My partner is looking to upgrade he insurance on her car from 3rd Class to 1st Class - mainly at my insistence! So far she has been quoted 16K to 17.5K, including from our friends at AAInsurance. It seems a bit steep - I was expecting more like 10k?

Its for a Ford Ranger twin cab 2.2 which I think is less than a year old.

What do you think?

Thanks for this and all the other help you have given.

surely if less than a year old it came with 1 years free insurance 1st class when you purchased it? 15000 is about right for the second year, try tesco very good I hear.

Sounds about right to me based upon my experience.

kubotatim wrote:surely if less than a year old it came with 1 years free insurance 1st class when you purchased it? 15000 is about right for the second year, try tesco very good I hear.

We used Tesco this year. "Big Mistake". No cheaper and we waited 2 month for the insurance cert.
My Pick-up which is 2 year old cast 17,000 Baht with a reputable company we have used for 18 years.

I make it a habit not to buy groceries at the insurance company and not to buy insurance at the grocery store.

10,000 bht for a one year old pick up . =D> Thats the biggest crack of the day ..

Car insurance here is just like in any other country. The cost is based on the value of the car and how much/type coverage you want. 10,000THB may not be excessive at all. Let's not forget that this country has one of the highest accident rates in the world which certainly impacts the rate charged.

Thanks for the replies. Especially the sarcasm from Gary . . .

Bangyuk wrote:Thanks for the replies. Especially the sarcasm from Gary . . .

Don't see it as sarcasm at all, I think your assumptions of 10,000 Baht for first class insurance on a 1 year old vehicle as very much pie in the sky and extremely wishful.

As others have said, its on the perceived market value of your vehicle, by the insurance company. Put onto place Thailand's atrocious driving record. And insurance company actuaries are probably spot on with 15,000 up.

They have the data, premiums in, vs claims out = profit made. Remember that the Thais also try to use insurance for the ongoing little scratches and dents, 2000 B claims etc,

my rule of thumb is, once the free first class insurance is expiring , look around as the dealers have agreements in place including ongoing commissions / trails. And renewals are based on this also.

Never deal with cold call " agents " who staff at either the dealer or insurance company have sold their customer data base to. Promising lower fees etc and policies etc via email and bank transfers for premiums. Anecdotal cases being reported of agents doing runners with the premiums.

We pay about 17,000 baht for our 2012 Ford Fiesta, also with people buying new cars with free insurance for the first year be careful as in our case we paid cash for the car but the policy read that the dealership would be paid in the event of a loss. I suppose it is set up this way as most cars are financed but we were not told about this clause.

Jai Yen Yen

Yes suprised i would be as the dealer has no registered or legal status over the policy. No declared interest. Maybe is a marketing ploy to get you to buy a new vehicle via them. The insurance company offers this clause as part of their marketing to get the dealers business perhaps.

Finance totally different..If the vehicle is to be written off. Any monies to be paid are to the finance company to terminate the finance contract. Monies left over then returned to the policy holder less pay out frees for the finance. The wreck normally belongs to the insurance company and the sale of this is part of the claim process when they work out if its repairable or not. Blue book retained by insurance once the payout processed.

wazza wrote:Jai Yen Yen

Yes suprised i would be as the dealer has no registered or legal status over the policy. No declared interest. Maybe is a marketing ploy to get you to buy a new vehicle via them. The insurance company offers this clause as part of their marketing to get the dealers business perhaps.

Finance totally different..If the vehicle is to be written off. Any monies to be paid are to the finance company to terminate the finance contract. Monies left over then returned to the policy holder less pay out frees for the finance. The wreck normally belongs to the insurance company and the sale of this is part of the claim process when they work out if its repairable or not. Blue book retained by insurance once the payout processed.

Yes I was surprised as well and we only learned of this when we renewed my wifes car insurance the second year.

I asked my wife and she paid 17,000 bht for a two year old Toyota Vios which was direct from Toyota - she shopped around and found this price to be very competitive, there was one about 800 bht cheaper but as we've been with Toyota insurance for a couple of years , she felt it better to stick with it.

We do her good things about Roong Squires and will try her company for a quote next time.

Bangyuk wrote:My partner is looking to upgrade he insurance on her car from 3rd Class to 1st Class - mainly at my insistence! So far she has been quoted 16K to 17.5K, including from our friends at AAInsurance. It seems a bit steep - I was expecting more like 10k?

Its for a Ford Ranger twin cab 2.2 which I think is less than a year old.

What do you think?

Thanks for this and all the other help you have given.

Out of curiosity does anybody consider Class 2 insurance sufficient for Thailand and for a cost issue

Even when my older car years ago was worth 400,000 still had Class 1.

Reason. I could be hit by someone uninsured on a bike or vehicle.

If that is the main difference then for Thailand seems logical to stick to Class 1

Have number 1 insurance for a Isuzu twin cab in it's third year 13,800 thb for 650,000 thb coverage.
Hope I never have to claim the top amount for a written off car. I may not be here for the chequee handover.

Insurance shop is as your approaching Nong Samrong markets on the left, almost first shop you come to.
Name is in Thai.

Another little thing to watch on your insurance, is the value attributed to the vehicle, which is usually nowhere near the cost of replacing "like for like".
If the vehicle is stolen, reported to police, not found, and paid out on, it is then the property of the insurance co when it is later found.
Not sure how true it is, but I was told by the salesman at the insurance company a few years ago to go and check the police station car park for the car, as after a certain time the police are entitled to a percentage of the value when returning stolen vehicles to the insurance company, and they "may not get round to doing the paperwork required" until after this date :-"

what you also can do is named driver(s) , in my case 1 driver which is cheaper than 2 or more drivers ,
as my wife doesn't drive the car ....