Any excuse for a premium hike !

As I said, you'll need a fairly competent child to help you estimate (imagine) the mileage you think you'll likely do over the next 365 days. Your insurance company has no idea but they put a reasonable amount of (possibly misguided) faith that a bod with enough intelligence to get their way through a driving test and then ride a motorcycle might well have enough imagination to work out whether, based on past experience or anticipated use over the next 365 days, whether it's likely that they'll be doing mileage X, Y or Z.

For some unknown reason(s) you failed in this leap of cognitive activity. When asked, you set off by underestimating your likely annual mileage by a factor of two or maybe more. Now, that's not an misestimation that's gone from one mile to two miles or even 100 to 200. You are out by a factor of thousands. This changes the risk profile you gave to your insurer, for quite understandable reasons... you are more likely to crash your bike (worse still into someone) when you are riding in than when you are not. So, having screwed up your estimation by several thousand, you are obliged to call the chimp in your insurance provider's office to tell them. Had you given it an ounce of thought when you first made your over excited call to insure your vehicle and got the estimated mileage even remotely close, you wouldn't be faced with the real or imagined nightmare that now awaits you.

Simply saying: "I didn't know" or "I couldn't imagine" or some such whinge, doesn't help your case much. If you don't know - or can't even guess without being out by a factor of two and several thousand to boot - what mileage you'll estimate do, how the feck is your insurer meant to know?

But hey, make the call. It may well cost you nothing.

PS

Chances of being caught? Considerably less than the chances of you estimating your annual mileage anywhere near accurately.

Will it invalidate your insurance? No.

Wapping said:

As I said, you'll need a fairly competent child to help you estimate (imagine) the mileage you think you'll likely do over the next 365 days. Your insurance company has no idea but they put a reasonable amount of (possibly misguided) faith that a bod with enough intelligence to get their way through a driving test and then ride a motorcycle might well have enough imagination to work out whether, based on past experience or anticipated use over the next 365 days, whether it's likely that they'll be doing mileage X, Y or Z.w

For some unknown reason(s) you failed in this leap of cognitive activity. When asked, you set off by underestimating your likely annual mileage by a factor of two or maybe more. Now, that's not an misestimation that's gone from one mile to two miles or even 100 to 200. You are out by a factor of thousands. This changes the risk profile you gave to your insurer, for quite understandable reasons... you are more likely to crash your bike (worse still into someone) when you are riding in than when you are not. So, having screwed up your estimation by several thousand, you are obliged to call the chimp in your insurance provider's office to tell them. Had you given it an ounce of thought when you first made your over excited call to insure your vehicle and got the estimated mileage even remotely close, you wouldn't be faced with the real or imagined nightmare that now awaits you.

Simply saying: "I didn't know" or "I couldn't imagine" or some such whinge, doesn't help your case much. If you don't know - or can't even guess without being out by a factor of two and several thousand to boot - what mileage you'll estimate do, how the feck is your insurer meant to know?

But hey, make the call. It may well cost you nothing.

PS

Chances of being caught? Considerably less than the chances of you estimating your annual mileage anywhere near accurately.

Will it invalidate your insurance? No.

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Maybe I should tell them 100,000 miles, just to be on the safe side JUST IN CASE I decide to go around the world in the next 6 months. Don't you think that I estimated, based on last years? Things have changed and I now have considerably more time, hence my mileage has increased. Sometimes you can be really helpful, like with basecamp, but you strive to be a smart arse all to often, a pity really.

AustinW said:

Try LV= chaps. So far no charges for changes, temporary additions, modifications etc. Last time I claimed - stolen car - everything went very smoothly. And they are there or thereabouts on premiums, although multi product discount saves around 10% on each policy. Been good for me on cars and bikes for about the last 12 years.

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I don't think they insure motorcycles any more.

If we had the power to see into the future, we would have the lottery numbers on when its a triple roll over !! How the fuck do we know what miles we may or may not do ? Educated best guess is all that you can do. After all your biker mates might invite you on a tour of Europe on your mighty steed and then halfway home you have to step off your machine and catch a train home because you have only one mile left on your annual "allowance". Pfftt they will never know because they have no way of checking unless you declare it.

Mileage logged at every MOT so I'm guessing if they wanted to it can be checked that way.

Delboy777 said:

Educated best guess is all that you can do.

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That's all the insurer is asking bods for, an educated best guess or estimation of a bikermate's mileage over a year.

