How to Get The Cheapest Comprehensive Insurance (QLD Only- Maybe)

altomic on 16/05/2011 - 09:53
Last edited 16/05/2011 - 11:56

Uber way to get cheap car insurance (possible only Queensland)it is a process but not a draining process and should take approxiamately 1 hour to save you up to $200. and then a further couple of days (of waiting) to save a further $50.

So I had a renewal quote from Budget direct for $516.75. Last year I paid $460 or so with them.

I called them to ask why it had gone up and they said inflation or something but they said they would reduce it to $449.16.

Not bad -nearly $70 reduction.

But probably I could do cheaper.

So I found purely online insurance company on the web Progressive Direct. progressivedirect.com.au. they gave me an online quote for comprehensive, post accident car rental 14 days, $500 excess, windscreen replacement for $372.31.

not bad -nearly $80 reduction.

But probably I could do cheaper.

So NRMA has a one off deal (per person) for beating quotes by 10%.

Called them up and got a regular quote for $612 (or so) and then I said that I had a quote from progressive for $372.31.

They said that they would beat it by 10% making it $335 or so. not bad -nearly $40 reduction.

So now my current quote/price is $335-ish, down from $516.75 only an hour previously. not bad!

But probably I could do cheaper.

So, now I have to wait for my quote/policy to come through for this amount, once I have this lowered quote in paper from NRMA for $335 and I call Budget Direct (whom I was with before).

They have a deal that if they can’t beat a quote from NRMA or RACQ or Suncorp then they will give you $50 and I stay with NRMA. (previous quote from budget direct $449.16).

$335 - $50 =

$285 (down from $516.75)for comprehensive car insurance through NRMA.

Not bad.

(I've put the expiry date as there maybe an expiry date for one of these offers, but I really haven't cheacked too much.)

Automotive

Comments

  • Happy501 on 16/05/2011 - 09:59

    Good effort

  • HeXa on 16/05/2011 - 10:00
    +6

    belongs in forum…..

  • NappyHunter on 16/05/2011 - 10:03

    Great Thanks

  • Derrick Crane on 16/05/2011 - 10:06

    Good work but what if Budget Direct offer you $334 - they will have beaten NRMA's quote.

    • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 10:49
      +2

      if they offer for $334 then it is cheaper than the $449.16.they said they could offer from my original $516.75 quote.

      $516- $334 = $182 saving.

      the $50 bonus would be a …….bonus.

  • Saturday on 16/05/2011 - 10:06

    Haha, good job! Too bad, I just renewed mine one month ago for $400 something. I hope can use your strategy next time:-)

  • Foma2 on 16/05/2011 - 10:06

    very good summary.
    thanks.

  • timbo83 on 16/05/2011 - 10:08

    Good deal wrangling!

  • leeroys_dad on 16/05/2011 - 10:11

    May not be correct.

    "They have a deal that if they can’t beat a quote from NRMA or RACQ or Suncorp then they will give you $50 and I stay with NRMA. (previous quote from budget direct $449.16)."

    Sometimes they say we'll beat it by $1, therefore you don't get the $50. However, then you can go back to NRMA and get 10% off

    • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 10:53
      +1

      exactly. go back and forth a few times and they may be paying me!!! (that's a joke)

      I did this "bouncing reduction" deal years ago when i worked at a major department store and needed a fridge. I got quote from my works electrical department with staff discount. went to the competitor who beat it and then went back to my work with the written quote and bought the fridge for cost + $5.

  • samfisher5986 on 16/05/2011 - 10:16

    this is hilarious! What a great effort.

    My cheapest comprehensive is about $1150, so I won't bother I don't think!

    • Tilduke on 16/05/2011 - 10:20

      Why not? That should be more reason to do this as 10% off $1150 is a $115 saving straight away even without the other running around.

      • samfisher5986 on 16/05/2011 - 18:08

        I have 3rd party fire and theft instead..

        • Geewhizz on 07/04/2013 - 06:54

          Have you priced comprehensive to compare? We recently bought a cheap run-around as a second car, and were surprised to find that comprehensive was cheaper than 3rd party.

  • leeroys_dad on 16/05/2011 - 10:17

    Nissan patrol fully comp insurance = $330/yr :>

  • Tilduke on 16/05/2011 - 10:18
    +4

    Especially for motorcycles insurance it is basically luck of the draw it seems. Some people get really cheap with QBE but they were one of the most expensive for me while Swann was the cheapest. Always make sure you get a quote from a few places before choosing one as the price between the lowest and highest was basically five times as much for me.

