Do you need motorcycle insurance? Here’s everything you should know.
So, you’ve just bought a bike. This is an exciting time! And whether you’re a long-time rider or learning for the first time, you should probably know a little bit about insurance. Now, motorcycle insurance is a pretty niche product. Not many insurers in Australia offer it, so it can be tricky to know what you should look for in a policy.
So, what do you need to know?
It’s mandatory
But don’t worry, this is just your Compulsory Third Party (CTP) insurance – the most basic policy available. The purpose of this is to cover the medical costs involved if you get in an accident and injure another person. But you, your bike and their bike or car won’t be covered, so you can still rack up an expensive bill if you are in an accident.
The other policies you can take out on top of your CTP are:
- Third Party Property: This basically covers the costs if you damage another person’s property. Your own bike’s expenses won’t be covered, but if you scrape a car, the cost of the repairs to the car will be covered. It also covers legal fees if you have to go to court.
- Third Party, Fire and Theft: This policy is a level up from Third Party Property (TPP). It covers everything in a TPP policy, as well as damage from fire, or the theft of your bike.
- Comprehensive: This is the bee’s knees of motorcycle insurance. The most comprehensive and usually the most expensive policy, this one covers any damage to your vehicle and other vehicles, as well as all of the above features.
The cost of your insurance is impacted by a few things
As you can imagine, insurers change the price of motorcycle insurance based on a range of different factors. Here are a couple:
- The value of your bike. Obviously if your bike is old and rusty, it’s worth less, so you can pay less for your policy. If it’s a state-of-the-art model, you’ll pay more since it would cost them more to replace it.
- Your age and gender. Younger drivers (and particularly males) are more reckless by nature and statistically more likely to get into an accident. Because of this, insurance is more expensive the younger you are.
- How much you ride. The more you’re on the road, the more chance there is that you could be in an accident and damage your bike.
Security is important
You can cut the cost of your insurance by being more secure. Storing your motorcycle in a locked garage means that there’s a far lower chance of it being stolen than if it was stored out on the street in the open. Letting your insurer know you keep your bike in a safe place can help you save on your premium.
Basically, at the end of the day, while you do need an extremely basic level of motorcycle insurance cover (CTP), it’s not mandatory to take out a comprehensive policy. But if you want the peace of mind, it’s worth looking into so you can decide whether the insurance is worth it for your situation.
Written by
Richard Laycock
Insurance expert – finder.com.au