Got a UK insurance quote out of curiosity... | GTAMotorcycle.com

Got a UK insurance quote out of curiosity...

Priller

Priller

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I was listening to a British radio station online, and heard an ad for an insurance comparison website, GoCompare. Just out of curiosity, I went and plugged in the address of my company's UK office (just outside beautiful Birmingham, a top vacation destination), and otherwise kept my details and bike (2018 Tuono) identical. I selected leisure and commuting for use, and put in 8,000 miles (12,874 km) for annual distance travelled.

Using an excess of £350 (equivalent of deductible), I was able to get over 10 quotes between £233 and £315 annually (roughly $400 to $550 CAD) for comprehensive coverage. Apparently, the UK has some of the highest rates in Europe, too.

I know it's well-trodden ground that Canadian vehicle insurance is a broken system, but this just seems to reinforce how broken it is. Even if the liability coverage isn't as high as it is here (a common argument to justify our rates), there doesn't seem to be a crisis of folks there going broke because their insurance wouldn't pay out enough.

What am I missing? We have similar medical costs, similar hybrid public health systems, broadly similar wages and costs of living. I'm not comparing to Thailand or Uruguay. I get there are a lot more motorcycles on the road there per capita, but does that really affect the risk for the insurance companies that much? Or does it just ensure a healthily competitive marketplace, something that is very much absent here...
 
Priller said:
I was listening to a British radio station online, and heard an ad for an insurance comparison website, GoCompare. Just out of curiosity, I went and plugged in the address of my company's UK office (just outside beautiful Birmingham, a top vacation destination), and otherwise kept my details and bike (2018 Tuono) identical. I selected leisure and commuting for use, and put in 8,000 miles (12,874 km) for annual distance travelled.

Using an excess of £350 (equivalent of deductible), I was able to get over 10 quotes between £233 and £315 annually (roughly $400 to $550 CAD) for comprehensive coverage. Apparently, the UK has some of the highest rates in Europe, too.

I know it's well-trodden ground that Canadian vehicle insurance is a broken system, but this just seems to reinforce how broken it is. Even if the liability coverage isn't as high as it is here (a common argument to justify our rates), there doesn't seem to be a crisis of folks there going broke because their insurance wouldn't pay out enough.

What am I missing? We have similar medical costs, similar hybrid public health systems, broadly similar wages and costs of living. I'm not comparing to Thailand or Uruguay. I get there are a lot more motorcycles on the road there per capita, but does that really affect the risk for the insurance companies that much? Or does it just ensure a healthily competitive marketplace, something that is very much absent here...
Click to expand...

My wife worked in auto insurance for decades and the internal waste was a joke. If work ethics could be enforced the staff (And therefore office space, phones etc) could be cut 20%. Then there's the no fault fiasco. Then the driver training.

Anyone here care to knowledgeably comment on driver training here and over the pond?
 
My experience was over a decade ago and related to Norway and not GB, but I was required to retake motorcycle training as my Ontario license "M" designation wasn't recognised. The training course was intense. They really drilled you on technique and road rules; no fooling around. Emergency braking was REAL emergency braking and any flaw in technique was thoroughly corrected. During the actual examination, there was a closed circuit test and a road test. The unique aspect of the road test was that the examiner was your passenger. You really had someone looking over your shoulder. And they do things to screw you up to see how you'd react. My examiner leaned in the opposite direction in turns; I had to instruct him not to do that and to explain what I wanted. It was all part of the test I found out.
 
Priller said:
I get there are a lot more motorcycles on the road there per capita, but does that really affect the risk for the insurance companies that much? Or does it just ensure a healthily competitive marketplace, something that is very much absent here...
Click to expand...

I think you've hit the nail on the head. It's economy of scale. Also the fact that their riding season is longer and their bike culture is so much more stronger than Canada, that they have better visibility, organization and advocacy over there for motorcycle issues.

The UK is truly a nation of bike nutz.
 
nobbie48 said:
My wife worked in auto insurance for decades and the internal waste was a joke. If work ethics could be enforced the staff (And therefore office space, phones etc) could be cut 20%. Then there's the no fault fiasco. Then the driver training.

Anyone here care to knowledgeably comment on driver training here and over the pond?
Click to expand...
Iirc Hydro (or opt?) used the same theory going to regulator for more money. Normally a rubber stamped yes but at one time here was a push back at the million dollars worth of smart screens, raises way over inflation etc. Approved some money an told them to stop spending so much without a way to pay for it.
 
Lightcycle said:
I think you've hit the nail on the head. It's economy of scale. Also the fact that their riding season is longer and their bike culture is so much more stronger than Canada, that they have better visibility, organization and advocacy over there for motorcycle issues.

The UK is truly a nation of bike nutz.
Click to expand...
Agreed on all fronts, except that lower volume and a shorter season justifies triple to quadruple the rates. I get that there may be less overhead with a bigger customer base, but that's a lot of overhead.

Volume also doesn't explain why car insurance is also way cheaper, though again, expensive by European standards. Either our claim system is broken, resulting in needlessly high payouts, or the regulation of rates has been completely duped by the industry, allowing profits far in excess of what should be acceptable. Either way, others are doing a much better job...
 
