Bad news

[Gwynleym10]

Im a young driver with a powerful car, i realise iv got nowhere near the skill or experience needed to push such a car on public roads dispite doing plenty of advanced driving, skid control etc.

Perhaps this is the way forward, if you want to drive a more powerful car you have to do more training/test's

However it is true that you can drive a 1.1 saxo very badly...........

[m3ben05]

Sorry, that comment was not aimed at you, i was talking to the guy who thinks general rules of experience = safer driving does not apply to him.

I totally agree with your comments, i waited 2 years before i got my M3

[Gwynleym10]

yea realised that ben.

Its a shame as ever that a few spoil it for the majority!

[massive]

It should be the same as motorbikes I agree. Restriction on power. Engine size wouldn't work cos the 1300cc Mazda Rx8 will piss all over a Golf VR6 2800cc.

[Brenner5]

i thought it was 2 1300cc engines, so that would make it 2600cc ?

just logged as a 1300cc on log book..

[stuartgallafant]

i think it takes the piss. we already pay far too much for insurance as it is, and now they want to raise the cost of insurance?!

soon, people will just get so fed up of paying ridiculously high premiums, that more and more people wont even bother getting insurance. its an outrage. why the hell should they be allowed to charge that much?

McDonalds burgers are popular, but they're not £100 each are they?!

[M5pilot]

As usual all we btirs can do is bitch about this.

What about some real action?

And not just one day.

I thought the fuel blokades a few years back were the best thing that ever happened.

If enough people were willing things could change. Fuel prices could quite easily be brought down with some drastic (but totally peaceful) action.

As for insurance - everyone should just stop paying. They can't lock up the whole country.

If no one bought insurance for a month these companies would go bust and be made to reduce their prices.

Their cash flow would suffer so badly, they would incur massive bank charges (as all of these business have massive overdrafts and loans) - they would have to listen.

Or just do a simple march. If all of the E30zone members got together and did something it would hit international headlines.

Who wants to be on TV?

Sal

[Davenotouring]

The Mazdas actual Cubic Capacity is 1300. It is quoted as 2600 equivalent.

[E30BeemerLad]

Sal, you know nobody turns up to meetings when they are arranged, well less than half do

[march109]

Ok if you look at the stats young male drivers have more accidents but actually claim for less injuries than older male or female drivers yet NU say ithe price hikes are due to increased injury claims not accident claims, yet it will hit the younger driver harder.

Also tell me this, why can't you get a discount if you midify your car to only be a two seater, or for that matter drive a two seater, the ask you how many years you intend to drive a year with no actual prook, why not limit your policy by number of passangers too, if you have a two seater car only two peoaple can claim for injuries (in your car anyway) but I bet they won't even consider that even though NU jsutify the price hike by citing increased injury claims.

Now my thrid point, I've been travelling in Australia, big country, equal ammount of younger drivers, all flaming mental behind a wheel, yet over there if the car is MOT'd and Registered (register annually like road tax) you automatically have third party insurance! Usually based on the price of the car too, not the driver!

[E30BeemerLad]

young males are more likely to have a crash in their first year of driving, moreso, they are likely to have a car full of their mates who will no doubt be injured, therefore it is the likely cost of the claim to the insurer which makes for the scary premiums.

if you modify your car to 2 seater, the insurers are going to ask the question why? Why do you need to modify the car to 2 seater, is that because it will reduce the weight of the car and therefore are you more inclined to be attempting hero stunts and general wrongness?

Aussie cars have to pass an inspection which is quite strict and there are rules about modifying, if you modify you have to get an engineers certificate or something. They are currently looking at banning younger drivers from driving larger capacity vehicles.

The personal injury system is totally different over there, which makes a fundamental difference to the average claim cost.

One thing I am aware of working in the line of business I do, is that on one hand I can support the position of the insurers which is attempting to stem the flow of injury claims and how keen people are to make a claim etc. But at the same time, I would say there are very few people who would not actually make a claim for injury when they did suffer injury as a result of someone else being a prat.

[cass1_5503]

Thats completely the wrong attitude im afraid. The most dangerous thing about being a young driver is over confidence. What, in your opinion, makes you a better driver than the 'nob heads' you refer too?

It all comes down to experience, something that no young driver really has.

Im a young driver with a powerful car, i realise iv got nowhere near the skill or experience needed to push such a car on public roads dispite doing plenty of advanced driving, skid control etc.

i dont mean to sound over confident id never push my car on public roads. but its the people in tarted up tin cans with 1.1 engines that race around (show off) a few of my mates have written off there cars showing off trying to race they dont realise there cars went made to go round corners at 80mph.

i just dont think restricting young drivers to certain cars is the right way to go, i think everyone should atleast do a pass plus, and if they are to drive a more powerfull car do advanced training

[m3ben05]

i dont mean to sound over confident id never push my car on public roads. but its the people in tarted up tin cans with 1.1 engines that race around (show off) a few of my mates have written off there cars showing off trying to race they dont realise there cars went made to go round corners at 80mph.

i just dont think restricting young drivers to certain cars is the right way to go, i think everyone should atleast do a pass plus, and if they are to drive a more powerfull car do advanced training

I agree with you there mate, more often than not its young drivers in 1.1's etc but dont forget that is the only type of car that most young drivers can get hold of.

