How has your insurance increased this year?

[Ralfi]

Agree completely with Don. It always pays to shop around with car insurance, including even obtaining a new policy quote from the same insurance provider which will often be cheaper than your renewal quote and which you can use to renegotiate a revised figure.
And it is not too surprising that car insurance premiums have increased given the current economic climate.
For what it is worth I am with Budget Direct and saw a modest increase in premium from $966 to $1041 when I paid it last month.
This on a 2018 Golf R, comprehensive cover with $1200 excess, choice of repairer, drivers < 40 excluded, annual km < 8000, no garage/on street parking in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs. And late last year I did make a not at fault claim to repair about $1500 worth of minor front end damage, so all up I reckon the premium increase is more than reasonable.

So I take it you’re happy with Budget Direct? They’re THE standout right now for me.

[ABCD]

So I take it you’re happy with Budget Direct? They’re THE standout right now for me.

Happy with Budget Direct. First time customer when I insured my R in early 2022, at which time they were way cheaper than any one else I could find at the time. And good to deal with when I had to make a claim. Only minor complaint was that I was unable to deal directly with my chosen repairer (I had Choice of repairer option), had to first take the car to one of their Assessment Centres for approval. But otherwise completely seamless online process.
Interestingly late last year when it came time to renew insurance on my wife's Golf GTi Budget Direct could not better her existing renewal quote from NRMA.

[Gutoneto]

Agreed. The suburb is a big factor as well as whether the car is parked on the street vs in a garage or locked driveway etc.

Im with Shannons insurance, and my car (Mk7 GTI) is always parked either under a carport or in the garage. No accidents ever - although I did have to make a claim a few years ago as my previous car was flood damaged and written off.

$1,137 last year
$1,184 is my current cost

To the OP, if your cost has jumped by $230 odd dollars and nothing has changed, then its definitely worth shopping around to see if you can find a better deal. BUT, perhaps your suburb and or surrounding suburbs have had a rise in claims in the past 12 months and so your risk has increased?

Hi Lucas,

I saw that you're using Shannons as the insurer, what are your thoughts about it? Did they act quickly with the claim? I saw some reviews about them and there are several complains about when need to put a claim through.

I made a quick quote with them and if I switch over I can save almost $1400 with them (for both cars), not counting the excess goes down from $1000 to $700. It seems a very good deal.

Thanks!

[Lucas_R]

How has your insurance increased this year?

Hi Lucas,

I saw that you're using Shannons as the insurer, what are your thoughts about it? Did they act quickly with the claim? I saw some reviews about them and there are several complains about when need to put a claim through.

I made a quick quote with them and if I switch over I can save almost $1400 with them (for both cars), not counting the excess goes down from $1000 to $700. It seems a very good deal.

Thanks!

The claim for the car was quick (its the first car related insurance claim ive ever made). It was taken away for assessment, and I was called 2-3 days later and told they were writing it off due to the flood water damage, then 2-3 days later I had the agreed $ value in my bank account.

At the same time we made a claim for home & contents as we had some flood water damage to our garage, garden shed and backyard. That claim did take longer because everything had to be itemised and a value put on it, but that was taken care of in a few weeks. (Also with Shannons for home & contents).

So yes, i am happy with them. But we tried to insure my wifes car with them and they were about $400 more than GIO so her car is with GIO.

[Flipper Dog]

Just received my renewal, increased by 27.6%. Nice of them to spell that out to me.
Similar pricing for what I was quoted from the other providers in the like for like area.

Interesting I tried the on line quote of my current provider and it was $50 cheaper. Next is to ring them to see what I can get.

There is a guy down at my local pub selling cartons of VB for $15 out the back, he reckons he can do a deal on insurance for me.

[Ralfi]

I ended up going with Budget Direct. Nice $546 saving from RACV’s best offer.

(Also cut ties with RACV for home insurance & saved a total of $922 for both car/home insurance)….

[Aggland]

This is pretty ridiculous now…

RACV were leading the way years ago, but they’ve just increased my insurance for a MY16 GTI MK7…

2022 Premium: $1278.96
2023 Premium: $1512.97

That’s an increase of $234 in one year! No performance modifications, no claims ever, very low KM, & those prices include a multi-policy & 5 year membership discounts!

Got a quote from Budget Direct: $890ish….(& will probably shift Home & Contents to them also….working on that comparison now).

How have your MK7 GTI Insurance Premiums increased this year?

It's crazy how costs just keep going up, even when you've got a clean record and all the discounts possible. I've been with RACV for years, but seeing those numbers, I might need to reconsider.

[Aggland]

Totally feel you on this one. Insurance premiums seem to skyrocket for no good reason. Loyalty? Yeah, right. Been there, done that, got the higher bill. It's a messed-up game, and I'm all for shopping around for the best deal. Loyalty should count for something, but it's like they couldn't care less. Recently, I've been exploring alternatives too, and stumbled upon https://casinosanalyzer.com/bonuses-by-countries/australia-aus, and their list of no deposit bonus codes. It helped me save some extra cash. Here's to hoping for some fairness and transparency in the insurance industry soon.

[The_Hawk]

the so-called "loyalty" discount is meaningless

Yep.

My insurance is currently split between Shannons for my car on a low use deal that I just can't get anywhere else.

My wife car is on a lease and still on the lease company's insurance, which is extortion but covers me if the payout is ever not enough to cover the remaining value owing. Typically OK for the first couple of years. Funny thing is that I can't add any extra drivers at all, so it covers everyone and the young driver excesses aren't too bad. Works out cheaper than anything I've found so far when I add any of my kids to the policy!

I looked at adding the kids to my car too, apparently fully covered as Learners, but as full drivers it's something like a 300% - 400% increase to thousands. Turns out they won't be driving my car

[DV52]

hmm......... Don't get me wrong - I reckon that the hefty increase in insurance costs is utterly outrageous - but what the various posts on this thread indicate is that it's relatively easy to get lower priced insurance!!

However, most decisions where folk change insurance companies ain't based on comparing apples-with-apples! Fact is that almost always, the lower-price product costs less because the insurance cover is reduced! This invariably gives the car owner a sense of a real saving (a job well done) and in most cases it is a real saving if no claims are made for the situation that was uninsured because of the lower-price product!!

I guess the ONLY good thing about rising insurance costs is that it makes folk think about how they value the insurer's terms and conditions. The bad thing (other than the cost itself) if the necessary research is NOT done before accepting a lower price, is that it can give the car owner a false sense of coverage!!

Moral of the story = "caveat emptor" also applies to car insurance!!

Don

[dimaser]

+10% as always

[Aggland]

hmm......... Don't get me wrong - I reckon that the hefty increase in insurance costs is utterly outrageous - but what the various posts on this thread indicate is that it's relatively easy to get lower priced insurance!!

However, most decisions where folk change insurance companies ain't based on comparing apples-with-apples! Fact is that almost always, the lower-price product costs less because the insurance cover is reduced! This invariably gives the car owner a sense of a real saving (a job well done) and in most cases it is a real saving if no claims are made for the situation that was uninsured because of the lower-price product!!

I guess the ONLY good thing about rising insurance costs is that it makes folk think about how they value the insurer's terms and conditions. The bad thing (other than the cost itself) if the necessary research is NOT done before accepting a lower price, is that it can give the car owner a false sense of coverage!!

Moral of the story = "caveat emptor" also applies to car insurance!!

Don

Couldn't agree more, Don! It's crucial to carefully review the terms and conditions of insurance policies, especially when opting for more affordable options. Sometimes what seems like a good deal at first glance can turn into a nightmare when it's time to make a claim.