Keith Gooden
In today’s episode of the Motorhome Matt podcast…
Matt Sims
We explore why motorhome insurance premiums are on the rise.
Keith Gooden
And we answer your questions about getting your C1 entitlement back after you’re 70 years old, finding the right toll road classification and leaving your fridge door open. Welcome to the Motorhome Matt podcast – industry insights and expert advice for the world of motorhomes, caravans and campervans. I’m Keith Gooden.
Matt Sims
And I’m Motorhome Matt.
Keith Gooden
And it’s all brought to you by www.thatleisureshop.com.
Matt Sims
Now remember, please do follow on your favourite podcast app and click subscribe on YouTube – brought to you by www.arobasecreative.co.uk.
Product of the week
Keith Gooden
Hey, Matt.
Matt Sims
Yes?
Keith Gooden
Have you heard of an air fryer?
Matt Sims
I have.
Keith Gooden
I’ve got not an air fryer, an air dryer.
Matt Sims
You’ve got a Balcondry.
Keith Gooden
I have got a Balcondry, put cream on it and it went away. I have got a Balcondry – it’s here.
Matt Sims
It’s our product to the week. We love Balcondry. This is genius. It all packs up into that little box. And what Keith is actually holding, if you’re listing, is an airer that you can sucker to the side of your motorhome – to a window, to a mirror, to a balcony, a bit of glass, which is actually where the name comes from.
Keith Gooden
Balcondry, balcony and dry. This is one we made earlier, by the way.
Matt Sims
This is our COVID screen. Remember these? These were on every till, weren’t they? This is ours from the shop. We found it at the back of the warehouse, and there it is – stuck onto a piece of acrylic. We’re going to give it a little spin. They’re width adjustable. They go up to a metre wide.
You can hang up to 12 kilogrammes on them, and the suckers are really, really, really strong. So you can stick this to the wall of your motorhome, the wall of your campervan, or to a bit of glass. Genius. And do you know the great feature of these? See these brackets on the end?
Yes, I see these brackets on the end.
They’ve got these slots in, and you know those hangers in the hotel that don’t have hooks?
Keith Gooden
The ones there’s no point nicking? I know the ones you mean exactly.
Matt Sims
You can hang them in there.
Keith Gooden
There’s a point to nicking them now!
Matt Sims
Let’s put it down. It’s called Balcondry. You can get one at www.thatleisureshop.com – £29.99!
Keith Gooden
It’s a bargain.
Matt Sims
They are great. We love them.
Why have insurance premiums risen?
Keith Gooden
It’s the Motorhome Matt podcast. I’m Keith Gooden.
Matt Sims
I’m Motorhome Matt.
Keith Gooden
It’s brought to you by www.thatleisureshop.com. Now, why have insurance premiums risen?
Matt Sims
Absolutely. It’s a great question and something we’re seeing a theme of a lot on social media and in various Facebook groups particularly. I’m going to read a couple of comments. This is Barry Winter.
He said, “Trying to arrange insurance for our first motorhome for our soon Twin to be.” This is an Adria Twin group. “What a bloody minefield. Struggling to get under £700 despite an alarm and tracker being fitted. Mileage seems to be a ‘gotcha’. No idea what we will do initially.”
“But for a number of policies, if you exceed that number your policy goes into limp mode.” I think he’s referring to the mileage. “Not sure motorhome ownership is meant to be this stressful.” You’ve got a comment there from Janice, Keith. Go for it.
Keith Gooden
“Insurance has gone up £200 this year. Is that normal? And what a mileage! We went for 6,000 miles but we did 8,000 last year. What mileage do you normally go for? They said if we put 4,000 It will go down £100.” But the point is…
Matt Sims
Just make it up, Janice!
Keith Gooden
You won’t be insured if you have an accident, Janice!
Matt Sims
It’s like in Matilda where the dad’s winding the clock back with the drill.
Keith Gooden
Tell the truth.
Matt Sims
That’d be Janice with her Adria next year, winding the mileage back. But it’s true. And it’s not just mileage determined in the premium – premiums generally do seem to be going up. And I’ve seen people saying, “My premium has gone from £300 to over £1,200. What’s going on?” So we thought we’d ask an insurance company.
Now, we are proud to have Ripe as our sponsor of the podcast as we record this, and we asked them for their comment. And this is what they said. We asked them, “What changes have you seen in the last few years?”
