A-Plan Insurance - Scheme for Members!

[clare-aplan]

Many Alpina Register members may already be familiar with A-Plan Insurance as we have been established for nearly 50 years and we have over 65 branches situated across the UK.

More specifically, the Thatcham branch specialise in club affiliations, and have developed specialist facilities for members, covering all types of BMW’s including performance, modified, imported, classic and prestige car insurance.

At A-Plan Thatcham, we pride ourselves on delivering the very best in customer service and having worked closely with motor clubs throughout the years, we can offer a range of insurance polices including cover for modifications, agreed value, limited mileage polices and some specialist additional benefits to your insurance including enhanced courtesy cars and excess protection.

My name is Clare, I am the club’s affiliation account manager and hope my presence on here will be of assistance to you.

Please feel free to call me personally at the branch or PM me if you have any questions.

Clare

[samuk]

Calling now for a quote..

[samuk]

Clare

are you still the account manager?

i have got a renewal quote - can you offer any discounts for members?


Ps: a year after my original post

[Collectingbrass]

I just wanted to give the A Plan Thatcham branch a nod of thanks. I recently had an exhaust nicked - thankfully not off my Alpina but from a R reg 328 convertible. The A Plan team were really helpful and kept on the insurer's case to get to a swift resolution and to then process the outcome. Unfortuntaley the car had to be written off as a new exhaust would have been £1600...

[music]

Collectingbrass.

Much sympathy, sir. The whole exhaust? Bottom of manifold all the way back? Thieves will go to any length!

I'm guessing it was a 1997 E36 328i cabrio, an appreciating asset these days if it was in good nick (sorry), so I can't see why it's a total loss for a £1600 exhaust and an hour's labour. I hope you bought the salvage 'cos you'd pick up a replacement exhaust for two or three hundred quid on-line or a bit more for OEM.

Who did A-Plan place your policy with? Highway Insurance by any chance? Part of LV. That's where they put me. I don't know where these companies are coming from these days as far as market values are concerned. They seem determined to get older cars off the road irrespective of their mileage or condition. Is this a stealth scrappage scheme? What's their incentive? Government help or vastly increased premiums for your next car? Or both?

Eighteen months ago I was quoted over £3000 supply and fit for an E46 B3 system after speed hump damage on a council waste site cracked the weld on the bottom manifold flange. I'd two bags of grass cuttings in the boot. Seems I went over too slowly and very solidly dropped the car off the cliff edge of this hump and on to a delicate spot. Metal dropping on concrete is not a good sound or feeling. The site operators denied liability, insisted that this new hump complied legally and claimed my car must have been modified, ie., lowered. Pointless chasing them through court. I've been with A-Plan three years but unlike your experience they were no help whatsoever so I coughed up £350 to have it all taken off and re-welded.

I now have another issue re pot-hole damage. I'd put my B3 into a garage to check wheel alignment, a tyre scrubbing off, a buckled rim and other suspension issues and to get the work done prior to its MOT at end October. It's my only car since I stupidly let my E46 330i go so not wanting to waste silly money on an interim rental I spent £350 on a cracking little 2001 Fiesta Ghia 1.2 to tide me over and asked A-Plan to insure it.

I'm told the damage on the B3 is more extensive than first thought. I'm specifically covered for pot-hole damage claims under legal assistance - but only if the lawyers believe they have an almost guaranteed chance of success in court. Well, we know what that means and even if they did take it on it could be months and months while they argue the toss - both sides spending more than the actual claim. I asked A-Plan for advice and whether I could claim on my normal fully comp NCD protected policy. They said yes I could and suggested the garage submit a quote for the work. As the garage is an approved repairer that seemed an easy thing to organise, my intention being to look at the quote and decide whether or not to claim. The quote instead went online to an LV engineer and, without my knowledge, a claim number was issued to A-Plan who did not pass it on to me. Never, at any point, did I say I would claim and I still haven't got a breakdown of the quote.

I've had a clean licence for decades and a similar record with claims, NCD coming out of my ears, so I expected a next to nothing quote for a cheap Fiesta. A-Plan kindly informed me they were "confident you will be pleased with our quotation which has been selected on the grounds of value for money". The quote for 12 months fully comp insurance comes to £1,395.69 with a compulsory excess of £1,100 - on a car with a declared value of £350.00 ??? Sheer madness.

The logic behind this is that according to A-Plan I have the potential to make a claim for a possible total loss on the B3. By that logic any of us could fall under a bus tomorrow so are therefore ineligible for life insurance. I've made it clear to them that I've not made a claim, simply sought their advice, yet through A-Plan's advice and actions this supposed 'claim' is now logged on the CUE database and I can't get it taken off. All quotes on the Fiesta, or anything else for that matter, will for the next six years show a total loss against my name and I'm in danger of being refused all insurance for not declaring it on any future application for cover - a criminal offence I believe. A-Plan say I can apply to now discontinue the claim but that wrongly suggests I'd made a claim in the first place. It's also not clear if I could then resurrect it should it become necessary. A-Plan have refused to take corrective action themselves. I'm also told that my NCD protection only protects the number of years held and not the policy premium. I could be the innocent no fault victim and still be hammered on renewal or my next quote. As a final insult, should it be a total loss, there is no refund on the balance of your policy even if you've paid the full year ahead but claim in the first month of cover.

