Porsche Macan Forum banner

Insurance

6K views 25 replies 12 participants last post by  M GTS 
#1 ·
Pending delivery of my 2019 S , may I ask Australian forum members what insurance company’s they are using , are you happy with the cover and price ? ,
Thks in advance Rgs Alan
 
#2 ·
Hi stanley246

I would think insurance cost would be mainly down to age (hence length of driving experience), location (city / suburbs) and the risk factor each insurance company puts on those and various other factors, probably only known to them. That would make premiums vary widely across Macan owners.

That said I have been with Woolworths, Budget Direct, APIA, QBE, Dodo and at present I am with Bingle. Premiums have always been in the $650 - $1,000 range for me a retired driver with full 5 year NCD. I have found that Choice points you in the right direction for insurance in general and I always get quotes (usually online) from the companies that they recommend. They usually have a table of companies, states and various typical driver types and show $$ symbols to indicate costs. I also look at Canstar to get another view on the companies out there. You really have to do your own research and pick the company that covers the risks that are important to you. I did originally when I bought the Macan, get a quote from the Porsche dealership and they were using a company I had a quote from as an individual and not surprising the Porsche quote was about $1,000 ABOVE my individual quote!
 
  • Like
Reactions: copex
#3 ·
Many thanks for your reply Mumbo ,all very useful , like yourself I’m a retired motorist and awaiting delivery of a 2019 S ,and as you suggest I’m gathering insurance quotes , live in sleepy Adelaide, FYI . I’ve full 5 NCB all quotes are for agreed values $K145 , choice of repairers , 15000 kms p/a and covers my $33500 of options ( tad OTT ) boys and their toys ? , so far lowest at $581 and with $500 claim excess is the RAA , Mid range is Shannon’s at $1639 and with $1450 claim excess , highest ironically my present insurer CGU at $2031 excess $2000 there’s quite a vast diference for the same cover,
Once again may thks ........while the exercise continues
 
#6 ·
The issue with looking at Choice, Canstar, etc is that they are not in a position to assess the most important parameter with insurance and that is how you are treated when you actually make a claim. Its one thing to get great coverage at a good price, but quite another to have a hassle free and fair claims assessment.
Productreview.com.au does do this, but it also will censor negative reviews of some companies - so again it's info needs to be taken in that context.


RACV purchases a white label product from IAG - the largest general insurer in Australia, so RACV is not directly insuring the vehicles and does not undertake the claims process directly. However it does take its brand incredibly seriously and I have known it to make claim decisions in favour of its members if it believes the assessment has been too harsh.


I insure with RACV with choice of repairer, windscreen, agreed value and a $5k excess for $1k pa. and do so with that knowledge. I have made one claim for my wife's car, which was totally hassle free.



Disclaimer here - I used to run a joint venture company part owned by RACV, but quite some time ago. and not in insurance
 
#8 ·
Fast_Eddie I agree with your comment regarding satisfaction with the insurance company you end up choosing, but Choice do give you a "Satisfaction Score" alongside the insurer. The satisfaction score is based on data supplied by AFCA (Australian Financial Complaints Authority) which looks at how likely an underwriter is to get complaints and how likely it is to negotiate a settlement. That is partly how I ended up with Bingle as although their overall score was 74% their satisfaction rating was 68% and the price was also reasonable. FYI RACV which is only in Victoria (so I could not use their services in NSW) had an overall score of 51% and 65% satisfaction according to Choice (Jan/Feb 2019).

There are many factors to consider when selecting MV Insurance, not the least an individuals risk tolerance when the time does come to make that claim.
 
#9 ·
Mumbo I agree with you about the complexity and the risk tolerance issue that you raised is an excellent point.


For example I did not go with a price based player like Bingle, not because of satisfaction concerns, but due to its product offering not suiting my risk tolerance. For example I wanted to insure for agreed value and Bingle’s “market value” is about $25k less than the current real value for an MY16 Diesel S, I wanted choice of repairer so I could use Porsche approved not Bingle’s lowest cost choice and I would not accept secondhand parts or having to pay to airfreight parts.

