Insurance

[Tomzo47]

Hey guys,
here's the deal, I'm working towards getting my full restricted licence by the end of March, and want to upgrade from my YBR 125 to either a Suzuki GSX650F or a GSF650 bandit, looked at a load of others (hornet, fazer, ER6 etc) but these two are the ones that stood out for me, especially the riding position compared to my YBR (ima little on the tall side) Problem is, my insurance doesn't expire til mid August, meaning i'll have missed most of the summer season and by the time i'll be used to a new bike it'll be winter I'm going to ring my insurance company in the next few days to see if there's any "admin" fees they'll charge me for passing and how much extra i'll have to pay to upgrade. If I insure it as a second bike but sell my YBR is it illegal to have a policy on a bike I don't own anymore? and if i add my girlfriends dad as a named driver (30 years experience with massive no claims) will it bring my premiums down even though he wont use it often? I'm wondering if any of you guys have done something similar, and any tips on how to upgrade cheaply, and not get ripped off.
Cheers guys
Tom
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Ybr 125 > Bandit 650SA > GSXR 600 > Triumph Sprint St1050 > CB1300 > Z1000SX + FJ1200 (written off) > VFR750 >FJ1200

[Paulington]

Hey Tom.

My first port of call is that putting anyone on your policy with more experience as a named driver will not affect the cost of your policy one bit as insurance decide what the policy costs based upon the highest risk individual on the policy.

Secondly, trying it reversed with him as the main rider and you as the named will result in the same price but is actually illegal if he doesn't ever ride it and is known as 'fronting'.

Insuring a bike you don't own anymore isn't illegal as far as I know but your policy cost will likely rocket as you will have to state that you are no longer the owner so it really isn't worth doing.

I think you'll find insurance prices for a Bandit or similar naked motorcycle for you will be quite low anyway, around ~£500-£600. When I insured my old restricted SV650S ('55 plate) it only cost £350 TPFT.

The best thing you can do is just shop around for the best insurance price and buy it as there is literally nothing besides getting an alarm/tracker and storing it in a locked garage overnight that you can do to reduce the cost of your insurance.

My insurance situation is quite useful which you could try if you can afford it. I have a 2000 XV535 Virago chopper-type thing which I insure TPFT with ride other bikes for £300. My Father insures my GSX-R1000 for £120 FC.

This means I can ride the GSX-R legally insured due to the 'ride other bikes' part on my policy at a total cost of £420 compared to the £8500 it would cost to insure it myself. It's legal and very useful. !

It may be worth keeping your YBR until mid-August so you get your first year of no-claims as that is around a 25% discount on insurance. You may miss a fair chunk of Summer this year on a restricted big bike but then your insurance will cost a lot less. This is only if your insurance is high in the first place, as I said above, shop around.
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"Four wheels move the body, two wheels move the soul."
Current Vehicles: '89 Kawasaki KDX200, '99 Yamaha XV535, '00 Honda ST1100 Pan-European, '08 Suzuki GSX-R1000, '08 Mitsubishi Lancer GS4 2.0 TDCi, '15 BMW 1 Series 116d Sport Turbo.
CBT: 27/08/08. Theory: 04/09/09. Module 1: 16/09/09. Module 2: 01/10/09.