Insurance gripe - Shannons

Melz · 29-12-2009, 06:03 PM

Now as a "motoring enthusiast", I actually get out and drive my cars. They aren't locked away in a shed and wrapped in cotton wool. So wasn't I the surprised one on making my first claim....

I have 4 of my cars insured with Shannons (as we all know they are for the 'motoring enthusiast'

: ). I've been with Shannons since purchasing my XB as they showed the benefits of insuring an old car for agreed value and choice of repairer.

After my few years of accumulating older cars, I have put them all to Shannons as nothing seemed to offer the same 'options'.

I decided to insure my daily driver also with them. This car maybe a daily, but it is my pride and joy and I take great care of her. I didn't really see the point to going anywhere else to insure her.

Well a month ago I had my first ever claim in the BFII. Clean driving record, no previous claims, and I wasn't at fault for the accident. (hit a roo at 5:15am!). Rang Shannons as soon as I was in an area with service and reported that I hit the roo and was told I would be rung back later when the dayshift came on.

At 1pm I hadn't heard anything so I rang them... Needless to say it was news to them. After being re-asked all the questions I had previously answered, I was asked "who owned the animal" to which I replied "the Victorian Government", they don't have a sense of humour!

By 3pm that same arvo the car was in at the panelbeater being assessed. It wasn't until 12 days later that the insurance assessor gave the go ahead to the panelbeater to work on the car.

If it wasn't for the panel beater going ahead ordering the parts as soon as the car arrived in the yard, I wouldn't have had my car back yet! What's so hard about making a straight forward claim?

Upon making a claim I found out something else.... I lose my no claim bonus (for that car). Turns out that the car must be entering its 4th year without claims to be eligible for this. It doesn't matter if you have 7 or 40 years of faultless driving to your record, its if the car has had a claim... Which I find personally pathetic as the car isn't even 2 years old!

Apparently its outlined in my PDS, but I guess that just serves as a reminder to shop around and don't go for the first schmuck that says their a like minded 'enthusiast'. Also that customer loyalty means nothing....

Oh well a not so great end to my crappy year

Melz

PS. Panel beater did an absolutely fantastic job, thanks to the choice of repairer!

PPS. Shannons knows how I feel too... I just got a phone call from one of their service reps. I think they "valued my feedback"

**Bundy** · 29-12-2009, 06:17 PM

ahhh, there's your first mistake... you belived the advertising hype, then they had you!!

The G6ET Spot · 29-12-2009, 06:18 PM

Sorry to hear about the accident but it is good that it is all repaired to your satisfaction.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Melz

(as we all know they are for the 'motoring enthusiast'

: ).

This is now the problem with Shannons. Since Suncorp bought them they couldn't care less about the people they insure, it is just dollars to them. And with all insurers they will rip you a new one any chance they get.

I had a very similar problem with NRMA when I had an accident with my ute. Like you my repairer ( a good friend) was the one that did the right thing and went ahead with the repairs as I had choice of repair and he was a NRMA repairer anyway. Needless to say NRMA got the flick.

RG · 29-12-2009, 06:36 PM

I had issues when making a claim for the XR too Melz, let's just say that the words I had with their moron assessor violate the T&C of this forum.

bangm001 · 29-12-2009, 07:08 PM

mmm good to hear this actually, saves me from shopping around, i just turned 25 and have had turbo fpvs for 4-5 years now.. I have had to make one claim with Just Car and they were great, im now with AAMI (the same company as just car) and am still very happy. MY premium dropped by $450 when i turned 25! Woo Hoo

Yaw · 29-12-2009, 07:29 PM

Your no claim bonus is just that...a NO CLAIM bonus. When there is no recovery or you cannot identify the at fault party, be that a theft, a car that was parked with the third party not leaving any details or an animal your no claim bonus should be affected to make it fair on other policy holders as a recovery cannot be made which means the entire client base pay for the repairs. If a protected rating or no claim bonus is important to you, that is something you should look for in a policy when you take it out.