    • Koonit on 16/05/2011 - 10:38
      +1

      Second that! I saved like a thousand dollars going Swan rather than NRMA with my bike. Just crazy the price difference!

      ALWAYS CHECK AROUND!

    • R.R.P on 16/05/2011 - 11:44
      +1

      Wow, just checked Swann out, its $600 for full comp on my bike where as its about $1100 else where.

  • saxlady on 16/05/2011 - 10:31
    +1

    Good work - for anyone considering it, worth checking youi insurance as well. I was also with budget, for around $550, and youi's quote was a couple of hundred less. I just went with them on the spot. Guess that doesn't make me a true bargain hunter or I would have called around and got matches and discounts on top of that one!

  • ozrex on 16/05/2011 - 10:33

    I've done the NRMA beat by 10% thing for a number of cars, however I used bingle.com.au insurance for the cheap policy for them to price-beat. Not sure how it compares to progressiveinsurance.com.au

  • voter1 on 16/05/2011 - 10:39

    how you guys get comprehensive insurance for $300ish is crazy. Third party is around 300 for me.

    • bengee138 on 16/05/2011 - 10:42

      yeah crazy, depends on your car and ur age and if you have had accidents/claims. Age and claims seam to make huge differences. Also gotta shop around :P

    • Amanda856 on 16/05/2011 - 10:52

      I'd love to have comprehensive insurance for $300, lol.. sucks being under 25.. I've always found Just Car to be the cheapest for me for the last few years.. although we don't have the cheapest cars to insure would make a difference lol

      • anaussi on 16/05/2011 - 12:30
        +1

        Agreed. Except I've found JustCar to be one of the most expensive (I borrow my parents' ratings where I can and they don't have an option for me to be listed as a secondary driver).

        So yeah, for under 25s out there—if you can, get listed as a secondary driver under your parents' names rather than taking it out under your name. It'll literally halve your premium (assuming your parents have 60% NCB rating).

  • bengee138 on 16/05/2011 - 10:40

    Well done.

    I did a similar thing with AAMI and NRMA.
    Note: I was with AAMI initially becasue it was the cheapest for me and my car.

    AAMI gives the normal 10% discount for paying online (most do this), if your under 25 then you can do a free safty course with them (half day) and they will give u a reoccuring 10% off and i learned some stuff and it was kinda fun. So i did this all. Was good but then wanted cheaper, so next year i used NRMA to beat it by another 10% saved heaps.

    Pretty good idea to use budget direct to get it further discounted, however i read some reviews and NRMA was rated better than budget direct (and AAMI) so im happy to stay with NRMA :)

    • Derrick Crane on 16/05/2011 - 12:33
      +3

      I've been with AAMI for quite a few years now. I like them because I can chose a large excess which gives me a much lower premium (currently $220 comprehensive).
      Here's a little trick though - don't go with their renewal - take out a new policy with them - saves you quite a bit of money as they think they are attracting new business (even though on the website I tell them my current insurer is AAMI).

  • Chivalry on 16/05/2011 - 10:49
    +1

    just regarding progressive insurance… do you mean progressive direct? thats what comes up on google as your link is failing.

    • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 10:54

      yeah - progressive direct. sorry.

      can't change URL need mod to do that.

      • Chivalry on 16/05/2011 - 11:23
        +1

        cool, they are indeed cheaper than YOUI! =D

        might want to see if you can update description and drop the link in there - www.progressivedirect.com.au

        • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 11:54

          I did an online quote with YOUI - i was sucked in by their TV ads. they were expensive almost $600. my wife uses the car to drive the kids to school during the week. I only drive it on the weekends for shopping, outings, etc.

  • mjs on 16/05/2011 - 10:56

    I salute you Sir, that is outstanding work. $285 for comprehensive car insurance - amazing!

  • h4lcyon on 16/05/2011 - 11:11

    Was your quote for agreed or market value?

    • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 11:50

      agreed.

  • sickllama on 16/05/2011 - 11:16

    True OzBargainer!

  • daydream on 16/05/2011 - 11:16
    +2

    Well done on your savings effort. Just keep in mind that insurance policies are different ("the detail"). So don't assume you are comparing the same product/service in all cases.

    • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 11:51

      very true. always read the PDS and understand T&C.

