Car Insurance for Modified Vehicles

• 

  Hybroid on 01/05/2023 - 12:02

  +2

  If you don't declare your mods and then have a crash, will they get out of insuring you?

  Yes, any reason not to pay out.

  If you have declared all of your mods, who have you insured with?

  Club 4X4 cover mods, but they are not cheap…

• 

  Bignudge on 01/05/2023 - 12:13

  Check out Shannon's insurance. I've heard they are good with insuring vehicles with crazy mods (engine swaps, etc).

  But one thing that sucks is that these insurances usually have a clause in their terms and conditions saying that even after these mods… the car must be road worthy and street legal. And the only way to get it truly road legal is if you get an engineering certificate. Eg… upgrading to Brembo brakes, that means an engineer must sign off that it's safe and appropriate.

  Without it, it's technically not legal.

  • 

    Euphemistic on 01/05/2023 - 17:56

    Upgrading brakes within the normal sizes may not require engineering, only if you go stupidly big.

• 

  Brian McGee on 01/05/2023 - 12:20

  +3

  I also don't have a DPF filter.

  Your vehicle is unroadworthy. You are contributing to the risks of premature death just because Toyota couldn't engineer the DPF properly.

  • 

    spackbace on 01/05/2023 - 13:37

    +1

    You are contributing to the risks of premature death just because Toyota couldn't engineer the DPF properly.

    Coz Ford did it so much better /s

    • 

      Brian McGee on 01/05/2023 - 15:23

      -1

      we all know you think Toyota are perfect, but they are just as bad if not worse than the rest.

      1.7L oil consumption between services on the new 300 series? Normal operation characteristics? If you have an issue with this just service your vehicle more frequently? What a piece of SH17!

      Class action for the thousands of rubbish 2.8L engines out there, selling them for 5 years while knowing of the problem. And telling mining sites they can do some bypass so they could pollute the worksite, great.

    • 

      altomic on 01/05/2023 - 15:26

      +1

      Coz Ford did it so much better /s

      <laughs in volkswagon>

  • 

    Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 01/05/2023 - 14:26

    +2

    and an ungodly sized fine when they get caught.

    • 

      Brian McGee on 01/05/2023 - 15:25

      +1

      $22K for the individual, $44K for the business that did it.

      But I can coal roll

    • 

      bhubb18 on 01/05/2023 - 19:00

      Has ANY person ever been convicted for it?

      • 

        Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 01/05/2023 - 19:47

        Before I answer your rhetorical, do you know what the meaning of 'convicted' is in the context of a environment legislation penalty?

        • 

          bhubb18 on 01/05/2023 - 20:44

          @Typical16-bitEnjoyer: Semantics, do you know of any individual person who has been charged with it?

          • 

            Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 01/05/2023 - 21:37

            @bhubb18: Do you?

            • 

              bhubb18 on 02/05/2023 - 08:06

              @Typical16-bitEnjoyer: Precisely my point. I've never heard of an individual getting done for it, but have heard of shops getting pinged.
              Likelihood of any individual ever getting done is pretty low unless its already been flagged by the EPA.

              • 

                Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 02/05/2023 - 19:08

                -1

                @bhubb18: Your point is you don't know anyone who experienced a thing, so therefore that thing mustn't occur? lol

      • 

        [Deactivated] on 05/05/2023 - 10:42

        Yes, many people. Vic coppers set up roadworthy sites with the EPA and test for missing DPF's. Fine and car off the road until it's fixed.

• 

  Euphemistic on 01/05/2023 - 12:22

  +2

  Almost all of those things are within ‘normal’ insurers scope. You don’t need and engineering certificate for installing accessories and AFAIK you can raise the total height of the vehicle by 75mm by installing no more than 50mm lift and increasing tyre diameter by 25mm (go check the standards). You just need to list the accessories for most insurers and usually provide some sort of value

  If you don’t tell the insurer about add ons they may deny your claim, but more likely would just not include repairing or replacing them. Ie If they’ve agreed to cover a stock rig and you rock up with a crashed bullbar, side steps etc I’d expect they’ll want to put a stock bumper on.

