Originally Posted by
mitch1956
hi, its all about risk, also what the underwriter/ company want to insure or the direction they see as a opportunity to not make a loss, not so much to make a profit, that's why you find some will run a mile from electric cars etc, a lot of premiums are auto generated and its only when you question the quote do you get a individual quote as you probably found when common sense prevailed? afraid as you prob know it can be as much as a post code on one side of the street can make a difference, insurers rarely refuse cover they just make it expensive so you go away.
you are correct the repair costs have a big significance in claims costs which reflect in premiums, parts, labour, hire car all play a part in the decision to total loss a car, including the salvage value .e.g if a car is worth 5 k repair costs are 2.5 k ( so economical)but salvage value is 3k as a cat D then its cheaper/better for the insurer to total loss it, and even more so if hire is accruing.
accident management firm also have a impact, so i always shake my head when people complain about premiums but have used a accident management company for their claim and boast about the payout! we all pay for this not just the person who was insured.