I don't know why the delay in the assessing. but the above is right no matter who you insure with unless there is a protected no claim bonus which is a benifit of a policy that offers that, not a right.

BA Baracus · 29-12-2009, 07:48 PM

It's usually an additional charge (alters the quote) with many companies to get protection on your no claim bonus or rating one for life. I deal with PDS documents for work and it really pays to read them thoroughly even though they are often long and can be a little difficult to take in all the info. Not necessarily for catches or tricks or anything like that, but just so you can be sure the policy you took out matches everything you discussed/entered online when initiating the policy. The PDS can at times vary despite the policy being the labeled the same (ie: standard comp, gold comp or whatever it may be).

LoL at who owns the roo?

SSVPom · 29-12-2009, 09:02 PM

Shannons quoted around $400 higher for an XR6 Turbo than the RACV did when I was shopping around, and my current car, the SSV Sportwagon, was the same deal... no need to say who I took my policy out with !

Shannons did however ask lots of 'car enthusiast' related questions, so maybe for something older or more exotic, the details requested and subsequently their cover could be more suitable.

hendrixhc · 29-12-2009, 10:05 PM

I recently made an insurance claim for a minor accident that my missus had in her new suzuki swift. She was not at fault and there was about $3500 damage caused some old fart towing a car trailer through a crowded shopping centre car park ( he scraped the rear quarter and door and trashed the bumper and mag wheel).

Unlike Melz i had the best experience with Shannons. I made a phone call and gave them all the details of the accident. They gave me a claim number over the phone and said they would get the damage assessed.

Within two days i received an sms to confirm my claim, assured me there was 0 at fault and no loss of no claim bonus.

The car was repaired and i received a phone call from shannons to see if the repairs were completed to my satisfaction. Unfortunately they were not, so they are sending an assessor out to the repairer to talk to them and to reasses my car. They told me if i am not happy with the repair it will be done again.

I can honestly say i was puzzled at the whole experience cause it was so easy. I kept waiting for the catch, but there has been none.

No i dont work for shannons and was not paid for this post!! I guess there are always positives and negatives to all companies. I generally a negative person so this post is a rarity for me!!

hendrixhc · 29-12-2009, 10:09 PM

FairmontPom]Shannons quoted around $400 higher for an XR6 Turbo than the RACV did when I was shopping around, and my current car, the SSV Sportwagon, was the same deal... no need to say who I took my policy out with !

I was insured with the RAA in SA years ago and was dropped from a rating 1 driver to a rating 5 for a $1400 accident.

Paid for that for the next five years in excessively high premiums.

I would give them a big miss!

b2tf · 29-12-2009, 10:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RAPID XR8

This is now the problem with Shannons. Since Suncorp bought them they couldn't care less about the people they insure, it is just dollars to them. And with all insurers they will rip you a new one any chance they get.

You're dead right Dave, and this opinion is echoed by some people I know who used to work for them. Its all about the numbers now.

I had to make a claim with them earlier this year with my FG - a very easy experience to do and they had no problems with me telling them when, where and how the repairs were going to start. Luckily the total cost of repairs was so low that I just paid for it out of my own pocket - it was actually cheaper than what my excess was, so I cancelled the claim and have still got my NCB.

That said though, I got the premium renewal the other day in the mail and it has risen by $100 this year - even though no other circumstances have changed with the car. I queried this with them as to why it has risen when nothing has changed and I have not made a claim - the answer was 'economics'. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it I guess) Shannons are by far the cheapest option for me - being 23 and owning a brand new V8 does have it's downsides.

RG · 29-12-2009, 10:14 PM

It seems Shannons are quite hit and miss with their assessors. Considering both Melz and I live in the same part of the state I dare say we both may have had the same assessor.

If so I really do feel for you Mel.

Aust I agree with you on that. I queried them on what the XR will cost to insure when I get it going again at the new house (it's under laid up cover at the old mans atm) and they reckon it will go up by $200 a year from what it used to be. That's even though it will now have a garage!