  • Chivalry on 16/05/2011 - 11:21

    Thanks man, the reason i like this is that you've managed to get it cheaper with NRMA, so you probably have a decent product, rather than just going with a cheap company with a product which might not be as 'comprehensive'. =D

    • Koonit on 16/05/2011 - 11:38

      NRMA are pretty barebones compared to most other insurers. They seem to offer a lot of "services" which cost extra and are usually included in a lot of other insurers "comprehensive" deals already. Definitely a valid point, but NRMA are really not great.

      Example, Swann insurance covered 5 grand worth of my belongings and included road side assist for my bike, NRMA wouldn't even cover 2k worth of gear on the normal price of comp insurance and road side assist was a lot extra.

  • c64 on 16/05/2011 - 12:08

    so what's the deal here?

    • hfhf on 16/05/2011 - 12:12

      Countless price beats in quick succession over the hour?

      • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 12:44

        significant savings from minimal effort for a cost effective result.

    • c64 on 16/05/2011 - 12:22

      but, as people here have previously noted, they are different insurance products and it's impossible to tell if the op is getting a better deal without sitting down and comparing the details of each insurance policy. the op certainly doesn't know either, because he's only spent 1 hour getting a lower price for some sort of comprehensive insurance. i think alot of people in qld learnt that the hard way with flood cover for their home insurance.

      • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 12:40

        true, I didn't point out certain things.

        I'm after specific things with my insurance.

        windscreen repair, post accident hire car.

        all companies offered these options in the quotes insurance.

        As I commented previously - always read the PDS. this is what I did for each policy to understand what I was getting.

        If I were to go into the specifics of each policy and compare them then we would be here for a week reading.

        The point of the post was to show that signifcant savings were achievable by taking steps as I've discribed.

    • timmye on 16/05/2011 - 12:27

      This isnt a deal, it's a story.

      • bengee138 on 16/05/2011 - 12:50

        its a story with a good point. Most of us have cars… a lot have comprehensive insurance. Doing the price beat thing is a great way to get the price down significantly. I saved hundreds of $$$ (each year). People may not be aware of how much it can save. The website he suggested is just that, a suggestion. The site was actually significantly more expensive that my deal.

      • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 12:51

        it is a deal, infact i have explained 2 deals.

        NRMA campaign - beat the best deal by 10%
        Budget Direct - lowest quote or $50.

        readers are free to further research deals with other insurers

        The "story" is the process and the explanation of how it is achieved.

        your comment is void

  • pilchard on 16/05/2011 - 13:14

    Excellent work. My comp insurance is over $1000 (after shopping around).

  • BJReplay on 16/05/2011 - 13:37

    You might even be able to get budget direct to beat themselves; I was (and am) still with them; renewal was more expensive than their own online quote (which was cheaper than other online quotes). I didn't have any other offers that I could use (like the NRMA one) to bargain with, so I bargained with them;

    I said to them that I was quite happy to get a cover note with AAMI (next cheapest - about $10 more expensive than their online quote, but around $170 cheaper than their renewal), then come back to them and get them to beat my AAMI policy.

    Don't know whether I was lucky and got a good operator or would have got the same from another operator, but they put me on hold for around five minutes, then came back with an offer that was $5 less than their online quote - $185 cheaper than their renewal.

    The operator even said she'd put a note on my account, so if my renewal wasn't cheap next year, they'd refer to the note and do the same deal.

    It's Budget, Love.

  • asa79 on 16/05/2011 - 13:57

    Doesnt matter if you save a few bucks as long as they cover flood and water damage!!! Suncorp is still always the best one to go for.

  • riviera77 on 16/05/2011 - 14:30

    altomic, is there a link of some kind with details of NRMA's price-beating? i cant seem to find it on their website. Or did you just call them and they offered?

    • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 19:27

      I rang to get the quote and then told them i had a cheaper deal and would they beat it.

      I was told to send a copy of my quote to [email protected]

  • MementoMori on 16/05/2011 - 15:34

    This is great, although do realise the cover is probably different. Check the choice of repairer policy for example.

  • Adamiam on 16/05/2011 - 15:44
    +2

    This is an awkward deal, but I love this kind of stuff. Using the system against itself to get the best deal - this is where the real bargainers play.

  • [Deactivated] on 16/05/2011 - 16:58

    Belongs in Forums - well written but not a bargain per se

  • dreamzz on 16/05/2011 - 17:12

    how could you guys are getting this cheaper price?? for me i am 25+ with no accidents and everyone is giving around 1000$ for an year,

    • altomic on 16/05/2011 - 19:33

      follow what I suggested.
      1) progressivedirect
      2) NRMA
      3) budget direct.

