The ULTIMATE supercar insurance guide
Supercar insurance is a specialist policy designed exclusively to meet the needs of supercar owners.
When you drive a supercar (which are expensive and fast), an off-the-shelf policy from a standard market insurer probably won’t be the best fit.
Thankfully, there are a number of specialist insurance companies offering great value supercar insurance – including our team here at Nowell & Richards.
In this guide, we’ll outline the factors to consider when arranging cover and explain:
Do you need supercar insurance?
Supercar drivers often appreciate the finer things in life, but (quite rightly) they still want to receive good value for money.
In our experience, most insurers consider supercars as a non-standard vehicle – and automatically class them as being a ‘higher risk’ – which usually means a much higher annual premium.
At Nowell & Richards, we help reduce the cost of driving a supercar by tailoring a policy to your lifestyle and driving habits.
When arranging insurance on such a prestige marque, we try to educate drivers and help them understand why a cheap supercar insurance policy often won’t provide the best cover.
If you own a high-performance sports car (worth anything from £40,000 upwards), we can arrange an affordable ‘agreed value’ policy to provide peace of mind should the worst happen.
How much does supercar insurance cost?
As a specialist insurance broker with more than 40 years’ experience, we would typically expect a supercar driver to pay somewhere between 1% to 1.5% of the vehicle’s agreed insured value.
For a McLaren Spider insured for an agreed value of £150,000 that would equate to a premium of between £1,500 to £2,250 per annum.
Likewise, an Aston Martin DB9 agreed to be worth around £40,000 should cost in the region of £400 to £600 to insure on an agreed value policy.
For a supercar with a total agreed value of more than £300,000 the rate may drop slightly, but 1% is usually a realistic starting point.
Please note that all the above supercar insurance costs have been provided for guide purposes only.
Remember, the exact premium will vary depending on a variety of factors – including:
- Make, model and trim
- Year of manufacture
- Car’s safety rating
- Likelihood of being stolen
- Replacement costs and parts
- Overall damage susceptibility
- Annual miles you drive
- Driver’s age
- Previous driving history
- Location
- Where car is kept
- Security features
- UK-only or European use
- Modifications
Unlike some standard market insurers, that’s why we analyse your lifestyle and driving habits before tailoring a policy that’s UNIQUE to your requirements.
By doing this, we are often able to deliver a better value premium than you can find on a comparison website (with better levels of cover).
For a competitive supercar insurance quote based on your lifestyle and needs, call 01785 255514 to discuss your options.
Could a supercar insurance broker save you money?
Just because you own a car with a turbo-charged engine, it doesn’t mean you should have to pay a high-octane amount for supercar insurance.
Yes, it’s quick and easy to go online and buy supercar insurance through a comparison website. A few clicks and you’ve completed your purchase.
But doing this will often leave you with an ‘off-the-shelf’ policy containing clauses and warranties which protect the insurer’s interests (instead of your own!).
In our experience, saving money is not normally the highest priority for supercar owners.
Such passionate drivers are usually more interested in securing the proper protection for their pride and joy.
If that’s the case for yourself, we would recommend using a supercar insurance broker to tailor a specialist quote for your high-performance vehicle.
At Nowell & Richards, the people we help benefit from years of knowledge and expertise which we’ve built up in this highly-complex field.
We don’t do ‘off-the-shelf’ policies. We listen and understand your driving habits, before scouring the market as independent advisors.
We then take time to tailor a personalised insurance solution to suit your lifestyle.
There’s not a single comparison site in the world which can do that.
Yes, they may sometimes be a bit cheaper as a result. But their policies cannot offer the same quality or levels of assurance as a broker.
Protect your prestige vehicle with Nowell & Richards and you’ll benefit from:
- High-value personal injury cover for driver and passengers
- Annual overseas driving cover
- UK and European breakdown cover
- Agreed and extended value cover for total loss
- Malicious damage and vandalism costs
- Repairs completed by repairer of your choice
- Only manufacturer-approved parts used
- Unlimited windscreen cover
- Enhanced courtesy car – after fault, accident or theft
- Warranty free policy – no clauses to trip you up
- Seamless, fast and efficient claims service
- Drive any vehicle at any time
- Business use included
Click to discover why prestige car owners should never use comparison websites!
Can you get supercar insurance for young drivers under 25?
Yes, it is possible to secure supercar insurance if you’re under 25 – but (in most cases) the annual premium usually reflects the perceived higher level of risk.