RIPGMH · 29-12-2009, 10:14 PM

The "agreed" value on my XR8 has dropped twice since I insured it despite spending over 30k on it. Seems it's only an agreed value as long as Shannons sees it.

b2tf · 29-12-2009, 10:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RIPGMH

The "agreed" value on my XR8 has dropped twice since I insured it despite spending over 30k on it. Seems it's only an agreed value as long as Shannons sees it.

Yes but it's only a B series............

j/k

:

hodge_williams · 29-12-2009, 10:17 PM

soz to hear about that. I had my lib gt insured with shannons and only had to wait 1 year for lifetime no claim bonus/rating protection. I had made 3 claims (none of which were my fault) and all were fixed within 7 days.

**Peuty** · 29-12-2009, 10:25 PM

Hmm I'm with Shannons - lets hope I never need to make a claim - touch wood.

Also Melz, hitting a roo is an at fault accident. At fault also means "no third party to claim against".

**Silver Ghia** · 29-12-2009, 10:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FairmontPom

Shannons quoted around $400 higher for an XR6 Turbo than the RACV did when I was shopping around, and my current car, the SSV Sportwagon, was the same deal... no need to say who I took my policy out with !

Shannons did however ask lots of 'car enthusiast' related questions, so maybe for something older or more exotic, the details requested and subsequently their cover could be more suitable.

I've been with Shannons for around 20 years with my MG's, when discussing policies even recently with my daily and newer (classic) acquisitions on occasions they may have initially appeared unreasonable, but found that after discussing the situations with the rep they did realise then and have been most reasonable.

Regarding the 12 day delay with the assessing, there's normally a story from both sides, but when I had a no fault claim a few years ago with my daily they assessed it the next day and gave the go ahead straight away. No problems whatsoever.

irish2 · 29-12-2009, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by b2tf

You're dead right Dave, and this opinion is echoed by some people I know who used to work for them. Its all about the numbers now.

I had to make a claim with them earlier this year with my FG - a very easy experience to do and they had no problems with me telling them when, where and how the repairs were going to start. Luckily the total cost of repairs was so low that I just paid for it out of my own pocket - it was actually cheaper than what my excess was, so I cancelled the claim and have still got my NCB.

That said though, I got the premium renewal the other day in the mail and it has risen by $100 this year - even though no other circumstances have changed with the car. I queried this with them as to why it has risen when nothing has changed and I have not made a claim - the answer was 'economics'. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it I guess) Shannons are by far the cheapest option for me - being 23 and owning a brand new V8 does have it's downsides.

One of the questions shannons ask you each time your policy is renewed is 'Have you have any accidents whether at fault of not in the past 12 months.' I belived this is to ascertain how likely you are to be in an accident whether at fault or not. This could relate to the times you drive the vehicle as well as how defensively you drive the vehicle. The fact you had an at fault accident quite possibly raised the 'risk' of insuring you.

b2tf · 29-12-2009, 11:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by irish2

One of the questions shannons ask you each time your policy is renewed is 'Have you have any accidents whether at fault of not in the past 12 months.' I belived this is to ascertain how likely you are to be in an accident whether at fault or not. This could relate to the times you drive the vehicle as well as how defensively you drive the vehicle. The fact you had an at fault accident quite possibly raised the 'risk' of insuring you.

Maybe - but the claim I was going to make was actually for carpark damage with no other vehicle involved.

Kev_BLNXR8_Ute · 30-12-2009, 10:17 AM

I think it sucks that you loose rating 1 for hitting a bloody roo.

Some of the things seemed strange to me.
The car lost rating 1 not Mel, work that out.
All the other cars stay as rating one according to the dude on the other end of the phone.

:

After 2 or 3 days of the car been at the repairers and hearing nothing Mel called Shannons again to see what was going on.
They claimed they didnt even know the car was there. WTF

:

Mel rang them to tell them exactly where is was when she dropped it off.

Who ever the space cadet was that dealt with this claim he should loose his job over it. Why ask all the questions if no one is going to log it into their system.

