So, you can probably tell I’ve just bought a T6.1, by the fact I’ve been asking lots of annoying questions.
My plan was just to insure it with Howdens or Sterling as a conversion in progress, but Howdens refused to insure me, and Sterling would insure for me £1300 but wouldn’t protect my no claims bonus. I’ve actually ended up insured with Admiral just as a plain van as part of mine and my wife’s multicar insurance. This isn’t the end of the world as we’re having a baby and probably won’t be going away in it for much of the first year anyway, and then next march I can re-assess insurance. Part of my problem is that Howdens and Sterling asked me to declare the conversion price on top of the van value, so they consider it a high value van (because the price I paid was dealer price for peace of mind), plus in November 2023 I had a notification only, and in April and May 2024 I had two fault claims in work vehicles on fleet insurance (I was being worked into the ground at the time), so obviously my risk profile is a bit screwed at the moment. Another issue is that my wife never declared my fleet accidents onto her insurance as a named driver and of course they put two and two together when I took out the van insurance, and have let it slide and will mirror it on when the multicar policy starts properly in August when her policy lapses.
So my plan was in the meantime whilst the baby is new just do some basics - sound deaden and insulate the van and put the current panelling back on, by some sucker on window screens for sleeping, buy an Ovano (second hand hopefully) and then buy a decent solar generator - this way we could do little overnight trips. That means god forbid I get into an accident that writes the van off I could take most of it out (I would argue until I’m blue in the face about the ovano removal too).
Then when I can get insurance that protects my NCB, hopefully either after may this year (claims will be 2 years, or next year when they’re 3 years), I can do the full conversion I want (ovano, full insulate and carpet, van shades, swivel seats, lithium leisure battery and diesel heater). I’m hoping I’ll have moved home by then too and have a driveway. There’s a woman down the road from me who parks on the same road with a 74 plate California ocean and someone else when a 75 plate Mercedes Vito, so I do wonder what they’re paying for insurance.
Has anyone else got any suggestions for my plan to help me get converting earlier, or protect the early conversion stuff I want to do from a loss from a company like admiral?
Admiral were sneaky too, i asked if I needed a tracker and they said no on the phone but then in the documents they said that vans are uninsured for theft without proof of a tracker (hence i got one fitted).
My plan was just to insure it with Howdens or Sterling as a conversion in progress, but Howdens refused to insure me, and Sterling would insure for me £1300 but wouldn’t protect my no claims bonus. I’ve actually ended up insured with Admiral just as a plain van as part of mine and my wife’s multicar insurance. This isn’t the end of the world as we’re having a baby and probably won’t be going away in it for much of the first year anyway, and then next march I can re-assess insurance. Part of my problem is that Howdens and Sterling asked me to declare the conversion price on top of the van value, so they consider it a high value van (because the price I paid was dealer price for peace of mind), plus in November 2023 I had a notification only, and in April and May 2024 I had two fault claims in work vehicles on fleet insurance (I was being worked into the ground at the time), so obviously my risk profile is a bit screwed at the moment. Another issue is that my wife never declared my fleet accidents onto her insurance as a named driver and of course they put two and two together when I took out the van insurance, and have let it slide and will mirror it on when the multicar policy starts properly in August when her policy lapses.
So my plan was in the meantime whilst the baby is new just do some basics - sound deaden and insulate the van and put the current panelling back on, by some sucker on window screens for sleeping, buy an Ovano (second hand hopefully) and then buy a decent solar generator - this way we could do little overnight trips. That means god forbid I get into an accident that writes the van off I could take most of it out (I would argue until I’m blue in the face about the ovano removal too).
Then when I can get insurance that protects my NCB, hopefully either after may this year (claims will be 2 years, or next year when they’re 3 years), I can do the full conversion I want (ovano, full insulate and carpet, van shades, swivel seats, lithium leisure battery and diesel heater). I’m hoping I’ll have moved home by then too and have a driveway. There’s a woman down the road from me who parks on the same road with a 74 plate California ocean and someone else when a 75 plate Mercedes Vito, so I do wonder what they’re paying for insurance.
Has anyone else got any suggestions for my plan to help me get converting earlier, or protect the early conversion stuff I want to do from a loss from a company like admiral?
Admiral were sneaky too, i asked if I needed a tracker and they said no on the phone but then in the documents they said that vans are uninsured for theft without proof of a tracker (hence i got one fitted).
