New Car - Extra add on Insurance

[Nothernsoulfood]

I am very lucky to be able to buy a new car on 0% PCP which I aim to pay the ballon payment on and keep for a good number of years.

I am happy with the price having negotiated 12% of list price.

They have suggested adding the following policies and I would be interested if you think I should go for them...

Paint and material protection -£499 - I only drive arround town and cover 5K a year. - DOnt see the value, prove me wrong?

Alloy wheel protection £249.99 - cover for 3 years up to 18 repairs in total for scuffs which can be lath skimmed out. THat seems good value given how easy it is to ding your wheels

Dent and chip reapair - £399 , unsure this will cover for light dents and sctratches for example if a trolly goes into you or a car door is opened onto you. 3 year duration and unlimited claims. THis one I am very unsure on.

You can get special wheels that protect against your alloys being bumped. DD’s driving instructor recommended them to us and they have been fantastic. She has clipped quite a few curbs (driving for 8 months!) and the alloys are still in perfect condition. We have Vredstein - not cheap but definitely more cost effective + easier in the long run than paying out £££ on an alloy protection policy.

I doubt you need any of those things. If you do they'll be massively cheaper elsewhere. Pay for these and a chunk of your discount is down the Swanee.

Have they offered Gap insurance as well?

I got the dent and chip repair on mine and paid an extra £100 for the alloy wheel protection. We bought it on pcp and was not sure what we would do when the balance was due but have decided to pay it off and keep it.

Its been back once for some scratches and stuff to be sorted and I easily had my moneys worth on those repairs. Ill get it done again, as well as one of the scuffed alloys before the four years is up next june.

I do about 10,000 miles a year including business use and lots of long motorway miles so for me it was worth it. You only need a couple of small paint chips from someone else's carelessness to get your money back.

They are getting commission on all these add ons. As a previous poster says, if you want them, they'll definitely be cheaper somewhere else.

It is sadly the way of the world that at some point in your first year your car will get a small ding. After you've grieved that you probably won't care any more. If you are going to keep it for a good while, by the time you come to move it on, no-one will care much about small marks on the body.

I recently traded in an 8 year old car with a small dent on the passenger door (no idea when or how it happened but it looked like a trolley incident) made very, very little to the amount I sold it for.

I suspect if you do get any minor damage, the amount it would cost to repair at a local body shop would be less than the insurance premiums.