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Post by homeforsummer on Jun 19, 2008 20:08:00 GMT
To be honest, I have very little to complain about with regard to motoring costs. I'm 23 and my insurance is only just over £200 (was £1400 on the same car in my very first year - I've been driving the same car over 5 years now), fuel isn't a major cost as I do about 5k miles a year max. The last time I filled up was 2 weeks ago and I still have half a tank left. The car is pre-2001 so tax is only £130 ish because it's less than 1600cc, and as far as bits and bobs go I can't complain about a £50 exhaust section roughly each year, I'm only on my second set of tyres in this ownership, and I'll have to outlay a bit more cash to fix up little spots of rust, a leaky sunroof and a general tidy before I get around to selling it.
It's definitely worth persevering if you're a young driver (and not driving like a tit) because if you keep your nose clean then insurance goes down pretty quick. Mine halfed after the first year. And now, I'vebeen checking insurance on some nicer cars to replace mine (BMW 3 series, Toyota MR2s, Mazda MX5s, Alfa Romeo anythings, various classics, sporty Japanese hatches etc) and nothing will cost more than around £400 on insurance for the year.
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Post by Stacey on Jun 19, 2008 20:23:45 GMT
My insurance is about £700 but it's first year with my own insurance. I've either been named driver on Dad's or i've been driving Company cars. It'll drop when i renew it later this year.
At the mo i only use car to drive to Leeds and back...i don't drive around London and i can claim part of fuel back anyway.
My car is old but is a good little runner, the only thing it's needed recently is new tyres which cost me bugger all.
So yeah i don't really have anything to comaplin about either...it's just a pain that all the renewals etc come at once...but that's life...i still wouldn't be without a car.
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Post by bigospedros on Jun 19, 2008 20:48:19 GMT
i really wish we could pay car tax monthly rather than on an annual basis ... would mean it wasn't such an issue to find the cash to pay in one go! i have road tax, service and MOT all due around now
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Post by Ben on Jun 19, 2008 20:59:03 GMT
£2k for insurance?! fuck me ... that is ridiculous ... change your car, seriously! It'll be around £2k whatever I do... Insure my current car = £2k. Buy another car and insure it = £2k That quote is gonna be for my current insurers... I've got a few companies from friends who've got cheap insurance with others etc...
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Post by bigospedros on Jun 19, 2008 21:36:16 GMT
if I were you, I'd transfer the ownership of the car to your Mum, get her to insure it in her name with you as a named driver and do that until your accidents are off your record and you're a bit older.
That is assuming your Mum has a fairly clean driving record also ?
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Post by Kevio on Jun 19, 2008 21:40:41 GMT
What Pete said: that's what I do, only it's my Dad. Dad pays the insurance then I pay him back in monthly bits. No complaints.
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Post by bigospedros on Jun 19, 2008 21:43:29 GMT
the only issue with this is that you don't build up a no claims bonus ... at least not with most insurers, but I think it's worth it to cut the bill down
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Post by Stacey on Jun 19, 2008 21:48:19 GMT
That's why i was a named driver on Dad's insurance. Too expensive otherwise.
It's the problem my brother is gonna have when he passes his test...Dad drives Company cars now so he can't add him onto his insurance, and although my brother works for same Company they've changed their policy so only over 25s can drive the cars.
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Post by Ben on Jun 19, 2008 21:54:41 GMT
She's not got any convictions/accidents in the past couple of years, but has 6 points for speeding It's tempting to do, but chances are it'll result in no no claims for a few years... I've gotta try and find cheaper quotes etc first for myself, then see what they'll be like if mum's the owner... One of the guys at work is insured with a company who specialise in younger drivers who have a larger engine and/or an accident in their first year... Hopefully it'll be a bit less than Marks and bloody Spencers' quote!
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Post by [rach] on Jun 19, 2008 21:55:39 GMT
my insurance is £490 a year.... if I put me as the main driver on Ben's car and him as named drive its £1,585.50 and thats with multicar discount!!
What bumps his insurance up is the 1.6 engine and the 2 accidents in a year =/ ...me on my own on that car is £514.50
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Post by Ben on Jun 19, 2008 21:59:20 GMT
Which I find absolute bullshit.. I've had one accident and one uninsured Polish nobhead shunted me off a motorway and wrote off my car! The fact that that second one wasn't my fault counts for nothing, and my premium's gone sky high
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Post by bigospedros on Jun 19, 2008 22:07:47 GMT
the issue is that you had to go through your insurers for that 2nd accident and as they couldn't claim back the costs from the other driver, it probably has to go down against you. It's harsh, but that's how it works.
When someone drove into me, it was against my record until it was all totally cleared, because I went through my own insurers. Had I bypassed them, it wouldn't have counted against me.
it's definitely worth looking into your options ... a change of car might be the only way ... either that or going for 3rd party and increasing your excess and hoping you don't have any more accidents.
Anyway, back to the original topic ... what happened about your extortionate garage bill ?
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Post by [rach] on Jun 19, 2008 22:15:24 GMT
thats crazy... we just looked up again - Ben as main driver and me as named driver and it reduced it by £300 lol
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Post by Ben on Jun 19, 2008 22:17:16 GMT
Rach has been doing some sleuth work... Direct Line's quote is £1100, which is *MUCH* better =) That's fully comp as well Heh, original moan... They knocked off a chunk of the labour costs because of the fact I should have been notified
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Post by bigospedros on Jun 20, 2008 10:39:41 GMT
thats crazy... we just looked up again - Ben as main driver and me as named driver and it reduced it by £300 lol not surprised ... allegedly, if you add people in certain professions, the price comes down too!
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Post by chris88 on Jun 20, 2008 11:18:31 GMT
Ben, Have you tried Elephant.co.uk?
For me on my 1.6l Focus (03 plate) they were a good £400 cheaper than anywhere else at £1200 per year - dropping to £1000 in september despite me having a claim for a new window. When I had to deal with them for that they were brilliant, straightforward and told me exactly what the consequenses on next years insurance would be (none at all!). Windscreen cover is free too. (:
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Post by Ben on Jun 20, 2008 17:10:52 GMT
thats crazy... we just looked up again - Ben as main driver and me as named driver and it reduced it by £300 lol not surprised ... allegedly, if you add people in certain professions, the price comes down too! I've been quite careful with my profession... "Sales rep" was £100 odd more expensive than "Customer service advisor (retail)", yet both could accurately describe my job! Not tried there Chris, but will do, as I'm not due for renewal til Nov =)
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Post by Stacey on Jun 23, 2008 10:40:43 GMT
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Post by alyssa :) on Jun 23, 2008 19:35:23 GMT
i hate cars, they just cause problems. good old bicycles for life!
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