Famous Classic Car Insurance

[fooey]

None of us weary people have anything against Famous.. I'm sure they're an excellent company.

But in the end they are only an AGENT of Heritage.. which means if Heritage disappears, it is not the problem of Famous, nor can you sue Famous etc.

With 380 "oversea" insurance agents registered in Guersney (as counted on their website) it sounds/looks a little dodgy. It is going to be too much hassle (and hence cost) to find lawyers to hunt down overseas parties.. and even if you find them (Heritage is listed with a PO BOX?) theres no guarantee that you can sucessfully sue them since they're under different jurisdiction (think of Christopher Skase).

Bottom line, Famous could be 100% excellent company, but if Heritage disapper then you will not only have nothing to claim from, but end up having to pay:

1) your own car

2) their car/property

3) legal fees

4) anything else I've forgotten

Because, basically you will have zero cover aka no insurance at all.

[B-Man]

I am insured with Famous - After I paid my $$, I didn't get anything back indicating that I have a paid up policy with them - Since my car is off the road , I haven't worried about it to much - but I will be contacting them to ensure my policy is OK.

I am concerned with this:

Blitz_boy  

Hey guy’s l also got a quote from Famous for my R34, but l was concerned about the statement on the website that said they are not bound by the jurisdiction of Australian Regulations. Being 22 no one would offer me insurance but Just Cars, Unique and Famous. I had heard about Unique, Just Cars but not Famous. So l phoned my parents’ insurance company to see if they had heard of Famous and they said, “NO” and they gave me a phone number for the Insurance, Enquiries and Complaints hotline. IEC did not have Famous listed and said they were not an authorised insurance company. Apparently their underwriters are based in Guernsey, some island in Britain.  

So any clarification on this from Famous would be appreciated.

[S15200sxbroda]

u should of received a receipt. Standard

[Guest BOO200]

yeah i paid last week... on monday and am still waiting for the statement as well...

[Bleach1]

i paid 3 months ago and have still recived nothing.

[S15200sxbroda]

when i paid i received a receipt very quickly.

give them a call.

[Ash]

i got my receipt within a month

[Doctor]

Has anyone had experience making a claim. That is the most important part of all this.

[YEE-HAA]

I joined with Famous after my premium went up some 35% with Just Cars for no reason (No claims for 2 years, Rating 1 etc etc.)

I was especially p***ed off after my friend , who also got his renewal from Just Car, was told his premium for his 96 33 only went up to $1300, up $150, because he told them he put in a new cd deck; which accounted for $100 of that increase.

Just Car couldnt/wouldnt justify this, even though we are both Rating 1, excellent driving records, both the same age. The only difference was my car was 2 years older than his, and we were in two different postcodes! Yet I had been with Just Cars longer than him!!!????Go figure!!

On the up side, Famous also insure many other cars in the club here, (Nissan SVD Club) and they paid a claim of one our members after he smashed his car 1 day after joining Famous.

Quite outstanding I think!

Good onya Famous! We need more companies like you.

What clenced it for me was that they didnt care what mods you had done to the car,(as long as they are legal)ie: wheels, bodykit, intercooler etc.

I have been with Famous for about 6 weeks, and hopefully, fingers crossed, I wont have to call upon them, but after hearing the other good stories, I'm resting easy.

[S15200sxbroda]

i emailed Peter Judkins from the VIC drivers association (their letter to Famous is on the famous website). Anyways, I got a reply today, and I thought u guys might be interested:

John,

Re Famous, our Association nationally has been with Famous for 2 years following GIO and AMP declining to cover Driving Instructor vehicles.

Mainly in Vic and NSW we have about 700 cars covered.

The administration at Famous is a bit loose and we have spoken with them about better information systems...in particular better portfolio analysis tools.

Regarding Heritage we understand that the owners are the principals of Famous who sought this underwriting facility because other insurers kept coming in and then moving out of the field e.g.GIO.

As to status in Australia we understand that ASIC recommends a range of questions be asked but this is precautionery and Famous willingly provides answers. It is not illegal for Famous to trade in Ausralia.

All I can add is that to date Famous has paid our Members claims very promptly.

I must make it clear that I am not recommending Famous above all others. I can only tell you our experience and of course hope it continues. I urge you to get proper legal advice if you have doubts

Peter Judkins

rote:

To Mr Peter Judkins,

Lots of import car owners around Australia are very interested in the legitamacy of Famous, and as a current policy holder I must admit I am as well. I read your letter on the Famous website and was wondering how long you have been with Famous.