I would suspect the average rider rides at least 50% more in the UK than in Canada.
Uncle in Northern Ireland insures 3 900+ CC bikes for a total of $350 per year. Aunt pays $350 per year for her vehicle, full coverage.
A friend over there pays around $300 per year for her car.

Even when you adjust for coverage we still pay more here.
There are more accidents per capita in the US than in Canada, yet similar insurance costs significantly less despite hospital visits, surgeries, litigation costing more.

Our system is broken.
 
Fraud is a big part of the problem here.

But no government seems able to fix it, either for fear of pissing off the insurance companies, or pissing off their voting base.

Edit: Well, our laughably bad driver training and licencing system and horrible, horrible drivers that result are a big part of the problem as well...but, see above...
 
PrivatePilot said:
Fraud is a big part of the problem here.

But no government seems able to fix it, either for fear of pissing off the insurance companies, or pissing off their voting base.

Edit: Well, our laughably bad driver training and licencing system and horrible, horrible drivers that result are a big part of the problem as well...but, see above...
Click to expand...

Agreed on the fraud point. Why does Ontario seem to have a more difficult time dealing with it than pretty much everywhere else? I’m referring directly to the end user rates.


Sent from my iPhone using GTAMotorcycle.com mobile app
 
The UK has a lot more competition plus you deal directly with the insurance company cutting out the broker.
 
Priller said:
Agreed on all fronts, except that lower volume and a shorter season justifies triple to quadruple the rates. I get that there may be less overhead with a bigger customer base, but that's a lot of overhead.

Volume also doesn't explain why car insurance is also way cheaper, though again, expensive by European standards. Either our claim system is broken, resulting in needlessly high payouts, or the regulation of rates has been completely duped by the industry, allowing profits far in excess of what should be acceptable. Either way, others are doing a much better job...
Click to expand...
I was going to say, did you plug in your car to check it's insurance? Seems you might have just didn't see the rate if you posted it.
 
sburns said:
I was going to say, did you plug in your car to check it's insurance? Seems you might have just didn't see the rate if you posted it.
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No, I just saw an average number quoted when I did a quick search about how UK insurance works. It was in the low £400's/yr, and as the article was aimed at continentals moving to the UK, it referenced how that was high compared to the rest of Europe...
 
SVeezy said:
Agreed on the fraud point. Why does Ontario seem to have a more difficult time dealing with it than pretty much everywhere else? I’m referring directly to the end user rates.
Click to expand...
Fraud is definitely a talking point in BC too, and a big excuse for ICBC's high rates...
 
SVeezy said:
I’m sure fraud is an issue in many areas, but somehow BC also has far better rates than Ontario IIRC.


Sent from my iPhone using GTAMotorcycle.com mobile app
Click to expand...
Because their system is not viable. They were paying out far more than they were collecting.

As for all the N plate supercar crashes in BC, they've got to clean that crap up. They are expensive claims that could easily be avoided (either limit reimbursement value on your car with N or send rates to the moon on expensive cars so at least the poor sap with a Corolla isnt subsidising the dickwad with the huayra).
 
GreyGhost said:
Because their system is not viable. They were paying out far more than they were collecting.

As for all the N plate supercar crashes in BC, they've got to clean that crap up. They are expensive claims that could easily be avoided (either limit reimbursement value on your car with N or send rates to the moon on expensive cars so at least the poor sap with a Corolla isnt subsidising the dickwad with the huayra).
Click to expand...
In BC they have a dickwad tax. So the corolla is actually being subsidized.

bc luxury car tax calculator

benaustin.ca benaustin.ca
 
Priller said:
I was listening to a British radio station online, and heard an ad for an insurance comparison website, GoCompare. Just out of curiosity, I went and plugged in the address of my company's UK office (just outside beautiful Birmingham, a top vacation destination), and otherwise kept my details and bike (2018 Tuono) identical. I selected leisure and commuting for use, and put in 8,000 miles (12,874 km) for annual distance travelled.

Using an excess of £350 (equivalent of deductible), I was able to get over 10 quotes between £233 and £315 annually (roughly $400 to $550 CAD) for comprehensive coverage. Apparently, the UK has some of the highest rates in Europe, too.

I know it's well-trodden ground that Canadian vehicle insurance is a broken system, but this just seems to reinforce how broken it is. Even if the liability coverage isn't as high as it is here (a common argument to justify our rates), there doesn't seem to be a crisis of folks there going broke because their insurance wouldn't pay out enough.

What am I missing? We have similar medical costs, similar hybrid public health systems, broadly similar wages and costs of living. I'm not comparing to Thailand or Uruguay. I get there are a lot more motorcycles on the road there per capita, but does that really affect the risk for the insurance companies that much? Or does it just ensure a healthily competitive marketplace, something that is very much absent here...
Click to expand...
The Brit government is not a mafia in bed with them, that's the only difference. Here in Canada many of these politicians hold personal stakes in these insurance companies.
 
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