Nobody wants to pay more for insurance than they absolutely have to. But when it comes to covering your motorhome, campervan or touring caravan, going for the cheapest insurance policy can actually end up costing you in more ways than one. Wrapper takes a look at just some of the ways in which buying cheaper motorhome and touring caravan insurance can end up costing you dearly…
1. Cover limits are easily exceeded
Choosing to pay a lower premium will pretty much always mean you’re covered to a lower degree. A third-party fire and theft policy, for example, will be much cheaper upfront, but the chances are that if you’re involved in an accident in your motorhome, it’s going to signal the end of your adventures. Because unless you’ve got the cash reserves to replace your vehicle, your insurance isn’t going to pay out for you to buy a new one, or even repair any damage. Even cheaper fully comprehensive policies are likely to be cutting corners somewhere in the protection they provide – whether that’s by not providing cover for European travel or offering no windscreen replacement protection – so be sure you’re getting the exact cover you need.
Top tip: Always read the IPID (Insurance Product Information Document) supplied by the insurer before you accept the quote. An IPID includes benefits and exclusions of the policy allowing you to double check that you’re covered for every possible eventuality.
2. Inadequate contents cover
Many motorhome and caravan insurance policies sound cheap until you read the small print, and this is nowhere more potentially damaging for your wallet than when it comes to protecting the contents of your motorhome. As your home away from home, your motorhome is no doubt packed to the rafters with items and gadgets that go towards making life on the road more comfortable and enjoyable. Things like TVs, laptops, smart phones, awnings, pushbikes, even super-comfy and expensive mattresses. Alas, full – and even adequate – contents cover is generally one of the first things that falls by the wayside when an insurance provider is racing to offer the lowest premium. So unless you want to have to fork out to replace everything in the event of a break-in, make sure you read the small print to see what’s covered.
Top tip: Double-check the level of contents cover that’s offered as standard, and ask about any specific higher-value items that may require separate cover, such as laptops and TVs.
3. Higher excess
The reason many of us are drawn to cheaper insurance is that none of us really wants to have to think about needing to make a claim. After all, making a claim will generally mean we’ve been involved in an accident, or that someone’s broken into our motorhome or caravan and made off with everything we hold dear. In the event that one of these things does happen, we want our insurance payout to be quick, painless, and to cost us as little as possible.
But one of the most common trade-offs of a cheaper insurance premium is a massively increased excess. That means any time you do need to make a claim, you’re likely to find yourself forking out much more in the first instance before your insurance payout will kick in. Are you likely to make a claim, for instance, if your excess is £1,000 and you’ve suffered £1,200 of damage? Probably not.
If, however, you’re paying an excess of £300 or even £500, you’re much more likely to seek a payout, and you’ll have saved yourself as much as £900 – likely much more than the amount you thought you were saving by choosing a cheaper policy.
Top tip: Check what you save by increasing your excess – sometimes its simply not worth it – you could increase your excess by hundreds of pounds but only save £10 on your policy.
4. Paying for add-ons at a later date
Add-ons are pretty standard for most insurance policies – they are a great way to tailor the policy to you, adding exactly what you need and not paying for something you don’t. Consider what you need; do you want to travel abroad in your motorhome? Do you want cover for gas and explosions? Will you be towing a trailer or another vehicle? What about repatriation or breakdown recovery for when you’re traveling abroad? Usually the headline premium will generally cover you for less as standard, then you add on what you need to create your fully rounded policy. If you need to amend your policy mid-term, these add-ons will often work out more expensive as the insurer needs to cover admin and change fees.
Top tip: Carefully consider everything you’re likely to need cover for, and choose a policy that includes protection for as many of those things as possible making the relevant add-0ns at the time of purchase to avoid higher fees to cover admin costs etc part-way through your policy.
5. Bad customer service
‘If you’re only paying peanuts…’ We all know how that saying ends, and the crux of it is that cheap insurance providers are likely to be cutting corners in the customer service department. While this might not cause you any concerns in the grand scheme of everyday motorhome ownership, it might well cause you some problems if you ever need to make a claim. Imagine being stuck in the middle of nowhere in some far-flung foreign land having had an accident of some sort – the last thing you want in that moment is to spend upwards of four hours on hold with your insurance provider, trying to organise how you’re going to get home. That’s if they’ll even help you get you home, of course. And then there’s the issue of your claim being progressed. If you’re paying less for your policy, the impetus is not going to be on your insurance provider to rush to process your claim – and they’re even less likely to either keep you updated, or reply to your requests for information about when you can expect your payout.
Top tip: Check out review sites like TrustPilot to see what existing or previous customer experiences have been like.
Wrapper’s got you covered
Looking for a motorhome, campervan or touring caravan insurance quote? Wrapper offers an innovative solution that allows you to design and buy the exact type of cover you need, from anywhere, on any device. Start building your quote today.
