Car Insurance When Market Value of Car Is Almost Same as Excess Amount

bin555 on 15/07/2025 - 19:59

Based on following certain threads, for an old car I still have comprehensive car insurance. From my understanding this was mainly for scenario if I am not at fault and don't need the hassle to recover.

However, now I'm at the stage with excess (maximum allowable excess) of $2300 is almost same as market value of car ($2900).
Just wondering if best option is still to keep it like that and pay least amount of premium? Or whether better to pay more and reduce the excess. Not sure what is best strategy. I would like to keep my car going for another couple of years until I have an accident. Then it's just a write off.

Automotive Car Insurance Insurance

Comments

  • pyramid on 15/07/2025 - 20:00
    +9

    I would just get third party insurance …

    • bin555 on 15/07/2025 - 20:01
      +1

      This premium with AAMI was higher than comprehensive with $2300 excess. I suppose excess for third party was $795

  • donga100 on 15/07/2025 - 20:21
    +2

    Are you cool with paying $2300 to fix a minor dent/scratch on someone else's car when you bump it?

    • Protractor on 15/07/2025 - 20:28
      -2

      Only if its a bumper on a 2010 Merc.

    • arkie0 on 15/07/2025 - 20:45

      If the cost to repair is less than the excess, then you might get refunded the difference - I did with AAMI

      • bin555 on 15/07/2025 - 20:47

        What happened after? I mean they official write off.
        What did you do to re-register it again?

        • arkie0 on 15/07/2025 - 22:06

          It was a repair minor bump but less than $1500

      • Bruceflix on 15/07/2025 - 20:59

        Why would you make a claim if repair was less than excess?

        • arkie0 on 15/07/2025 - 22:09

          Easier and quicker - called 2 other repairers had a wait time of like 2-3 weeks, cbf calling around to every repairer for quotes and times.
          AAMI's preferred repairer is close to home, though they pay for your uber home anyway

          • ATTS on 16/07/2025 - 16:12

            @arkie0: How to find good repairer?

            I heard the insurer preferred repairer werr not good and they cut corners. Is that true?

            • arkie0 on 16/07/2025 - 16:44

              @ATTS: Preferred repairer had low reviews but no issues - don't need a repairer all that often to be able to compare a good one from a bad one

  • Jaduqimon on 15/07/2025 - 20:24
    +5

    If your car is old, just put the slider to max excess.

    There is still value in comprehensive insurance because when its hit and run or other party ghosts you after their fault accident, you are hassel free as long as you can identify them. I.e have a dashcam.

    Usually if u max the excess slider the price difference between 3rd party isnt that much

  • Benoffie on 15/07/2025 - 21:18
    +4

    Why on earth would you have Comprehensive on a car of so little value?

    Just get TPP. Or, at a stretch, fire and theft.

    • bin555 on 15/07/2025 - 21:25

      Advice from ozbargain. See previous comment from jaduqimon.

      • TheGreatBab on 15/07/2025 - 22:00

        Can you please share link to the comment or thread with this advice? Thanks

        • Benoffie on 15/07/2025 - 22:40
          +1

          See post just above. But it's case by case. Have to crunch the numbers.

          Recent Comprehensive on a Suzuki Swift 2010 was clocking $1200pa. Car was worth $2000. Went 3rd party - around $3-400 from memory?

          Comprehensive is reaching stupid figures this year tbh

      • lgacb08 on 15/07/2025 - 22:38
        +1

        problem is have you done your due diligence to compare the premium between comprehensive and third party? Some insurers just don't want to deal with lowballer and put third party premium nearly on pair with comprehensive but it's not always the case. Excess is meaningless if you're not likely to claim anyway so don't use it if you can do your math if you don't make a claim in 3-5 years and see how that pans out.

        • Euphemistic on 16/07/2025 - 07:17
          +1

          Do forget to include the need to have a vehicle. IMO if you cannot afford to live without your car, or cannot afford to get another car at very short notice, its well worth paying the extra for comp. It changes the value point for comp vs TPP.

          If you have a $10k car and dont need it to drive to work or have enough money available to buy (or hire) a car tomorrow , then saving $200/y on TPP might be worth the risk.

          If you cannot get to work another way and dont have money to get another car at short notice, its worth paying extra for comp on your $3k car.

    • donga100 on 16/07/2025 - 09:13
      +2

      Because when another driver destroys your car it is easier having your insurer claim the damages from the other party than you trying to do it yourself.

  • brendanm on 15/07/2025 - 21:43
    +1

    Go for agreed value and max it out.

  • apple2016 on 15/07/2025 - 23:24
    +5

    I have third party , fire & theft with RACV. If i am not at fault, and the third party does not have insurance, i am still covered for A$5000.

    • bin555 on 16/07/2025 - 07:06

      That sounds like a good option. Unfortunately RACV is not here in NSW. AAMI didn't have similar product

    • Euphemistic on 16/07/2025 - 07:11
      +1

      Catch is that if the other party has insurance and wont claim you cannot get the $5k cover (at least its not straight forward).

  • King Tightarse on 16/07/2025 - 01:03

    Remember also that insurance always asks how many years of comprehensive you have had but they dont ask the price when building a quote, so when you upgrade to a newer car, you should get a more reasonable price than coming in cold with 0 years of comprehensive.

  • netjock on 16/07/2025 - 09:00

    Is the car going to go vintage and the price go right up? Might worthwhile to double check.

  • doctordv8 on 16/07/2025 - 09:35
    +1

    You can drop your Excess to a more value $ figure - happy median - and then consider…..how much more than the Payout figure will it be to replace it.

    Perhaps try to stick to what you have and know, both FComp and the car.

  • RockyRaccoon on 16/07/2025 - 10:53
    +1

    Just check around. I found on an old Ute, $3k, we have that comprehensive with Woolworths was cheaper than 3rd party . Do you really need the premium insurer with “benefits” you will never need

  • bargaino on 16/07/2025 - 17:11
    +1

    It can save you stress when the accident was not your fault. They will pay you out (no excess) and recover from the other party.

  • King Tightarse on 16/07/2025 - 18:55
    +1

    Strangely I noted that quotes are much cheaper if you put the dates out a month or so into the future, so buying well before due has its rewards

  • md333 on 17/07/2025 - 00:50
    +2

    You only pay excess once even if there are two cars involved. I did well in that situation, I kept the comprehensive even with excess similar to the car value, mainly because TPO was not appreciably cheaper. I had a collision that wrote off both cars, you only pay excess once, so I paid the same excess as if I'd had third party only, but also got my car paid out.

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