I don't want to lose this car. It's too good and with a two previous owner fully documented history and service record. A-Plan in Altrincham, my original office, agree with me on this but this sentiment doesn't seem to be shared by the Thatcham office who have now taken over the 'claim'. In fact Thatcham, at one point, passed it on to their Tooting office such was their lack of interest or understanding. I can't accept current working arrangements as an excuse for the messy way all this has been handled. They've had five months to get themselves organised for goodness sake. They're my broker and supposed to be working in my best interests in exchange for the fees I pay them. I see no evidence of this as I try and stride over or around the obstacles they put in my way. And it all seemed so simple to start with.

I've not insured the Fiesta, I'm not using it and I've got the B3 back home. A-Plan have asked if I'm using it and I've said yes but on limited local journeys only as I have no alternative. I'm wondering now that if I should decide to claim when I see the full quote whether I'll be refused for having potentially caused further damage by driving it. What else am I supposed to do as their actions have priced me off the road in anything other than the already insured B3. Any suggestions would be welcome, and apologies for venting more than was intended.

[Norrie]

I read your post (Music) with much interest and some sympathy. Two things, one via A Plan Thatcham I have an agreed value with the underwriting insurer for my vehicle. Therefore suggest that if people want a guaranteed pay out that they negotiate the agreed sum at the inception of the policy.

Secondly, Have you personally spoken to Henry Francis the M of the Thatcham Branch, if not, under your circumstances I would suggest you do so. Henry is a reasonable man and one of integrity. I am not qualified to advise or comment over the specific details of your case.

However, I will share with you an Insurance horror story. Many years ago I bought my son a used approved One series BMW from a main dealer. He was young and had passed his test. It was involved in a low speed incident whereby someone came behind him when parked and beeped him to move forward, he panicked a bit a drove on to a small bollard. Two minutes later PC plod arrived, accused him of being a thief, drunk, drugs you name it, all which were found quickly to be untrue. PC plod got a micky mouse recovery guy who dragged it off the bollard and ripped the sump. Next day we go to find the car, by 1000 am it has been inspected by a so called Engineer and removed as a write off? The car was less than 7 days before purchased.

It went to a salvage Company in Ipswich the same day and was used in an armed robbery two or three days later. I knew as PC Plod came to bash in my door looking for the driver. Who was in Spain on Holiday having left the day before these robbers pounced.

Fast forward, in the end the insurance company settled with a "no liability" award of the full value plus 10%, due to the way it was handled. There is too much detail to go into in between, but had it not been that I had sound advice from a legal professional, we would have been screwed. No too sure what the message is here except, never takes your eyes of the ball and read all the small print. They are there to make money and not to pay out if they can avoid it.

[music]

Thanks for the reply Norrie. No wonder there are so many uninsured drivers out there when they treat decent folk this way. The whole business stinks. NCD on one vehicle only - like we can drive two at once? Protected against what? Post code premiums? Legal assistance? All scams.

Not sure now about approved repairers either when an engineer will agree a superficial write off on their say so without even seeing the car himself. This same repairer ten years ago killed a friend's concours winning two owner Mondeo Ghia V6, full factory fitted-from-new ST24 bodykit and unblemished paint, leather, MOT record and service history. Someone had gently reversed into a rear offside door/quarter panel leaving a slight crease. Aesthetic angst. Repairer said it needed a full new door and quarter panel and as it had 240,000k on it they were going to write it off 'as it's had its time'. Made it Cat C to boot. Engineer/insurer would not change their mind.

Friday pm I was told by the approved repairer that they felt 'uncomfortable'. If it was an ordinary E46 no probs but as it was specialist Alpina they'd decided not to go any further and referred me to my BMW main dealer specialist body shop at Wakefield. I called in my local Huddersfield main dealer (same group) who had a quick look and confirmed I need to be at Wakefield. Thatcham got an updating email from me which, given its final paragraph, may well have been passed on to Henry Francis. I'll be in touch with him as soon as I've seen the boys at Wakefield.

Agreed value? There's another hiccup. Agreed at £14,000 on policy inception, automatically renewed on same terms. Now told no agreed value unless I show them a valuation certificate which they never sent me in the first place. The saga continues - and no, I won't be asking them for a quote! I can see a solicitor visit coming up if this carries on.

[PhillV8S]

That’s shocking. When you say valuation certificate do you mean the policy certificate with agreed valuation clause added or something different?

[JASV8S]

As well as having the value of the vehicle stated in the policy I have previously went through a process of obtaining an Agreed Value Certificate which is supported by photographs of condition of vehicle, service records, current MOT and photo of mileometer. Once agreed by insurance company valuers they provide a certificate which i think cost me £15 but thought it was well worth it to save on the valuation lottery from an unknowledgeable engineer when something bad happens.

[PhillV8S]

So did the certificate come from the insurance company?

[music]

Update: Henry Francis phoned and left a message for me yesterday teatime asking me to get in touch. Seems either my email has been passed upstairs or he reads this forum! Have emailed him to say thanks for taking the initiative to get involved and that I'll be in touch after the BMW boys have checked the car over and told me the score. That's happening in less than ten hours time so best get some shuteye now. Have not pressed agreed value issue at this stage. We'll see what the inspection turns up first.

[JASV8S]

Phil, It was the insurance company that supplied the certificate. They went through a process where they had valuers look specifically at the car via photos and records and provide a valuation based on that and I suppose current market prices as a replacement cost. The insurance company broker was Adrian Flux who organised this.

[PhillV8S]

Thanks john

[G18BLY]

D3 339 insured car with A Plan insurance, very helpful and informative. Saved lots from last insurance company......

[Norrie]

Renewed my ALPINA with A Plan Thatcham. Premuim dropped this year, 11 years no claims and I am an old boy. Always good service for me.