Buying a Cat D car - will it affect my insurance?

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no affect to insurance, just lowers re-sale value but im sure there is like some kind of test to prove the quality of the car. Its also one hell of a risky game, get it done prober its so easy to cut corners for financial reasons.

Reply 41

pghstochaj

Cat Ds do not need a VIC check. The VIC check checks nothing to do with the quality of the repair, just the identity of it.

Reply 42

mypaperheart

I think I might avoid this one - especially seeing as it looks like there's a dent in the side too. I'm willing to stretch the budget to £600/700, but I'm still struggling. The only place with cars that cheap is autotrader, and there's never any anywhere near me! I've been looking for a car since december and am truly sick of it now.

Reply 43

PhilMc

MyPaperHeart - in my opinion stay well clear of that saxo. To begin with they aren't a very safe car if - god forbid - you wer to crash. This one having already been crashed will be even less safer still.

I was bored yesterday and watched about 5 episodes of 'wrecks to riches' where they take cat D write-off and repair them. And, if you want insurance on that saxo, you NEED to get it properly checked out at a cost to you (around £30-50) and most insurance companies will require proof of this.

If it was me I would go for the corsa. Overall it's a better car, and they are cheap to insure, run and parts are a-plenty! Spend the extra £300 and just have that little bit of piece of mind IMO. :wink:

Hope that helped :smile:

Reply 44

pghstochaj

PhilMc

1) It's hardly below or above par for the generation of the car
2) A cat D will mean nothing in terms of safety, it's not a proper write off.

I was bored yesterday and watched about 5 episodes of 'wrecks to riches' where they take cat D write-off and repair them. And, if you want insurance on that saxo, you NEED to get it properly checked out at a cost to you (around £30-50) and most insurance companies will require proof of this.

Not true. Cat C, yes, even then it checks nothing but the idenity of the vehicle.

Reply 45

pghstochaj

mypaperheart, PM me your post code (or one nearby) and I will see if I can give you a few ideas :smile:

Reply 46

PhilMc

pghstochaj

1) It's hardly below or above par for the generation of the car
2) A cat D will mean nothing in terms of safety, it's not a proper write off.

Not true. Cat C, yes, even then it checks nothing but the idenity of the vehicle.

Fair enough, I'm just relaying what it said yesterday on the show!

And, Saxo's I wouldn't feel safe in one, let alone one thats been in an accident. But thats just my opinion.

Reply 47

mypaperheart

I've heard that from a few sources actually, so you're not the only one who thinks Saxos aren't the safest of cars. I guess spending a little more would be better in the long run, especially where safety is concerned. You can't put a price on that :smile:

Reply 48

alibongo

This is the actual position with regard to Cat D cars: they are simply cars which are uneconomical for an insurance company to repair. Insurance companies are obliged by their terms to restore the insured to the position they were in before the accident, so they are obliged to use new, manufactures' components in repairs. In addition, they provide new cars as similar as possible as courtesy cars. My 18 year old son recently had his Corsa hit by a driver who admitted liability. My son only has 3rd party on his Corsa due to cost. The Corsa cost £4k second hand 3 months ago. He has been supplied with a brand new Corsa while negotiations/repairs carried out. His damaged car was driven to a repair facility. I spoke to the engineer assessor today. He said the actual cost of repairing the car would be about £1k.However, they were obliged to get an estimate from a Vauxhall approved repair centre (£3k), pay for his courtesy car while repairs were carried out(£1k), which exceeded 66% of the value of the car (66% is the agreed write-off figure in the insurance industry).To cut their costs, they offered me £4k, or the car for £500 plus £3.5k.I phoned my sons insurance company, they had no problems with keeping the car on his insurance, and confirmed his (non-existent at the moment) NCB would be unaffected. So we get the car back, plus £2.5k after repairs. The only reason Cat D cars are hard to sell is because buyers do not realise what Cat D means (It just means uneconomical to repair).People think "insurance write-off" means mechanical damage- it does not. Cats A, B and C relates to these cars, and they are not offered for sale. Hope this info helps.

(edited 10 years ago)

Reply 49

JO53PHS

Only six years late :wink:

Reply 50

Camoxide

Original post by alibongo

Why bump a 6 year old thread?

Reply 51

alibongo

Original post by Camoxide

Why bump a 6 year old thread?

Because it is still a topical question- my son and his friends have been debating the same subject recently.

Reply 52

Emma:-)

Entertainment Forum Helper

It may be wrong, but i heard that insurance companies arent really keen on insurance write offs. Dont know how it affects the price though.

Reply 53

alibongo

Original post by Emma:-)

It may be wrong, but i heard that insurance companies arent really keen on insurance write offs. Dont know how it affects the price though.

I am pleased I bumped this thread, despite it being started 6 years ago, as insurance costs are of perennial interest. Insurance companies are well aware that they never hear about the majority of cars that would be classified as insurance write-offs, and which continue on the road. Any car worth 5k or less, which receives even minor damage to wing, door, or quarter panel is very likely to be written off as uneconomical to repair (for the reasons I have given above).Many drivers, if they are at fault themselves, get the panel replaced at their own expense, as it is less expensive than losing a NCB, and often the excess is more than the cost of repair anyway. If a claim is made because the other driver admits liability , the car is likely to be classified as Cat D thereafter. The resale value is significantly affected, but if you intend to drive it into the ground anyway that does not matter. Or you can resell it to family or friends who realise that a replaced door does not mean the car is defective. As a general rule, if you are involved in a collision, and the other driver admits liability, you should go through insurance, as you will get the original value of the car back, minus its "salvage" value, generally 10% of the original cost. Not very moral perhaps, but at least we turned down the multiple offers of spurious personal injury claims, offered by both insurers! If you intend to buy a Cat D car from a dealer, be very, very wary, as you suggest. As they are such bargains, in the first instance, companies look them out to buy to repair- this pushes the price up as they intend to make a profit on resale. Also, you would need to get both insurance quotes and quotes from the person making the repairs. Probably, unless you are able to carry out the repairs yourself, you are better off doing the leg-work of hunting out a bargain second-hand car from a private seller.