And they said, “They have been challenging, affecting both insurers and brokers which have ultimately affected policyholders through higher premiums. Things like supply chain issues for motorhome and campervan parts, labour shortages, rises in energy costs and fuel brought on by external factors including the war in Ukraine, Brexit and the ongoing aftermath of COVID-19 have led to further premium increases.”
Keith Gooden
We also asked, “How have you adapted your offerings as an insurance company in light of all this?” They said, “We review our pricing regularly to remain competitive, while also making sure that the quality of our cover is never compromised and having our UK-based call centre to help support and guide customers when they need it.”
So that’s what an insurance company who sponsors the podcast says. So how do these things affect the premium? I suppose if the price goes up to mend something, then the price goes up to the end user to insure it.
Matt Sims
Absolutely. And of course, the big issue with motorhomes is the screen price. So a few episodes ago, we were talking to Peter Smith at Luna Motorhome Hire, the motorhome that blew off the cliff in Scotland. Absolute write off. Nothing left of it. That motorhome was valued at around £70,000. Five years ago, it was probably £50,000. That’s a big risk, isn’t it? It’s a big increase in exposure for the insurance company who is going to pay for it.
Keith Gooden
Like I always say, the insurance company isn’t insuring necessarily the motorhome. It’s insuring the risk to the motorhome. And as you say, if it’s going up by £20,000, that’s £20,000 the insurance company is going to have to find if you make a claim, so it’s no surprise that the insurance premium has gone up.
Matt Sims
£20,000 is a lot of premiums, isn’t it? And supply chain issues. Of course, these have been really real if you’ve been waiting for a brand new motorhome. You’ll know what I’m talking about. People have been waiting three years for theirs to arrive sometimes. And those supply chain issues – if you’re waiting for a repair, you could be in a loan motorhome paid for by the insurer for quite an extended period. So that’s going to be a massive cost to insure as well, isn’t it?
Keith Gooden
Yeah, I think we make a lot of mistakes when we’re buying insurance. My late father-in-law, God bless him, would always jump up and down every year when his insurance premium used to come in because he would say, “I was a professional driver!” And he was – he used to drive lorries.
You know, “And I’ve been with this insurance company for 10 years. I’ve got a full no claims bonus. I don’t understand why it’s gone up by another £200.” Well, number one, he was a year older. And number two, the car was a year older.
Number three, all these factors come into play like the war in Ukraine, like people taking potshots at ships as their cargo ships as they go through the Straits of Hormuz and places like that.
We mentioned Brexit again. There is a cost to pay for Brexit, and some of that is higher import costs. All these things are risks the insurance company is pricing into your premium. It’s not about you. Don’t take it personally.
Matt Sims
No, no, but it is odd, isn’t it, that premiums this year especially do seem to have gone way higher. Your car insurance has gone up, hasn’t it?
Keith Gooden
Actually, this year, my car insurance was down about £297. However, the gearbox blew up the other day. So that’s a nasty one coming the insurance company’s way! But next year, my insurance will definitely go up!
Matt Sims
You’ve got to pay for it!
Keith Gooden
Because even though you take insurance out for your no claims, you take insurance out for this, that and the other, different levels above and beyond what you paid to insure the vehicle as you say, they want their money back.
Matt Sims
Why do you think the war in Ukraine is having this negative impact on premiums?
Keith Gooden
Because of manufacturing in Eastern Europe and also the cost of shipping things from Eastern Europe. You’ve mentioned it in the past as well. I remember at the height of the pandemic that the cost increases on filling up one of those containers leapt exponentially.
Matt Sims
All the way from £2,000 to £20,000 odd.
Keith Gooden
And those are the things.
Matt Sims
Just for one shipping container. And of course now, the ships are going via South Africa. The impact of that is it costs millions and millions and millions of dollars more to take a container ship that route round the southern cape of of Africa. It’s a massive cost.
Keith Gooden
Well, the fuel cost alone is going to be huge, isn’t it? And of course, we’ve still got the kick over from COVID-19. That changed a lot of things – the way people did business. And there’s a price to pay for that, isn’t there?