I also agree with you on the extra training. IMO there should be some kind of legal requirement for extra training before you are allowed behind the wheel of anything bigger than 2.0 or with a turbo etc, regardless of age.

On the restrictoins topic, I think its a good idea because i know what happens when inexperienced drivers think they are the next michael schumacher. One of my mates had an evo 6 at 18 (guess what happened). Another had an AMG 55 at 20 (again, guess what happened)

[cass1_5503]

i have to agree that not everyone has the opertunity to have a big car, i supose im quite lucky but i pay for the privelage. its just annoying that the insurance company didnt even take into account what extra courses that i have done and they brand all young drivers the same. i think the driving test should be harder with extra training i.e skidpan etc the roads would be a safer place lol

[m3ben05]

i supose im quite lucky but i pay for the privelage.

You dont need to tell me mate!! I feel like im being bent over the kitchen table for some shafting every time i need to renew my insurance

its just annoying that the insurance company didnt even take into account what extra courses that i have done

Definately, i tried telling them i had an MSA race lisence and they said not to mention it because it may actually INCREASE the premiums!!

All in all, their bastards, pure and simple!

[Simon13]

Ben u must come from a very very wealthy background to have friends with cars like that!

I did my pass plus, cost me a tenner and my instructor wrote my certificate saying i had done it! I don't think it would make a difference.

Don't forget extra training will make no difference young boys crash, end of no matter what they drive or how much training they have. Experience is the main tool in driving well imo.

motorway training should be a must so in years to come we can be like the europe and not have every tom,dick and harry in the outside lane and people use their mirrors and move out the f**king way!!!

insurance deal with it? if it wasn't so easy to get money for whip lash etc. Winds me up the claims thing

[Dan318-is]

I have often though that insurance breaks every single Human Right, its ageist, sexist, racist, occupationalist and ever ist that you could think of.

Agree completely....how the fcuk does that Sheila's Wheels or Diamonds advert get away with what they say about women being better drivers and ONLY insuring women.

If there was an advert, for a Car Garage saying
"All our mechanics a male so you'll know you'll get a better job done" it would cause carnage! (regardless of whether its a fact)

Im afraid my friends that is just the country we live in. i mean if i slapepd a girls arse and she turns round and thumps me thats self defence rite? but if a gay touches my arse an i turn round and thump him i get done for assualt and homophobia? its just the way things are here im afraid!

[Davenotouring]

And isn't it sh*t.

Another one, in a night club, if you were to grab a girl and grind against her without her 'prior approval' you'd get a slap, and probably a beating from bouncers or whatever. Amazingly I have been the victim of being grabbed by a couple of birds who started doing this with me and grabbing me cock and that! I was like 'fair play' but it actually pissed me off cos I thought well what if this was the other way around!! Plus they were average!

[massive]

If a burgular broke into your house and tripped over an iron extension lead, banged his head and got his trousers ripped by the dog.....he sue for injury, and the dog would get put down! Welcome to the UK - All we need now is to drive on the right and build an Empire State Building

[e36boy]

I think its a fuckin disgrace, Ive paid extortionate rates for years on shitey under powered cars, When i finally start to see my premiums come down, I here this.

[E30BeemerLad]

if you shop around there are still good deals to be had.

The insurers are using stuff like this as propaganda to try and reverse the "compensation culture" which we allegedly have here in the UK. When infact the number of injury compensation claims annually are declining. There was a big surge when legal aid was abolished for civil injury claims and the advent of the no-win-no-fee business, pioneered by companies like Claims Direct etc as Lawyers were too lazy & did not know how to market themselves.

In Ireland they abandoned all of the adversarial compensation schemes where you needed a lawyer to pursue an injury claim without the insurers taking the piss. They now have a central scheme called the Personal Injury Assessment Board, who are an independent body who assess your claim and tell the insurers how much to pay. So no lawyers bleeding the system with their fees etc.

Have the insurers lowered their rates since saving all this money, have they bollocks!

It is true there are some situations where you feel angry with how some people are awarded compensation after burgling some gaff and then injuring themselves etc, but half of these are urban legend.

The insurance industry is a mighty powerful force with the power to lobby governments and the rather public announcement today by NU, who are the largest UK general insurer, that they are going to raise their rates and therefore be uncompetitive to their competitors, is nothing but a PR stunt to provoke a reaction like it has on this forum so that there is support for the compensation bill.

As I said before, if someone trashed your motor on the way home tonight and injured you, would you honestly not make a claim for injury?

