So, the car I was driving since I came up to Jo'burg has been written off (although not strictly true). Basically, I stopped behind a person dropping off people (as if it was a taxi) and then I got hit from behind. The damage was a lot more than the value of the car; so it got written off.
Which is all a bit ironic; simply because I have been meaning to buy a new car anyway. But it is still damn inconvenient - I have had to rent a car for the past week or so; so that I can get around.
But what has been really interesting is getting quotes for car insurance. Being a single male aged 25; I automatically attract high premiums. In fact, I was told by one insurance agent that any car with an engine capacity over 1.6 l is considered high performance!
But what I found interesting is also the factors they do not consider when calculating risk; such as the regularity in consumption of alcohol, main driving routes, amount of Km travelled, time of travel and the maintenance record of the car - all the main factors that contribute to accidents.
Also interesting is the fact that many of the "low insurance" adverts were not low - Outsurance came out the most expensive (R4500!), Budget Insurance and Dial Direct were cheaper but still over R500 more than the quote I did take in the end. Also - Dial Direct, Budget etc - they are all still brokers - just brokers fronting for one specific insurance underwriter. So much for skipping the middle man.
So, I will get my car on 1 Nov (I am not in Jo'burg for most of October); and will post about that then ...
5 comments:
(interesting... targeted comment spam)
Strange to hear how Outsurance was most expensive... which car insurance did you get in the end? (by email/msg if you please)
When I get a car (forced to in a month) I might have to get insurance for parking on the road overnight (that, or move to higher rental place as well)... would help if the premiums were low to start with.
It's hard to get a good car insurance plan. It's most important to shop around and find the best deal.
> (interesting... targeted comment spam)
Companies pay people to manually post targeted spam on blogs. I started getting lots of it (I delete them) until I turned on moderation. Often they give very meaningful comments, but then add a spam link.
CarInsurance.com or licensed agents in our professional sales center are available to help you purchase your car insurance policy. In some states, you are directed to one of our trusted partners for a rate in your area.Because we offer multiple company rates and the ability to purchase their auto insurance quote from one place, we are ahead of other online insurance companies.
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jacksen
Social Marketing
ROFL - the targetted spam is quite impressive.
In the end, I got it via a broker; but being 25 and getting a new car, did end up costing me a lot!
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