Motorcycle Insurance

Posted by: John Bailey on 15 April 2007

Does the level of premium vary according to the time of year the policy is taken out?

I ask this question because at the moment I am riding a scooter and looking to move up to a geared motorcycle. Of course I have been drooling over magazines and narrowed down my choices.

About two weeks ago my current insurer was quoting me approximately £150 for TPFT cover on bikes such as the Honda CBF500, Aprilia Pegaso, BMW F650GS. Even a larger capacity bike (the BMW R1150R) was quoted at £355 and they sent me a copy of the quote for that through the post.

Yesterday I popped into my local Suzuki dealer and had a sit on the DL650 V-Strom - which I felt very at home on. So I checked out the insurance - premium nearly £600! On checking the other bikes listed above all had gone up substantially to between £500-£600 pa. Even my scooter has nearly doubled in premium!

Is the market cyclic - ie high premiums quoted in the summer but lower in the winter when bike sales are slower?

Anybody got one of the bikes listed above? I'm looking for something in the 500-650cc range for a mixture of all year round commuting and the occasional longer tour.

John.
Posted on: 15 April 2007 by Mick P
John

Motorcycling is riskier than car transport, hence the high premiums.

I am 58 and have ridden motorcycles without a claim since 1966.

I have always ridden British bikes which are now cheap to insure.

I currently run a mint 1959 BSA B31 350cc single which has a cruising speed of around 50-55mph.

I have an agreed value policy of £3000.00 ( I get paid £3000.00 without negotiation in the event of theft or damage)and the policy is fully comp.

I have to garage it each night and mileage is limited to 3000 miles pa. The cost for this lot is £92.00.

Buy British.

Regards

Mick
Posted on: 15 April 2007 by John Bailey
Mick,

I want something modern and whilst I would be very proud to own a British bike - and by that I would assume Triumph - they do not do anything suitable, the nearest being the Tiger at much above my budget and target capacity.

I'm 38 years old, have been riding under a year, live in North London and the bike is out on the street (chained up and covered).

I don't expect insurance to be cheap, but I am perplexed as to why an insurance company would quote me £150 two weeks ago and £500 now - and nothing else has changed except summer is here and bike sales will be on the up!
Posted on: 17 April 2007 by Ioniser
John,

You need to pop into the Suzuki dealer again, and quick. The SV 650 (and a few other models I can't remember, but probably including Bandit and V-Strom) are currently available with 1 years insurance for £1, and as long as you don't have a claim, you'll have 25% off next year.

If you haven't tried an SV, you really really should - it would be perfect for your needs.

Best of luck,

Grahame.

p.s. You could also try Direct Choice for a quote. My 600 Bandit is just under £100 fully comp with them.
Posted on: 19 April 2007 by John Bailey
Grahame,

Thanks for the SV650 tip - I'll look into it. Quite keen on the Aprilia Pegaso Strada though. Current scooter is an Aprilia (a Sportcity) and so far it's been pretty good.

Regards,

John.