[m3ben05]

Ben u must come from a very very wealthy background to have friends with cars like that!

Not really, its more the area we live in, people like this are not un common round here . The 2 guys in question were both given very high paid, easy jobs in their daddy's companies when they finished their A-levels.

They both had broken bones as a result of their accidents but have still not learned from their mistakes. One now has a 911 and the other is on the waiting list for an AM V8!!

Insurance aint even a problem for them, its all covered by daddy's company policy!

[Chris-W]

Insurance is, and always has been, ie. last 20 years (+?), biased against young lads who have just passed. It's lousy, but there you go.

Twenty years ago I spent the the first 4 years of my licence on my father's insurance, and was quoted the retail price of the car in question to insure it when I was 22. later, a Clio Williams cost me over £2k when I was 25.

I'd actually be very interested if anyone knows whether insurance has increased in real terms over the last 20 years?

[Gwynleym10]

Insurance is, and always has been, ie. last 20 years (+?), biased against young lads who have just passed. It's lousy, but there you go.

Twenty years ago I spent the the first 4 years of my licence on my father's insurance, and was quoted the retail price of the car in question to insure it when I was 22. later, a Clio Williams cost me over £2k when I was 25.

I'd actually be very interested if anyone knows whether insurance has increased in real terms over the last 20 years?

Well if the overall cost of motoring has gone down in the last 25 years it can't of gone up to much.






Basically like Lee said there are lots of good deals out there, you just have to look. Don't let insurance companies don't take us for a ride, thats where they make their money from.

[DanThe]

Who thinks this is not the biggest cause of increasing premiums

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5212782.stm

Certainly not me

[Jon_Bmw]

A bit off topic, but. On a skid pan day(i have never done one) I would estimate you wouldn't exceed 25mph.

Now on the skid pan, your rear wheel car slids out its not to hard to catch it... But at 70-90mph on the road where you are pushing the car to its limits(i don't, i save it for the track) you try and catch it. Its very very hard, everything happens so quickly. If you catch it, chances are it will tank slap you and at 80mph on full boost its very hard to catch. Can you tell i'm talking out of experience.

Anyway, insurance is going to increase for the considerable future, but as my age increases(20) my policy usually falls, so i THINK that its getting cheaper, but its actually not

[fuzzy]

im 36 now and never once has my insurance dropped.even though i add another years no claims im still hit with an increase.

[nickso]

ive been thinking.....if i crash my touring it would be written off ......if someone dented the door it would probably get written off. i would be buying the car back anyway cos of all the kit its got on it i would want to keep

so why am i insuring it for £2000? why dont i just insure it for £1 tpft? would this make a big difference to my premium...im not sure.....its not going to make any difference to the non-existent payout for a crash.

all of the extra crap we get with fully comp insurance.......whos actually used any of it?? i havent so why am i paying for it?

im giving serious thought to leaving this country for good....weather is shit....taxes are outrageous....house prices gone up 17% this year but my fucking wages havent.

[anton]

Hi there, u're thinking of leaving.. its so ironic.

my girlfriend is about to fly to london to earN pounds. 1pound=13 south african rand. SO she can come back buy herself a cabby settle a bit.. a bit of a boost..

its funny how we are always in search of greener pastures no matter where we are.

over here new car prices are ridiculous.. a new e46 325i costs R299500

thats 23000quid.

i paid 40000rand for my e30 1989 325i... a real minter 180 000k.

thats 3000quid more or less.

the way our insurance works..

u buy a second hand 1996 model mazda 323 based pickup(based on 1988 mazda 323 shape) for 40 000. u insure it for 40 000. some bloke without right of way smashes u from the side.. buckes 2 of your original mazda sport rims(scarce as chicken teeth) and they wont pay u out for the rims as it wasnt specified. whats more. the BOOK value

is like 30 000 rand. and if it gets stolen they will only pay u out for like 30 000k. so u are paying premiums for 10 000 more than the value but your insurance company gladly takes your extra money..

my insurance for my 1989 325i e30 is like equivalent of 15pounds.. per month.

since both my vehicle i own are old vehicles thank goodness ive learned some spraypainting/panelbeating skills. repairs some things myself. as its simply not worth it to go the insurance route sometimes..

anyways.. i suppose each country has its issues.

regards
Anton,
cape town,south africa

[massive]

My car is worth about £4500, if i write it off i'd be lucky to get £1500 as its just a 1991 bmw.

If you stay with the same insurance company year after year your premiums will never drop. However your twin brother with same circumstances, and same spec vehicle will get a much lower premium from the same company as a new customer.

Most people get stitched up by this, as its allot easier & less hassle to stay with the same company as they cant be assed searching for the best quote. However as soon as you say your leaving them they will usually offer an amazing discount or match your best quote.

Conclusion: In this world customer Loyalty costs you more (insurance & mobile phone companies being the worst candidates)