      • tonyjzx on 02/09/2011 - 14:19
        +1

        you need to take into account the type of car, the suburb you live in, car finance and your license status…

  • [Deactivated] on 02/09/2011 - 13:34

    It's a Canetoad only deal
    http://www.nrmaqld.com.au/about-us/beat-by-10.shtml

  • Brooklyn99 on 07/09/2011 - 11:53
    +1

    I recently received a renewal notice from AAMI for my comprehensive insurance. The premium was $650+ for 1 year. I decided to shop around and RACV was able to offer me at $545 which was quite surprising to me.

    I then decided to do a online quote with AAMI and see if it is cheaper as a new sign up. The AAMI quote came back at $462 which was significantly lower than my renewal notice!

    I was very shocked by the difference in price so I did another quote to confirm.

    This time the quote from AAMI was over $800!! I was very sure I input all the details correctly this time. As I had seperate browsers open for each quote, I started comparing and realised that I entered my next door's unit number instead of mine for the previous quote

    I have not claimed anything before, no accidents for the last 10 years, clean record, yet my premium was $800+ whilst if I input my neighbour's unit number but with all my other records, the premium dropped to $400+

    I called up AAMI to enquire and they did a check and they themselves were confused. As I was renewing my car insurance and not home insurance, there is no reason for the big difference in premium price. The AAMI lady then spoke to her supervisor and after 5 mins, the supervisor spoke to me told me the premium calculation is accurate and there is nothing they can do. They refused to investigate further and refused to even offer to reduce my premium.

    I ended up writing a complains email to the AAMI complaints dept demanding to know the difference in price when I had a clean record. They replied stating that due to "Complicated Calculation Formula", they are unable to tell me why my premium is doubled to the unit beside me.

    But then stated the following: "Following factors are taken into consideration, 1) Owner's driving history, 2)Owner's claim history, 3) Suburb where the car is parked, 4) History of any claims made from the address where the car is parked overnight

    As a gesture of goodwill based on my records, they will lower my premium to $350+ to retain me as a customer.

    Now I have a clean driving record, no claims, and I am staying in exactly the same compound as the unit beside me. I can only assume that the previous tenants of the unit I am staying in made a claim before. Hence, my premium is doubled automatically based on my new address.

    I think this is ridiculous that they are charging premium this way. What is the point of having a good driving history with no claims when you are paying for the fault that the previous tenants made? After this encounter, a few of my friends made the same enquiry and found that they are paying almost double as well even though they have a clean driving history and no claims.

    I would recommend drivers with a clean record but paying high premium do a comparison check with your surrounding addresses. Chances are that you are paying for the previous tenant's accident

    • [Deactivated] on 07/09/2011 - 14:01

      I heard similar stories with YOUI

      Most of them reply on people being lazy, it's strange that when caught they fought so hard to keep their high premium. I suppose it pays to shop around every year. I'm going to try Coles when mine's up next month. they're about $100 cheaper then virgin & chuck in roadside (so i can ditch the useless RACV now too!)

  • treeman on 25/09/2012 - 11:15
    +1

    Got mine down to 418.50 using nrma vs progressive quote.

    Thanks!

  • eug on 25/02/2013 - 18:32

    NRMA in QLD is no longer doing the 10% off new quotes. They'll only do it off a renewal quote. Grr!

    • kiwipride on 25/02/2013 - 18:44

      Well, that sucks!

  • seanbaussie on 06/03/2013 - 11:52

    See http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/95773 for my experience on making sure you get a quote from the company you're with so as to actually get a cheaper price than what you're paying for the same (or better) insurance with the same company as you're with!

  • altomic on 27/04/2013 - 15:42

    just renewed my insurance.

    NRMA sent me a renewal notice for $668. (comprehensive).

    got an online quote from progressive $418.

    pretty much the same coverage (progressive is slightly better with free windscreen repair! and better car replacement).

    rang NRMA and asked if they would reconsider my renewal price. they could bring it down by $30.

    adios NRMA.

  • kiwipride on 27/04/2013 - 15:46

    Don't Nrma advertise that they beat any price by 10%???

    • eug on 27/04/2013 - 16:59

      Only for renewals in QLD. If you were with progressive already and they sent you a renewal notice for $418, they should beat that by 10%. But if you get a new quote from someone else, they won't beat it. They used to, but not anymore

  • kiwipride on 27/04/2013 - 17:22

    That sucks. I ended up going with Coles.

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