Matt Sims
Yeah, it is. All these things are having a massive impact. As Keith said, it’s not you. It’s not personal. There’s a global impact happening here. And it is. We’re feeling it in our pockets at home on something that we don’t have a choice to buy, we have to buy it – and that is your motorhome or car insurance.
Keith Gooden
And the key is to shop around as well. Don’t just stick with who you’ve got and expect them to do a good deal. Shop around and see what you can get. And if you do buy things on the internet, shopping and buying insurance using comparison sites on the internet does attract discounts. And there’s no point saying, “I don’t use computers.” Find somebody that you know who does, because there are big discounts to be had for buying online.
Matt Sims
Absolutely. And we have got news of a big opportunity for a discount on your insurance.
Keith Gooden
It’s fair to give a shout out to our sponsor, Ripe, on this. Their premiums are really competitive on price – but don’t get it twisted. It doesn’t mean that they’re too cheap.
Matt Sims
We actually had this comment from David Caddick on YouTube. I love this. “Ripe seemed too cheap,” he said. “Strange though that sounds, I didn’t know how genuine or good Ripe’s offer was. If they are as good as you say, Matt, then their prices are really competitive.”
Keith Gooden
Well, it’s a shame for David that he didn’t trust his price! Their whole deal is about making things smooth for customers and also giving them the best experience they can. Their pricing is part of this. Now, you’ve heard me mention before that their policies are buildable so you only pay for what you need.
Matt Sims
Yeah, and my experience is a very smooth buying process too. Solid coverage and top notch service and always at a fair price. In fact, I was really surprised by the premium they quoted me for our motorhome. Click the link in the episode description to customise your quote with Ripe and enjoy an automatic 25% – 25%!
Keith Gooden
That’s a quarter.
Matt Sims
It is indeed. Good maths, Keith. Enjoy 25% off your premium or you can give them a call and just say Motorhome Matt to get a 25% discount over the phone.
Keith Gooden
Remember, when you give them a call, say, “Motorhome Matt,” and get a 25% – a quarter – discount over the phone.
Audience Q&A
Keith Gooden
It’s the Motorhome Matt podcast. I’m Keith Gooden.
Matt Sims
And I’m Motorhome Matt.
Keith Gooden
It is brought to you with www.thatleisureshop.com. It’s time for our Q&A, our questions and answers – you ask the questions and Motorhome Matt, our expert, answers them. And if he doesn’t know, he’ll find somebody who does! First of all, it’s just Roger.
Roger
I passed my test in 1968. And when I reached 70, I decided I did not need to extend the seven and a half tonne privilege, and I cancelled it and renewed it again at the age of 73. If I wanted to go back and renew that privilege of driving the heavier vehicles, what is the procedure?
Keith Gooden
Thanks so much, Roger, for your question. Now, that’s the thing. He’s given it up when he reached the age of 70. But now he wants it back. Can it be done, Matt?
Matt Sims
It can! Roger in Scotland, that was.
Keith Gooden
Just Scotland, the whole of Scotland. Cheers, Roger.
Matt Sims
So the first thing to do, Roger, is to go to your GP and have an LGV medical. And it’s a really simple question and answer thing with the doctor. They’re going to check you can walk, you can see and that you’re healthy.
And once you’ve passed that medical examination, you then go to the DVLA and make an application using the form D2. You can apply for that online. Just search C1 D2 application form. You download it or you can get one from your local post office if you don’t have access to the internet.
But you can order them really easily online from the DVLA. Submit that with your medical result and they will reinstate your C1. I’ll warn you now, though. It can take a few months to get through. DVLA have a bit of a backlog, so be prepared for a little wait.
Keith Gooden
There you go, Roger from Scotland. Thank you very much.
Keith Gooden
Darren and Helen Kendall are in Leicestershire.
Darren Kendall
We’re off to France for a month in June and we’ve got a tag axle five tonne 3.1 metre high Auto Trail Comanche. We’re trying to figure out what classification we will come under for the toll roads.
We’ve asked all the usual keyboard warriors on social media and had a vast array of responses from class 2 to class 4. Any chance you could add some clarification for us please? It’d be much appreciated. Keep up the good work on the podcast. It’s all much appreciated.
Keith Gooden
Cheers, Darren. That’s Darren and Helen, even though Helen wasn’t around. Where are you?
Matt Sims
Helen, come back!
Keith Gooden
They’re in Leicestershire. So yes, he’s gone on the internet to try and find out something.
