Coilovers and Insurance

[Glenn]

Not sure how coilovers could be illegal. The stock suspension is a coil over setup

[zedd82]

I know in QLD (and probably the same in other states as it is something covered by ADR's) they need to have a mod plate for them to be legal as you are changing a part of the suspension to something that is different to what came on the car from the factory (rarely do people actually get a mod plate for them though as they don't know one is required).

Just call up Shannons and ask them if they will cover them or not. No need to say that you have a policy with them, just say you're asking out of curiousity.

[BUZZ_QWERTY]

Apparently coilovers are illegal, that said I doubt your going to have any issues unless the insurance company can prove the accident was due to the coilovers failing. Never heard of anyone being refused a payout because of coilovers though.

[SIX]

hi Erin you will need to let shannons know when u fit them , because they may not insure you as some insurance companies will not cover legal modification , alliance will not insure my brothers VRX if he lowers the car at all as with SGIC did even after i did it. when you do it , you must let them know because if you dont have you have a accident they can refuse to fix your car and they were not aware of the modification to the car

[SIX]

If theyll cover me then yes ill tell them but if they wont then no I wont. Most if the time they wont go looking for stuff or even notice. Ive had stuff installed in cars Ive had an accident in and theyve said nothing about it, like pod filter, headers etc. Generally they dont care if a part isnt listed cause it just means that if its damaged they just wont cover that part or replace it cause it wasnt listed on the policy or theyll just replace it with stock item. But Id like to know if they will cover them and if not as you say, will it possibly void my policy or not if I have an accident with them on or not.

yeah id just double check with them to be sure

[SIX]

Yes I prob will but I was hoping someone on here may already have been down this road and have an answer so I dont have to bother calling or can know perhaps what to expect.

lol

[BUZZ_QWERTY]

Yes I prob will but I was hoping someone on here may already have been down this road and have an answer so I dont have to bother calling or can know perhaps what to expect.

You should just call dude. You don't have to let them know that you have a policy with them. Won't change much even if someone on here has been in that situation because chances are they would have been with a different insurance company.

[squala]

Shannons are supposed to be for enthusiasts, so they have to understand that those who love cars want to improve their handling. Their slogan wouldn't make sense if they won't insure vehicles on coil-overs. However, since this is a major modification, I am 99.9% certain that you need to let them know.

Best thing to do is call them pretending to be a random customer making an enquiry. You can also obtain something in writing just for your peace of mind.

[debonaire]

I would definitely tell them - you don't want to risk having a payout or repair turned down. Even if it had no influence on the claim an insurer can refuse to play if the vehicle wasn't 'the same' as what they had agreed to insure. All insurers are different - some automatically cover anything without you even telling them, some allow anything as long as you disclose it, and some are strict on what you can do. They might want you to pay a little bit more to cover the extra cost of replacement, or for the higher perceived risk (i.e. because you are putting sports suspension you will clearly be taking every roundabout at 80kph and end up in someone's garden).

I've never had a policy with Shannons but from my experience in dealing with them i know they are certainly not as enthusiast-friendly as they make out to be, there are all sorts of eligibility criteria and loopholes so I would ring and make sure it's OK. The safest thing is to have it listed in writing on your policy. And if they won't cover you, go somewhere else!