Insure luxury models for summer driving fun
Personal insurance
28th May 2010
As the summer gets underway and long warm evenings tempt those with luxury cars to get behind the wheel to take their pride and joy for a spin, one company is highlighting the importance of insuring vehicles carefully in order to prepare for any eventuality.
The market for high-end vehicles is starting to demonstrate signs of improvement and more people are choosing to purchase a stylish motor, prompting Giles Insurance Brokers Ltd to urge owners to arrange comprehensive cover as soon as possible to protect their new plaything.
In general, car sales in the UK have picked up in recent months, boosted by the impact of the government's scrappage scheme, which came to an end in March. However, orders have remained relatively buoyant despite the end of the cash for bangers initiative and the most recent data from the Society for Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) revealed that car production rose 44 per cent in April this year, climbing 64.9 per cent over the year-to-date to 414,357 vehicles. The figures were welcomed by SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt as "a good start to the second quarter of 2010", assisted by a series of new product launches and the introduction of innovative technology.
With so many people ordering and purchasing new models this year, it is important that owners of new luxury motors take out the right insurance for their set of wheels at the same time as buying it. Susan Young, group personal lines director of Giles Insurance, recommends speaking to a specialist broker in order to access quality advice about the best products available on the market and remedy any issues that may arise.
She said: "The warm summer weather will see many people take to the roads to enjoy motoring in the sunshine. Having a classic sports car or convertible motor can be a rewarding experience but it is important to protect such a costly investment so that if something does go wrong it doesn't put a dampener on the season."
Additionally, luxury car dealership HR Owen has reported that it has seen good performance in sales during the year-to-date, with after sales revenues rising and an increase in margin performance across its marques.
The value of the UK's luxury car industry was recently highlighted by new business secretary Dr Vince Cable, who paid a visit to Bentley Motors in Crewe shortly after his appointment. During his trip to the carmaker's Pyms Lane headquarters, the Liberal Democrat politician spoke with employees and managers ahead of the company commencing production on its new Mulsanne model, each of which will take almost 500 hours to build.
However, recent figures from one insurer indicated that the S-Type Jaguar is the car most likely to be broken into by thieves, while the British Insurance Brokers' Association recently issued a warning that putting the wrong fuel in a vehicle can cost over £5,000 to correct the problem.
Despite an estimated 150,000 cases of misfuelling in the UK each year, nearly one in three insurance policies were found not to cover such mistakes, highlighting the importance of speaking to an insurance broker to ensure that a luxury motor is fully protected against such costly incidents for the most competitive premium available.