Matt Sims
The usual keyboard warriors.
Keith Gooden
Oh, people guessing… what is the correct information, then?
Matt Sims
The correct answer is your motorhome will be category 4 for the simple reason it’s got three axles. And therefore it is category four. So it’s over three and a half tonnes and it’s also over three metres tall. But three axles means it’s category four. Shall I clarify the others as well?
Keith Gooden
Oh, yes, please.
Matt Sims
So very quickly, then – category one is for light vehicles, so less than two metres and not over three and a half tonnes. So not a motorhome, probably. Category 2 is anything over two metres tall but not over three and a half tonnes, which is where people are getting confused that your motor might be a category 2.
And category 3 is anything over three metres and over three and a half tonnes but with two axles. So that’s going to be a heavier motorhome with four wheels. And then category 4 is anything over three metres tall, over three and a half tonnes and with three or more axles, and that automatically makes your motorhome a category 4. Category Five is two wheels, so a motorbike. There you go!
Keith Gooden
Fantastic, Matt. Thanks so much for that. And Darren and Helen – Helen the quiet!
Matt Sims
He left her at the toll booth!
Keith Gooden
We hope you’re satisfied with that! Poor Helen.
Keith Gooden
Tim’s in Basingstoke. “Hi Matt,” says Tim. “I think it’s a good policy to leave the fridge door open when my motorhome is not in use. However, this means the fridge light is on all the time. Is this such a good idea? Will this drain my battery? Many thanks,” says Tim in Basingstoke.
Matt Sims
Well, good question. When you turn the motorhome control panel off, the fridge stays on. And this is so that you can turn all the internal lights off and most of the systems, but obviously still keep your food cold.
So it can be very hard to isolate the fridge, particularly if it’s running on gas. If it’s running on 240 volts, just unplug that, simple – it will go off. So Tim, there may well be a vent catch on your fridge. I have emailed you back asking you, “What make is your fridge?” And I’ll give you a clue where it is.
But it’s often the case on Thetford or Dometic fridges that there’s a little blue catch you can flick over, and that allows the door to close enough to turn the light off, but leaves a little vent space so the fridge doesn’t mould up.
And you’re right – it is a really good idea to leave the fridge door open for that reason. It stops it all going mouldy. If you’re struggling to do that and you really do want to isolate the fridge, my advice would be to just disconnect the leisure battery.
Keith Gooden
Or take the bulb out!
Matt Sims
You could take the bulb out, but it’s actually quite tricky. So in a Dometic one… I’m not going to bore you with how you do it. But it is quite tricky. It’s an LED on a circuit board rather than a bulb.
Keith Gooden
I see what you mean.
Matt Sims
It’s actually quite difficult to do.
Keith Gooden
And the answer to the question, “Will it drain my batteries?” Yes, it will.
Matt Sims
Over time, of course it will. It’ll take a little while for an LED – if it is LED – to drain the battery, but it will over time for sure.
Keith Gooden
Thanks, Tim in Basingstoke.
Ask Matt
Keith Gooden
Now, if you want to ask a question of Motorhome Matt, what do you do?
Matt Sims
Please do! Yeah, mhmp.info/askmatt. You can fill in the form, or we’d love it if you would record your question. Just click the orange button. Tell us where you are. We’ll make you sound spiffy.
Keith Gooden
We will make you sound spiffy.
Matt Sims
Keith hits the spiffy button. I love that. So do please record your question. We love hearing your voice and do remember to tell us where you are.
Keith Gooden
You can have two or three four takes if you want to get it right. And don’t forget, we can edit it between them in order to take out your ums and your ahs and coughing and farting. You can subscribe on YouTube as well, Matt. How do you do that?
Matt Sims
Please do! Click subscribe and remember to click the little bell. And then the gods of YouTube will tell you when a new episode comes out. Brought to you by www.arobasecreative.co.uk.
Keith Gooden
Did you mention mhmp.info/askmatt to get in touch?
Matt Sims
I did.
Keith Gooden
That’s good, then. So now you know. And you can also share this episode with a friend.
Matt Sims
You can. So I’m going to share it with Helen, because I’m hoping she’s heard it.
Keith Gooden
I’m going to share it with Sebastian.
Matt Sims
Who’s Sebastian?