  BUT, removing/deleting/disabling a DPF will make a car unroadworthy as will tampering with any emissions equipment so you won’t be insured if they find out.

  Not sure about the tune.

  READ the PDS for any policy you purchase. Comply with it or risk not being paid for a claim.

• 

  Wiadro on 01/05/2023 - 12:34

  +1

  you forgot the most important mod for your Hilux:

  • tailgating other road users.
  • 

    jv on 01/05/2023 - 12:44

    There is an exemption if you are tailgating a Volvo driver.

• 

  apsilon on 01/05/2023 - 12:56

  +1

  Generally speaking, if your mods are legal they'll cover you but won't cover the value of the unlisted mods. If the vehicle isn't roadworthy then they may use that as a reason to not pay out.

  FWIW, the removal of the DPF is a $10k fine in NSW last time I checked. Not something I'd go around publicising. Not sure if renders the vehicle unroadworthy as others have stated but that may be the case

• 

  apple2016 on 01/05/2023 - 13:34

  Most insurance will cover the mods if its roadworthy. I am with RACV and it does cover modifications given they dont affect the road-worthiness of the car.

• 

  FoxJump on 01/05/2023 - 14:40

  NRMA said they'd cover the mods either as "market value" (by pricing against a similar modified vehicle for sale) or "Agreed value" (if the agreed value allows for the mods). They didnt need me to list anything.

  But yeah, ditto the "roadworthy" clause.
  If you have to claim and have no DPF, will they check the presence of a DPF? I dont know. You may have to end up explaining to a court how the absence of the DPF - although illegal - had no bearing on the claim, and then you may have to pay the fine.
  idk..

• 

  mapax on 01/05/2023 - 15:26

  Is your car meant to have DPF?

  Also, obligatory

  Member Since
  3 hours 29 min ago

  • 

    Nugs on 01/05/2023 - 17:34

    and

    Member Since
    5 hours 37 min ago
    Last Seen
    5 hours 35 min ago
    .

• 

  blitz on 01/05/2023 - 17:14

  OP, have you contacted some insurers? What did they say?

• 

  deme on 01/05/2023 - 21:32

  Nice troll post.

• 

  Thinkswithelbow on 02/05/2023 - 10:40

  Let's say your dpf is gone. And let's at you are insured and get into an accident. When they're inspecting the car for damage and to find any way to get out of it…won't they see it and mark your insurance invalid?

• 

  [Deactivated] on 05/05/2023 - 10:37

  Firstly, if you've taken out your DPF it's unroadworthy, and just because everyone does it doesn't make it legal.

  Companies like Shannons and other specialist insurers will insure modded cars, however, when you read the fine print the car MUST be roadworthy. Part of being roadworthy is that it must comply with the standards for registration. In Vic and I think the rest of the country now has similar legislation, you need to look at VSI8 which refers to VSB14, VSI19 and a couple of other documents.

  You'll find that there are many things 4x4 modders do that are straight out illegal and put your car outside the standards for registration.

  I have just gone through getting my Ranger lifted, wheels, tyres, bullbars etc and studied all of these documents to make sure I kept it legal. It's a pain in the butt but had to be done.The hardest thing was the wheel and tyre combo. So many rules. Many aftermarket wheel and tyre combo's are unroadworthy. Some wheels don't meet load requirements, some are too wide, some are too tall, some have too big an offset. Even where you put your spot lights and how you connect them up is an issue.

  I ended up managing to keep everything legal and within the guidelines. I went with RACV who say they don't care about what 4x4 mods I have, as long as the car is roadworthy (including any mods) they will insure it.

  As others have said, if an insurance company can get out of paying you, they will. And for those who say that a missing DPF won't contribute to the cause of the collision, you're right. Where the problem lies however, is that your insurance contract becomes void if the conditions of it are not met, including the one where it says the car must be roadworthy.

  Best of luck.