So, apparently that's most bikermates fecked before the get go, then.

For those that lack the ability to make an educated best guess (based one assumes on past personal experience and / or their personal hopes and desires for the 365 days of the year ahead) and not withstanding a completely unforeseen and but pressing desire to ride around the world, a suitably educated child should and must be made available to assist.

Let's look at Wonky's post again...

Wonkey donkey said:

In September when I got my GSA I was asked what my annual mileage will be. Said 6,000 but am already on 5,000 and 3 tours this year looks like it will be double my estimate.

I can picture some spotty scrote rubbing his hands when he gets my call to tell them. Wonder how much that's going to cost

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He was asked to make an educated guess in September of his annual mileage when insuring his new (to him at least) GSA. He best guessed, prefumabley based on some gut feel born out of experience (or it was the first number that came into his noddle) at 6,000 miles. Now in early April of the next year - some six to seven months in - and his educated guess is already at 5,000 part of 6,000 the biking season is kicking off and he's still got his three European jaunts to do. For whatever reason(s) he's using the bike much more than his educated guess told him that he possibly would.

He now fears that his significant under estimation in his educated guess will necessitate a humbling call to the chimps in his insurer's office and that they'll use it as an excuse (the subject of this thread) to put his premium up as a consequence. This of course will not be Wonkey's fault at all, he's just been using his bike more than his past ownership (education) told him he might.

Nobody in his insurer's office will mind, as it's not a hanging offence. Will they charge him an additional premium? Maybe yes, maybe no. Might they charge him an administration fee greater or less than the additional premium? Maybe yes, maybe no. In short, will he in bikermate parlance, be ripped-off, his trousers ripped down and his butt cruely rammed with a pineapple? Who knows. Will it boil Wonkey's piss? That will depend on the outcome, no doubt. Fingers crossed... For either outcome

Norfolk Tiger said:

Mileage logged at every MOT so I'm guessing if they wanted to it can be checked that way.

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Yes i agree they could, but what about the bike mates who disconnect their speedos so as not to add miles to their mighty steeds ? It does happen, ive seen it.

Delboy777 said:

Yes i agree they could, but what about the bike mates who disconnect their speedos so as not to add miles to their mighty steeds ? It does happen, ive seen it.

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They do that in order to rip-off fellow bikermates * when it comes to sale time. That they'll use the 'evidence' of lower mileage to increase the pay out from their insurer when it comes to a total loss settlement, is just a bikermate bonus.


* In particular those that will only ever buy privately, as all dealerships rip them off. You really cannot beat shaking a guy's hand, after he's invited you in for a brew, to know that he's a good 'un.

PS No insurer is going to start trawling through past MOT records to gauge bikermates' honesty (or otherwise) as to their annual estimated mileage. If that happens, somebody in the insurer's pay has undoubtably had incredibly good reason to smell an incredibly pungent turd. Or some idiot bikermate has hatched a plan so cunning that nobody will ever spot it. That doesn't necessarily preclude an insurer asking for evidence in support of a claim.

Of course bikermates up and down the land will dish out all sorts of evidence to prove that their bike alone is worth far more than the insurer's opening offer. And considerably more than 100's just like it. This will include MOT certificates, umpteen receipts, photographs and sworn affidavits from the Pope himself, no doubt. That of course is their right and they'd be foolish not to. I would.... Unless of course it meant telling lies like buggery.

stolzy said:

I don't think they insure motorcycles any more.

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Re LV= .......I renewed last on October and added my son for a day a couple of months back. They seem to be open for business......https://www.lv.com/motorbike-insurance

AustinW said:

Re LV= .......I renewed last on October and added my son for a day a couple of months back. They seem to be open for business......https://www.lv.com/motorbike-insurance

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But if you look at that page, there are only links for existing customers.

or did I miss something?

stolzy said:

But if you look at that page, there are only links for existing customers.

or did I miss something?

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I don't know, As an existing customer I renew after going through the Gocompare rigmarole and decide that although I could save a few quid on the premium I am probably better sticking with what I know is a good company and a policy that suits me. At the top of the webpage it says "10% of new customers paid £61 or less" so that implies they are taking on new customers and most the info & phone numbers in the top half of the page seems to apply to new customers only. The links for existing customers opens up new pages with additional info (like claims and changes numbers) that would only apply to existing customers. I do know you cant get a quote online and have to phone them.