Scooterotica

whats the position on Provisional Licences and Insurance?

Many many years ago, I could drive any 2 wheeler up to, I believe, 250cc on a Provisional Licence- I subsequently passed my 2 wheel test in 1968 and everything 2 wheel wise was then available.

If, for example, someone is riding a vintage scooter, but on the provisional part of his car licence ( i.e. he hasn't passed his 2 wheel test), how does he stand if:-

1) He hasn't declared the "provisional" status at all or
2) He has declared it to his broker/ insurers but is NOT showing "L" plates?

I guese there must be one or two out there doing this possibly?

Chris

Would I need to declare the following list of modifications? Are the insurers going to strip the bike to examine each item after an incident in order to claw back the pay-out or void the policy? In theory the uprated bearing could give one the confidence to give it a bit more oomph, the pathfinders make it easier to speed at night. What I'm asking is are they going to sift through the debris to find an excuse not to pay or are they merely covering all bases to weed out outrageous abuses?
1. crank
2. bearings
3. clutch
4. chain guides
5. cylinder
6. piston
7. exhaust
8. stator
9. cdi
10. led lights
11. pathfinders
12. rev counter
13. egt gauge
14. disc brake
15. tubeless rims
16. easy clutch controller
17. Carburetor
18. regulator to accommodate addition of battery
19. battery into non battery model
20. miscellaneous go faster stickers and adornments which either make it more or less desirable to a thief

bristolmod wrote:whats the position on Provisional Licences and Insurance?

Many many years ago, I could drive any 2 wheeler up to, I believe, 250cc on a Provisional Licence- I subsequently passed my 2 wheel test in 1968 and everything 2 wheel wise was then available.

If, for example, someone is riding a vintage scooter, but on the provisional part of his car licence ( i.e. he hasn't passed his 2 wheel test), how does he stand if:-

1) He hasn't declared the "provisional" status at all or
2) He has declared it to his broker/ insurers but is NOT showing "L" plates?

I guese there must be one or two out there doing this possibly?

Chris

Hi Chris,

Current law states that to ride any bike above 125cc you need a Category A entitlement on your licence.
If you obtained your Full UK car licence before February 2001 then you can ride any bike up to 50cc without 'L' plates.
If you then undergo your CBT then you can ride any bike up to 125cc but you would need to show 'L' plates for any bike 51cc and above.

So to ride the 250cc, you would need the Category A entitlement on your licence. This would mean that you have the Full UK Motorcycle licence and you wouldn't need 'L' plates on any bike.

I hope this answers your question.

diesel wrote:Would I need to declare the following list of modifications? Are the insurers going to strip the bike to examine each item after an incident in order to claw back the pay-out or void the policy? In theory the uprated bearing could give one the confidence to give it a bit more oomph, the pathfinders make it easier to speed at night. What I'm asking is are they going to sift through the debris to find an excuse not to pay or are they merely covering all bases to weed out outrageous abuses?
1. crank
2. bearings
3. clutch
4. chain guides
5. cylinder
6. piston
7. exhaust
8. stator
9. cdi
10. led lights
11. pathfinders
12. rev counter
13. egt gauge
14. disc brake
15. tubeless rims
16. easy clutch controller
17. Carburetor
18. regulator to accommodate addition of battery
19. battery into non battery model
20. miscellaneous go faster stickers and adornments which either make it more or less desirable to a thief

In the event of a claim, I would very much doubt that they would strip your bike down and examaine absolutely everything. That said, they could and may well do so.

Each of the modifications listed would need to be added. With the above enquiry, the cosmetic modifications aren't going to affect your price but if you have affected the performance of the bike in any way or modified or 'played about' with the engine then you might be looking at a small increase, depending on the level of the changes done.

In reference to the question about whether an insurance would think that having pathfinders would make it easier to speed at night; It would be a no. The general consensus is that somebodies mindset it to speed then they will just speed anyway and we doubt that an uprated bearing or pathfinders would encourage that type of behavior.

Barry@Bikesure wrote:

diesel wrote:....Each of the modifications listed would need to be added. With the above enquiry, the cosmetic modifications aren't going to affect your price but if you have affected the performance of the bike in any way or modified or 'played about' with the engine then you might be looking at a small increase, depending on the level of the changes done.

I don't think there is a single owner out there that would ever think to inform of most of the items on that list. It's great news that most of them won't affect the policy but very worrying if there is any possibility that failure to disclose things like uprated cranks or Teflon chain tensioners for instance could void your insurance Why is this point not 'probed' more deeply by the broker? I can only recall being asked the simple question, "Has it been modified at all?". Most owners would only think in terms of horsepower increasing mods or uprated brakes. I'm sure that this disclosure will come as a surprise to most if not all

coaster wrote: I'm sure that this disclosure will come as a surprise to most if not all

It wouldn't surprise me if an underwriter tried to avoid payment on the grounds that my occupation changed from dishwasher to dish drier without notifying them.

I think the problem with modifications is that some bikes have so many upgrades, or changes, that there's a real danger of forgetting some of what's been done, therefore a fear of not having the correct cover when it's needed

coaster wrote:

Barry@Bikesure wrote:

diesel wrote:....Each of the modifications listed would need to be added. With the above enquiry, the cosmetic modifications aren't going to affect your price but if you have affected the performance of the bike in any way or modified or 'played about' with the engine then you might be looking at a small increase, depending on the level of the changes done.

I don't think there is a single owner out there that would ever think to inform of most of the items on that list. It's great news that most of them won't affect the policy but very worrying if there is any possibility that failure to disclose things like uprated cranks or Teflon chain tensioners for instance could void your insurance Why is this point not 'probed' more deeply by the broker? I can only recall being asked the simple question, "Has it been modified at all?". Most owners would only think in terms of horsepower increasing mods or uprated brakes. I'm sure that this disclosure will come as a surprise to most if not all

I can't talk for other brokers but we do always make sure to ask not only is it modified but to then stress to the client 'So the bike is completely standard?'. Beyond that, there's not an awful lot you can do but ask about each modification on our list singularly, (theres well over 200 so we could be there for a while).

You sound like you are doing 100% more than most then Barry

coaster wrote:You sound like you are doing 100% more than most then Barry

Thanks, I appreciate that.

It's what I'm hear for. I'll try and explain as much as possible, whether it be through a Bikesure policy or not.