So I paid about $200 pa more to go with a full service player and have those included in my policy. I noted also that Bingle has chosen to include its own definition of “Fair and reasonable” in its PDS as meaning “least amount of cost or effort” - hardly fair or reasonable IMO, but it gets them out having to be……hopefully you never have to find out, but as you say its about risk tolerance.

You are right about Choice, but I didn’t think that Choice’s “Satisfaction score” was a good proxy for claim satisfaction.

Choice does not explain exactly how it assesses the ACFA data, other than that a higher score is given for lesser complaints to ACFA and complaints settled - clearly this advantages the bit players rather than those with high market share such as IAG and Suncorp.
Also, if a consumer has a claim issue they have to go through two adjudications before having the right to go to ACFA - this can take many months. For example, I had a travel claim with an insurer rejected and it took eight months to go through this process to eventually get a 100% adjudication in my favour - but it took a lot of my time and knowledge of contract law to get there. Many people either do not have the time, the ability or the resources to go through that process, so it doesn’t even get to ACFA and some insurers will take advantage of this and try and settle for a lesser amount or simply wear people out.
I did have some estimates of this from the industry some years ago but unfortunately can’t locate now.
I think what is important is that a claim is settled quickly, fairly and in a reasonable timeframe………but how do you know that, so it makes it very hard for us poor consumers.

BTW NRMA and RACV both use a white label IAG product - but I am by no means advocating either.
 
#10 ·
Re new 2023 GTS.

I’ve allowed the dealership to quote me insurance and they came back with MB (QBE) of $2500 which has the nice sounding inclusions like 4 year replacement, repairer of choice etc blah blah and excess of $2000.

Looking online at RACT they quote $1150 for comprehensive+ with $600 excess.

The two are staggeringly different and wondering what others do for insurance? It’s a lot of money and even if I went with MB for the first 4 years it would be $10k vs $4400.

Also tire and wheel insurance through dealer?

Thanks very much
 
#11 ·
Re new 2023 GTS.

I’ve allowed the dealership to quote me insurance and they came back with MB (QBE) of $2500 which has the nice sounding inclusions like 4 year replacement, repairer of choice etc blah blah and excess of $2000.

Looking online at RACT they quote $1150 for comprehensive+ with $600 excess.

The two are staggeringly different and wondering what others do for insurance? It’s a lot of money and even if I went with MB for the first 4 years it would be $10k vs $4400.

Also tire and wheel insurance through dealer?

Thanks very much
A few things you need to consider with any type of insurance:
Insurance companies are in business to make a profit for their share holders, not necessarily to pay your claim!

QBE is an Australian owned insurance company with numerous insurance companies in their portfolio. Youi is South African owned, Allianz is German owned.

Suncorp is another Australian owned insurance company with numerous insurance companies in their portfolio including AAMI, GIO, Bingle, Apia and Shannons.

In my experience, whilst the subsidiary companies are owned by the big names, they operate independently from each other. For example, Apia (Suncorp) wouldn't insure my car because it's value is higher than their maximum risk level. I went to GIO (Suncorp) and NRMA (QBE) and found them both to be expensive. Subsequently I have insured with Shannons (Suncorp) for an agreed value which reflects the vehicle's worth to me, and their policy price was very competitive with all the inclusions I wanted. Shop around and get quotes from any number of insurers. Make sure they offer what you want, and although it's tedious you must read their conditions and exclusions.

Remember that dealers receive commission for any insurance, or finance, they sell in conjunction with vehicle sales. You will get better prices if you organise the insurance yourself, because the insurer won't have to pay any commission.

Finally, from my experience, never insure a vehicle for market value, because you will always get ripped off. Insure for an agreed value, and always try to get an agreed value that is marginally greater than the vehicle's worth. You may have to reduce a bit, depending on the insurer's flexibility. However, it's easy to reduce your desired value although very difficult to increase your desired value.
 
#13 ·
So I did all the online quotes and read a bunch of 6+ page threads on insurance on porscheforum.com.au and a few things kept coming up. People seem all positive about the Porsche Insurance (generally MB) from a claims and support point of view and a number of people are with them. But likewise, anyone with MB direct has a similar/same experience.

