Many people are passionate about motorcycling and protecting their two-wheeled ride with the right level of motorbike insurance is hugely important. Insurers need to take into account your personal information along with a number of other details when working out your quote for motorbike insurance, which is why they need to ask certain questions.

At Carole Nash, we want to help you better understand how your quote will be calculated, along with what could influence the cost of your motorcycle insurance premium, by looking at the main areas insurers look at.

Getting motorcycle insurance with us is as straightforward as possible, if you’re looking for a quote then get in touch with us today on 0333 005 3355.

Age is important

How old you are can definitely affect the cost of your motorbike insurance and no matter how safe a rider you are, age statistics may be against you. Statistics show that younger riders, aged between 17 and 25, are far more likely to be involved in an accident on the road and to make an insurance claim. The younger you are, the higher the calculated risk for insurance and unfortunately the higher your premium will be compared to older more experienced riders.

Where you live

Where you and your motorbike reside is a major factor in determining your motorcycle insurance premium. If you happen to live in a busy, built-up area where there’s lots of traffic, then you’ll be considered more at risk than someone who lives in quiet rural area.

Remember, you need to give insurers the correct address details of the place that you spend most of your time at. If you have more than one address where you reside please make sure you disclose his information.

Your motorbike use

How often you use your motorbike and what you use it for will need to be accurately disclosed in order to calculate any insurance quote.

There are a few general categories for determining how you use your bike:

• Social and domestic – such as summer days out, visiting family and friends at weekends, or going to the shops.
• Commuting – using your bike to travel back and forth to one fixed place of work, which also includes parking at railway stations.
• Business use – using your bike in direct connection with your job, such as travelling to more than one location for work.
• Commercial use – using your bike for occupations such as delivery services and door-to-door sales.

You may fall into one or more of these categories, such as using your motorbike for commuting and social purposes, so please let us know.

More miles equals a higher risk for insurers, as the chances of you having to make a claim on your motorcycle insurance increases, especially if you commute during busy periods.

Your motorbike history

Your riding history, along with the amount of times you’ve claimed on your motorbike insurance in the past needs to be taken into account.

If you haven’t made any claims on your insurance in the last five years, then you’ll be entitled to a No Claims Discount, which is calculated on the number of years that you’ve been riding claim fee (This does not include vintage policies). As expected the more years you have with no claims the better, as you’ll be considered a lower risk to insurers.

You’ll need to disclose any previous claims that you’ve made in the past five years to your insurer, even if the claims were on a different vehicle. This also applies to any motoring (or other) convictions that you have, or any that are currently pending.

Having riding endorsements on your licence, such as for speeding, will also likely push up the premium of your motorbike insurance quote. It sounds obvious, but the cleaner your licence and the more years no claims you have, the better insurance quotes you’ll get.

INSURANCE EXCESS

When getting a quote for your motorbike insurance, insurers will ask you about your voluntary excess, as this can also determine the final premium of the quote.

Typically the higher you set your voluntary excess, the lower your actual insurance premium will be. This is because you’ll be considered less likely to claim if you set your voluntary excess at a higher amount, and if you do claim, your insurer will get to pay out less as the excess will make up a larger portion of the payout.

Keep in mind that in the event of a claim you’ll also have to pay the compulsory excess, which will be outlined in your policy, as well as the voluntary excess.

Having strong security

The more safe and secure your motorbike is overnight the better when it comes to insurance, as the harder it is for thieves to get their hands on your two-wheeler, the lower your motorbike insurance premium will tend to be.

Keeping your bike locked in a garage and secured with insurer approved anti-theft measures, like ground anchors, trackers, immobilisers and other approved devices will help you to get better quotes for insurance.  

If you can’t keep the bike in a garage, it’s recommended to keep it covered, in a well-lit area, off the street as much as possible.

The type of insurance cover you want

Lastly, the type of motorbike insurance cover you’re looking for will of course have an impact on your premium calculation.

Comprehensive cover offers all the benefits of the other cover options, but also includes full cover for damage to you and your bike, even when an accident is deemed your fault. The more cover you want the higher your premiums will be, in most cases.  

If all you need is Third-party only, which is limited to covering accidents that are your fault and will only include damage to other people, property and vehicles, then you’ll be looking at a lower insurance cost. Third-party, fire and theft is also generally going to cheaper, as this offers the same limited cover except if your bike is stolen or damaged by fire you’ll still be covered.

Checking different quotes for various levels of cover will help you to find the motorbike insurance policy that’s right for you.