I apologise in advance for the rant I am about to have. After recent weather, and the last winter we had, I thought it a wise move to fit winter tyres onto my fleet. I didn’t do this to save money on insurance, but rather to ensure my drivers we safe, and the cars handled well.
Having said that, you would have thought our insurance premium would be reduced if we fit winter tyres and therefore are less likely to have an accident.
This is not, however, the case. Instead, my insurer actually increased the premium on my fleet. After believing I may get a reduction, I was shocked to receive an increase! It turns out this is because winter tyres come under the ‘vehicle modification’ policy, leading to an increase in insurance.
The news reports that more and more motorists and fleet managers are considering replacing their regular tyres with more appropriate winter tyres. I think this is largely due to the more severe weather we are seeing. Some of the UK’s leading tyre manufactures including Goodyear, Dunlop and Continental, who make winter tyres, are experiencing a very high demand and are sometimes struggling to keep up. I remember reading a spokesman for Goodyear saying “We have experienced shortages in some sizes due to extreme demand, but are increasing our production.”
The Director of Policy and Research at the Institute of Advanced Motorists, Neil Greig has also said “I’m surprised. Winter tyres’ safety benefits are clear - I think they’d outweigh any additional costs.”
After this increase in premiums, I spoke to my local insurance broker who said it isn’t uncommon for some insurance companies to raise their premiums in these conditions, and she gave me a renewal quote herself, which beat my current insurer quite considerably. I therefore was able (in the end) to receive cheap fleet insurance, but if you are thinking of fitting winter tyres to your vehicles, I suggest first going to visit your local insurance broker who will be able to inform you if your premiums will increase.
The Director of Policy and Research at the Institute of Advanced Motorists, Neil Greig has also said “I’m surprised. fleet insurance I think this is largely due to the more severe weather we are seeing. However, it would make sense that we would get reduced premiums if the cars are safer with these new tyres wouldn’t it?