According to their website :

"........regulatory regime and is not the jurisdiction of the Australian Predential Regulation Authority. "

This is a big issue with many potential customers. What do think of this?

It would be be great if further input from your association in regards to claims, settlements,etc... be given to us. I can then pass this on to the many forums with discussion on Import vehicle insurance problems.

Kind Regards,

John

[rev210]

Famous were very nice to speak to and although I went with Shannons in the end because they were cheaper, I must say that just from a customer service point of view they really stand out.

[Doctor]

Very nice on the phone but didnt knock me down with the premium. Just a bit under what I pay now with just cars.

Shannons dont cover under 25's with imports unfortunately.

[JimX]

I am changing from Torque Underwriting to Famous with my renewal in a couple of weeks due to a much better quote and more flexible conditions on my vehicle mods.

The biggest caveat I can find in the policy (aside from the no on-street parking within 500m of your home already mentioned) is they won't cover "Loss, damage or liability arising whilst the vehicle is parked in a public car park or open space, overnight between the hours of 11pm and 8am the next day.." (number 7 of the General Exclusions)

Looking at the definitions of these two locations, "Public Car Park” means "any Car parks relating to any hotel/motel, licensed premises, (unless the Insured is in residence or attendance), train or bus station or depot" and "Open Space" means "any area of native bush, reserve or sports oval or open Public Space."

This doesn't bother me at all since I would never leave my car in any such spot during those hours even if the policy DID cover it, because I would rather keep my car than make a claim. I sure as hell would never even park it at a train station car park during the day! Thus with these exclusions I believe they are helping reduce the idiot factor on their insured customers and are able to offer a much better deal most of the time.

There are only a couple more things I'm wary of. One is that the policy puts an 8000km/year limit on anything listed as "limited use". I am not sure if my policy is set up this way because I don't have a copy of it yet, because I told the girl I only drive it around 3 times a week, but no question was asked of the kilometres I travel in a year (I usually do around 12000-15000km per year). I will need to clarify this before forwarding my payment.

The other is that I can't seem to find anything in the policy about whether or not I am forced to use their chosen repairers or if I can choose my own. Again I would like to clarify this before forwarding payment.

If the above 2 things are fine then I will definitely go ahead with this policy, they have given me a premium which is $550 less than Torque's, and Torque ($2250) was already cheap compared to Just Cars ($2700) and NRMA ($3500+).

[xzotik1]

"I'm with famous, How about you?"

So far famous seem good, cheap on there rates too.

Also try Heath Lambert. They are from Vic

I was hit by a volvo 6 days before my policy ran out and they

paid for, they are also trying to get my excess back by taking the volvo's driver to court.

cam...

[Merli]

Originally posted by Doctor

Very nice on the phone but didnt knock me down with the premium. Just a bit under what I pay now with just cars.

Shannons dont cover under 25's with imports unfortunately.

Yes they do.

I have an R33 GTR insured with them, and I'm 23.

They will insure Under 25's on a case-by-case basis, depending on type of car, driving history, attitude, and risk (garaged, tracker, suburb, etc)...

Apparently it helps if you're a registered member of a car club too (goes towards the type of attitude they like from their members), but I didn't have to mention it to get insurance with them.

They are fine with modifications, dependant on legality too.

[Miss*33]

Shannons are definitely on a case by case basis, I have a clean history and good rating and they were really helpful but because I'm 20 they quoted me $4,000.

I think I'll be sticking to Just Cars though guys, I was seriously considering Famous, but as JimX said there are a few holes in the policy that I'm not happy with and I want my car insured "just in case" I have to leave it somewhere at some stage!!

[xzotik1]

Originally posted by -Joel-

xzotik1 so were u at fault? hence why you paid an excess or does Famous require an excess then gives it back to you?

-Joel-

I was not at fault.

I went through my policy cause I wanted my car fixed

It was Heath Lambert I claimed through.

cam...

[Doctor]

Yep would have to be an R32 thing. Because I have a clean driving record, 60% NCB etc etc no sorry we cant cover you.

As Joel said must be the age of the vehicle.

[Miss*33]

Maybe the age, but Shannons insure a lot of old classic cars, so it makes you wonder....

[ScarifieR]

im with CGU

3rd party only

170 a yr with a basic excess

im 21 with no record

also they wanted 2400 a yr for full insurance

my cars a 93 R32 gtst auto