The whole process was well below average.

I guess you win some and loose some.
At least the car was fixed properly, no thanks to Shannons.

I just hope I dont need to make a claim anytime soon.

Kev

Whitey-AMG · 30-12-2009, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kev_BLNXR8_Ute

I just hope I dont need to make a claim anytime soon.

Kev

I guess that's the whole crux of the situation.........no claim , no worries.......which is kind of ironic....the whole point of insuring yourself is to ensure you have protection when you need to claim !

Shannons are real nice people to deal with when they can recover their loss ( not at fault with witnesses and recovery details from 3rd party ) , they also offer good value for modified cars that are driven daily. Some Insurers will not even touch the cars we drive. Its always a good idea to bounce your claim and your grievance on a second person / supervisor with any situation. I've had numerous instances with my policy renewals that were overturned because I spoke with a more senior person at Shannons. Yes, it shouldn't happen in the 1st place..........but it doesn't hurt to follow up and in the end, the PDS should always be read in full to avoid any confusion.

I think we would all be very surprised ( some even horrified ) if we all read our PDS from our individual insurers. I have a good guess that there may plenty out there that would find themselves potentially uninsured even though they pay their premiums..........some of the conditions on the PDS would preclude any payouts. ( not just Shannons.....same goes for Rhino , VGL , RACV , etc etc )

A simple thing like not declaring a modified exhaust, or the fact that the car is kept in a carport and not a lock up garage can change the whole situation rela quick if the Insurance company takes the claim to task.

READ, READ , READ the PDS and ask a million questions if you have to. Better safe than sorry, and better to pay an additional $2-300 , even $500 per year than to suffer the loss of MANY THOUSANDS.

gtxb67 · 30-12-2009, 11:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kev_BLNXR8_Ute

I think it sucks that you loose rating 1 for hitting a bloody roo.

Some of the things seemed strange to me.
The car lost rating 1 not Mel, work that out.
All the other cars stay as rating one according to the dude on the other end of the phone.

:

i am not right up with the ins and outs of insurance, but i would expect if there is no one else to blame that the rating 1 or no claim bonus would go. at least the other cars still have it, which i would have expected to not be the case

the car did get fixed properly - shannon's paid for it so at the very least allowing melz choice of repairer did help

from the stories that i hear about others, this is probably one of less aggrovating - still annoys the crap out of you and melz, but it seems to be one of the better of a bad situation deals

i know when i made my only claim, i was going to my normal panel beater and gio had told me he was already paid for it. i pushed and pushed for a courtesy vehicle (which of course was inconvenient for him) and in the end he gave me his pride and joy ek wagon (even in 1993 it was special). once the repairs were done he asked me about the money - i told him gio had told me he was paid months ago - turned out they were lying. it is not just one company that tries to jerk their customers around

at least the car and melz is right now - it could have been a lot worse, both with the accident and the red tape

Tom_Jane · 30-12-2009, 12:23 PM

I was considering getting insurance from these clowns once.

They asked me if I did the work on my car myself or if I watched racing on the TV. When I answered 'no' to both they said I should try someone else because they are for motoring enthusiasts.

Which was the biggest load of bull shyte I have ever heard. Not everyone owns a mega shed complete with hoist.
And this part especially - you dont have to like watching racing to be a damn car enthusiast!

**Sorted** · 30-12-2009, 12:52 PM

Shannons are cheap - thats why people insure with them........
If they dont give a cheaper quote even with all thier benefits people insure elsewhere

They have Choice of Repairer
They have retention of wreck
They have Agreed Value
Their Standard Policy Includes Windscreen Protection

On their Insurance Invoice its noted and shows if No Claim Bonus is Not Applicable

This is the issue with all insurances, clients dont read thier policy - they only worry about what the premium and excess is - they only read their policy when they have an accident.