Shannons comes up a lot as being more or less pretty good with a few iffy stories, but on the whole good enough to go with if the price is right.

Enthusiast comes up a lot too but was prohibitively expensive for the online quote.

Here are my findings:

  • RACT: $1176 full cover + windscreen cover, no repairer choice, $600 excess, $176k sum insured
  • Shannons: $1659 full cover + free windscreen + choice of repairer, only listed drivers, $1500 excess, $149k sum insured (max online quote)
  • Porsche Insurance quote (MB): $2500 full cover + free windscreen + choice of repairer + 4 years new for old replacement, up to 8000k's, $2000 excess, $176k sum insured
  • MB direct: waiting($388 premium per year to go through Porsche Insurance for same cover presumably)
    • $2112 full cover, all the MB bells and whistles $2000 excess (quoted 2k excess to compare to Porsche Insurance MB quote)
    • $2262 full cover with $1000 excess
Enthusiast, QBE, Dawes (through Porsche) all quoted above $3000.

Based on the feedback in this forum, I'm inclined to go with MB for the extensive cover and better claims experiences. It's just that I read of others insuring $350k+ cars with them for less than I was being quoted through Porsche Insurance (MB) but since have found that going direct is a lot cheaper!

Also of note, Shannons don't cover unlisted drivers whereas MB cover unlisted drivers as long as the contribute to less than 2% of km driven. All signs point to MB here.
 
#16 ·
I am with Huddle insurance. A former member recommended them. If you go for their top cover you get winscreen cover, rental car for two weeks and also new for old for up to two years I think. On my second year with them and although premuims did go up on renewal was still cheaper than the rest. Haven’t tested the cover yet though….
 
#23 ·
You must be on the same boat as me. Hoegh Oslo. Departed Bremerhaven on about 17th March.

I’ve been on and off about how to respond to all the insurances. Personally I’m going to self insure the wheels and tyres. My logic is the car has surround view and I’ll be less likely to scuff them. My roads are pretty good in terms of potholes too.

I’m going with MB insurance assuming my $2200 quote is still accurate in May for the GTS.
 
#24 ·
As much as we love our Macans and depending your circumstances I can't see the point paying far more Insurance than neccessary.
Have no need for a hire car amongst other things that pump up your annual cost.
I have 2 other cars with the Enthusiast at low klm use not being DD whereas the Macan is.
Its my means of transport - Enthusiast wanted $2500, choice of repairer, agreed value etcetc Budget came in @ $1400 with options enough if bad luck occurs.
IF its a bad accident I'll just sell it once repaired or take the market value pay out and move on getting another or other model.
 
#25 ·
I would be very wary of taking a market value insurance policy, following past experience.

I had a car (not a Porsche) insured for market value. My theory was if the car is so seriously damaged that it is written off, I won't be around to drive it any more.
However, my car was stolen and found damaged and burnt out. Something I hadn't considered when insuring. The insurer on settlement made the market value substantially lower than the vehicle's existing value, based on sales of identical vehicles at the time. The payout I received was not enough to get a vehicle anywhere near the value of the one written off. I objected to the insurer's "market value", however, the market value is based on the insurer's estimate, not the true value of market sales at the time.

Since then, I have insured my vehicles for an agreed value and at least if the vehicle is written off, I know what amount I will receive. I will never insure for "market value" again. Sure, a "market value" policy is cheaper, but so is the payout! Just remember that insurance companies are in business to make profits, not necessarily to pay clients what they expect in their claim. They will do everything they can to either reduce your payout, or reject your claim.
 
#26 ·
Smokey you made some very good points.
TBH I have been to liberal upon buying the GTS.
My other 2 Aussie Ford rides are insured with all the bells and whistles as you do and as bad luck hit a month ago my younger son errored and smashed the front of one of my previous dailys a 4x4Hilux.
Insured with NRMA and the policy didn't have choice of repairer for one, which as the NRMA system works through a 3rd party not direct with the panel beater was a right royal PIA recently.
So with this and your post I am changing my GTS policy to prefferred repairer and agreed value, afterall it is way worth it compared to the Hilux !
Thankyou.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top