As you would expect, this is because drivers of this age and experience are statistically more likely to be involved in an accident.
Rather than just take the age of a young driver into account, we consider the many different factors outlined above (experience, vehicle make and model, driving habits etc) before tailoring the most appropriate insurance solution for your needs.
If you are a young driver who wants a supercar insurance quote, get in touch or call 01785 255514 to see if our supercar insurance brokers can help.
10 tips to help reduce supercar insurance
When buying supercar insurance, there are 10 key factors you MUST consider before searching for suitable quotes…
How many miles will you drive?
Your driving habits and the amount of time you’re behind the wheel massively influence the cost of insurance.
Keep your mileage to less than 5,000 a year (lessening the potential risks) and the price of your premium should reflect this.
Only using your supercar on weekends or during summer months is another way to limit your mileage, again reducing your insurance costs.
Do you own more than one car?
Some supercar drivers are not aware that they are actually viewed as less of a risk by insurers if they own or drive multiple vehicles.
This is because the amount of time you’re likely to drive the marque make is likely to be far less if you have access to other cars of vehicles.
Opting for a multi-car policy or family fleet insurance may help you drive down the cost of driving a supercar.
Should you take out an ‘agreed value’ policy?
All supercars go up and down in price. Some are an excellent investment and may appreciate in value, far more than the ‘market value’ or list price.
To fully protect your prestige marque, an ‘agreed value’ should be negotiated with your insurer before you take out a supercar policy.
Should the worst happen, you can rest assured safe in the knowledge that you both agree exactly what your car is worth.
This figure should be reviewed annually, and you may need to provide independent proof of worth, but the benefits far outweigh the stress of being underinsured.
Is a ‘market value’ policy more suitable?
Most standard motor insurance is based on your car’s ‘market value’ – the amount you’d reasonably expect to achieve if your vehicle was sold.
Obtaining a policy on this basis may prove cheaper, as the insurer will use this figure to work out your annual premium.
If you buy insurance like this from a comparison website or standard market insurer, there’s a good chance your policy will contain warranties and clauses designed to protect the insurer’s interests – NOT yours!
However, if an accident occurred, this cover could leave you seriously underinsured – not to mention massively out of pocket.
Should a claim need to be made, your ‘cheap’ cover may prove inadequate and often won’t pay out for the full market value – especially in the event of a total loss.
Unsurprisingly, this isn’t something that most standard market insurers shout about. Neither do those who sell supercar policies through comparison websites.
Can you increase your excess?
Choose to increase your voluntary excess and it could help reduce your premium, as you are taking on more responsibility.
But, even if you’re a safe driver, remember to keep it realistic as accidents can always happen through no fault of your own. Should the worst happen, you may not want to be left seriously out of pocket.
Where will your supercar be kept?
When asking an insurer to provide cover for your supercar, risk management plays a large part in determining your annual premium.
Keep your car safe overnight – locked in a garage is usually the best way to keep it away from potential thieves or vandals – and you should expect to pay less.
Do you have a tracker installed?
Paying for this extra security measure can help police recover your supercar quickly if it’s stolen – and will usually lower your annual premium.
Will you be driving overseas?
If you don’t intend to drive in Europe or anywhere outside the UK, your premium is likely to be reduced – so be up front about where you plan to hit the road and it could pay dividends.
Does your car have any modifications?
If your supercar has been modified in any way (including cosmetic work), it will cost more to put right in the event of an accident. If your car is made to factory standards, your premium will usually be cheaper to reflect this.
Do you need track day cover?
Supercar insurance is based on risk. If you’re planning to attend a recognised track-day or to thrash your car around the Nürburgring, you MUST let your insurer know.
For some standard market insurers, the thought of your prestige vehicle being placed on a track strikes them with fear and track-days are sometimes excluded from policies.
With Nowell & Richards, track-day insurance comes as standard as part of all our supercar insurance policies – because we understand your passion, pride and joy.
Likewise, if you only use your vehicle as a show-car or for track-days, tell the insurer so – as less usage may reduce the premium.
Conclusion – An asset, not just an essential
If you’re lucky enough to drive a supercar, don’t consider insurance as a boring essential you hope you’ll never need.
Think of it as an investment protecting a major asset.
To find out more about our proactive approach, get in touch with our supercar insurance brokers or call 01785 255514 for FREE advice – we can often help to drive down the costs of motoring.
