to expand...
I went with surfandprotect here and got a replacement gap policy which I felt was good because inbetween us ordering our car and me taking out the policy the car went up by £400 in cost (plus there is the VAT rise to come!!!) and this policy covers you for the value of the replacement car in the future rather than just the gap between your insurance policy and what you paid for the car. If your first year of insurance covers you for new for old they will also delay the start of the policy so I think we got 4 years of cover (3 from them and 1 from Aviva) with a maximum claim of £7500 (it wasn't much more than £5k worth of cover) for somewhere around £200. Other Gap insurers won't delay the start of your policy so you end up paying for 1 year of cover you don't need.

Not a bad deal IMHO and they're actually underwritten by Fortis so forget what I said above about Axa :)
 
Thanks guys - your responses are really helpful. Like I thought it seems it's worth shopping around online for a better deal. I'll start looking into it this weekend even though I'm loathe to arrange anything and 'jinx' the arrival of my car (not really - but 16 week wait could make the best of us superstitiously cautious!)
 
marvtab said:
Thanks guys - your responses are really helpful. Like I thought it seems it's worth shopping around online for a better deal. I'll start looking into it this weekend even though I'm loathe to arrange anything and 'jinx' the arrival of my car (not really - but 16 week wait could make the best of us superstitiously cautious!)
Click to expand...
Most companies usually give you 90-180 days to arrange the cover from date of delivery so don't feel you have to do it right now or even right when you get your car :)
 
i don't understand why you would buy gap insurance.

On a relativly low depriciating car, bearing in mind the insurance would replace new in many cases in year 1, as long as your loan repayments are over a reasonable period (i.e 3 years) your exposure is quite low as the money you owe should be similar to what its worth.

If your car gets written off after 3 years, why would you expect a new one? as its a 3 year old car, and depriciation is a cost of motoring, normally the biggest one.

Although with return to invoice after 2 years and 364 days I see some benifit if you pay a bloke down the pub to torch it.
 
Simmo1 said:
i don't understand why you would buy gap insurance.

On a relativly low depriciating car, bearing in mind the insurance would replace new in many cases in year 1, as long as your loan repayments are over a reasonable period (i.e 3 years) your exposure is quite low as the money you owe should be similar to what its worth.

If your car gets written off after 3 years, why would you expect a new one? as its a 3 year old car, and depriciation is a cost of motoring, normally the biggest one.

Although with return to invoice after 2 years and 364 days I see some benifit if you pay a bloke down the pub to torch it.
Click to expand...
Bwhahahahahahaha you really expect insurance companies to actually pay market value for a 500 or if your car is in really good condition, something close to your cars market value?

It's not really about the gap as such, it's about the peace of mind that no matter what happens in the first 4 years of ownership we'll always be replace this car if it gets written off. We're not extraordinarily well off and this car is a commitment for us and if it was written off and there was a shortfall we most likely wouldn't get a new car.

Also, it's not that anyone expects to get a new car after 3 years, it's the fact that someone is offering to do that for me. I treat my car with the greatest of care and respect and after 3 years why should I have to settle for a car which hasn't been treated as well and isn't in as good condition as mine because some clot wrote my car off?

Also as pointed out you can get cover which supplements the insurance cover which covers you new for old for the first year.
 
306maxi said:
Bwhahahahahahaha you really expect insurance companies to actually pay market value for a 500 or if your car is in really good condition, something close to your cars market value?

It's not really about the gap as such, it's about the peace of mind that no matter what happens in the first 4 years of ownership we'll always be replace this car if it gets written off. We're not extraordinarily well off and this car is a commitment for us and if it was written off and there was a shortfall we most likely wouldn't get a new car.

Also, it's not that anyone expects to get a new car after 3 years, it's the fact that someone is offering to do that for me. I treat my car with the greatest of care and respect and after 3 years why should I have to settle for a car which hasn't been treated as well and isn't in as good condition as mine because some clot wrote my car off?

Also as pointed out you can get cover which supplements the insurance cover which covers you new for old for the first year.
Click to expand...
I would defo get it as a uninsure driver hit my wife and drove off with a 10 years old 106 pug and 2 clams in 2 years most gap do 4 years look at what car on 500 would only be worth 4k tops thats a loss of 9k
 
Simmo1 said:
i don't understand why you would buy gap insurance.

On a relativly low depriciating car, bearing in mind the insurance would replace new in many cases in year 1, as long as your loan repayments are over a reasonable period (i.e 3 years) your exposure is quite low as the money you owe should be similar to what its worth.

If your car gets written off after 3 years, why would you expect a new one? as its a 3 year old car, and depriciation is a cost of motoring, normally the biggest one.

Although with return to invoice after 2 years and 364 days I see some benifit if you pay a bloke down the pub to torch it.
Click to expand...




as with any insurance, you dont have to have it - its about paying a little for a lot of peace of mind. a total write-off may not be likely, but how would you feel if it happened after a couple years of careful ownership and the insurers only offer you half your original outlay? in my case that would be £7500 lost. for the sake of £130. gap makes sense.

and yes, of course there is a potential for a large gain should you claim on the insurance right near the end of the term - you would indeed end up with the cash for a brand new car to replace a 3 or 4 year old one. trouble is, thats fraud and you would go to jail for a couple of years. and the insurers arent stupid these days.
 
Last edited:
306maxi said:
I treat my car with the greatest of care and respect and after 3 years why should I have to settle for a car which hasn't been treated as well and isn't in as good condition as mine because some clot wrote my car off?
Click to expand...

Well said - unfortunately not everyone treats their cars with the same respect. Even brand new cars
 
YouKnowWho said:
Well said - unfortunately not everyone treats their cars with the same respect. Even brand new cars
Click to expand...
Yup. Sadly to some people cars are just a means to an end. I like the fact that I know the complete history of our 500 because it'll be more useful later in the cars life. Some cars have constant revisions of suspension, steering, electronics and engines throughout their lifes and for instance if a car has an engine change like my wifes Subaru you always have the worry that the engine is slightly different and any parts you order aren't going to fit properly.
 
research nuneaton wanted £299 for gap insurance - personally i didnt want it

if i could do with out insurance full stop that option would be better for me ive driven for 17 yrs and never claimed for anything

suppose one way of getting a new car on the cheap, 3 yrs in drive it to a carpark and set fire to it bingo cheap new car, even better than the scrappage scheme

rip off (n)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

carpetmankent
Technical Large Wheel Gap Difference between near and offside rear
2 3
Replies
46
Views
2K
Derbyfella
D
boatboy121
Technical spark plug gap
Replies
2
Views
2K
jrkitching
J
Didge3
Technical TwinAir which spark plugs and gapping?
Replies
12
Views
3K
chris3234
C
O
Technical VXU22 spark-plug gap for a 1.2
Replies
12
Views
999
John202020
John202020
A
General Direct Line Insurance DrivePlus issue on 2016 500
2
Replies
20
Views
3K
Dan at Adrian Flux
Dan at Adrian Flux
Back
Top