If the insurer, actually any insurer, cant make a recovery off a third party then the claim will effect your no claim bonus - if you have protection the no claim bonus will remain unchanged

EXCEPT in the case where some dodgy insurer's offers Rating 1/NCB for Life ......Yes if you have two at fault claims in one year your renewal will still show your on Rating 1/Maximum NCB but your premium will increase.........

greenfoam · 03-01-2010, 01:33 AM

I've got stories about Shanons paying for things they really didn't have to. I've also had a long talk to them about if the retain the wreck or not and they told me definatly not. "Why would we, it's your car" I was told. They have payed to repair my friends engine that was destroyed by accident during a rebuild (bolt fell down the intake), they payed to have another friends car repaired after if was crashed inside the gates of a race track (although not racing at the time but crashed due to the brakes failing eariler on the track). Both those were very impressive

schultzie · 03-01-2010, 07:36 AM

well Shannon's flat out denied my insurance for my new ute because of what i have planned for it.

Im with racv on their top cover (better then full comp) with rating 1 protection and it came in 150 less than just car.. racv love modified cars now as long as they are legal.

Insurance companies give you the run around when your at fault and when you not they run around for you because they are getting money in.

just car were good when BF ute caught fire but they never called me, i had to call them all the time.

hawke · 03-01-2010, 09:01 AM

I've been in the Insurance business for more than 20 years, and I still cant understand how underwriters price the premiums.

Last year I had my Formula Ford stolen, then recovered damaged, Shannons paid out, and I then bought it back - after some dispute on the price. This year, they reduced the premium down to about $350 per year - and still include race cover.

They charge $300 per year for my Lotus, but wanted $3,500 for my new Porsche Boxster. NRMA do it for $1,200. When I asked Shannons to match the price, they said they were not interested, as they only do enthusist vehicles. A Porsche is ....

Shannons wanted $750 to cover my race car trailer, but GIO do it for $150. When I suggested that to charge $750 to cover a trailer that carries a race car they charge $350 for, was a little odd, they said that premiums were deterermined by underwriters.

ltd_on20s · 03-01-2010, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hawke

I've been in the Insurance business for more than 20 years, and I still cant understand how underwriters price the premiums.

Last year I had my Formula Ford stolen, then recovered damaged, Shannons paid out, and I then bought it back - after some dispute on the price. This year, they reduced the premium down to about $350 per year - and still include race cover.

They charge $300 per year for my Lotus, but wanted $3,500 for my new Porsche Boxster. NRMA do it for $1,200. When I asked Shannons to match the price, they said they were not interested, as they only do enthusist vehicles. A Porsche is ....

Shannons wanted $750 to cover my race car trailer, but GIO do it for $150. When I suggested that to charge $750 to cover a trailer that carries a race car they charge $350 for, was a little odd, they said that premiums were deterermined by underwriters.

lol underwriters are another breed of human.

no one understands the mathmatical logarithims the use.

not even they do.

**Sorted** · 03-01-2010, 02:04 PM

One of the factors underwriters use to base premiums is loss ratio

If their loss ratio for that particluar vehicle is high then the premium that particluar insurer charges for that vehicle will be high - simple really

If they insured 100 Porches and the total income for the year was $150,000 for all the Porches they insured but the total claims was $300,000 for all the Porches then of course they will charge more the next year for Porches

Barry_v · 03-01-2010, 02:46 PM

I had a suprise when I renewed my insurance on my P6 LTD the other day (It had been off the road for 6 months and I had let it lapse). It had been insured with the RAA (SA version of RACV?) for about 2.5 years previously. When they checked my details they suddenly realised they had unwittingly insured an 'under 25' with a V8! they refused to take my money again! thank god I never had an at fault accident in that time as I imagine they would have tried to get out of paying. Who knows how they managed to think a P6 LTD was anything other than a V8 (a 351 V8 was the only engine option). They certainly know how to throw good customers away.. I'm 24 on full license, been driving 7 years, one 'no fault' claim (someone rear ended me, I didn't even contact my insurance company), one minor speeding fine.

Shannons insured me no hassles at a good price. I don't think any insurance company is going to be pleasant to deal with when it comes to handing out their cash though.