# Aftermarket alloy wheels and insurance



## AndyA4TDI (May 7, 2012)

I would love to change my alloys but have concerns that anything other than OEM would be considered a modification insurance wise. Audi want £800. Are aftermarket alloys ok?Is there a reputable insurance company that won't hammer me for this. Thanks


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## Corfate (Dec 23, 2013)

I changed my alloys on my Pug to some aftermarket ones when i was with Elephant. I think they wanted £50 to have them declared, but they wouldn't cover them incase of loss. 

I believe Adrian flux cover them under their insurance..


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

Even if you fit a different set of Audi wheels, you will still need to disclose this. 

Insurers will vary considerably from normal terms, acceptable subject to an increased premium to totally unacceptable.


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## AndyA4TDI (May 7, 2012)

Direct Line have just informed me that I can change them to aftermarket ones provided they are of the same size and fitted to a used car, no additional cost either. I have made a note of the date and time of the call and the full name of the person I spoke to. They will send me a letter confirming the modification, once I have it I will order them.


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

Good result.


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## [email protected] (Sep 28, 2009)

AndyA4TDI said:


> I would love to change my alloys but have concerns that anything other than OEM would be considered a modification insurance wise. Audi want £800. Are aftermarket alloys ok?Is there a reputable insurance company that won't hammer me for this. Thanks


Hi,
If you ever need any assistance with insurance then please feel to drop me a line.
Regards,
Dan.


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## JwilliamsM (Dec 20, 2011)

thing is, if you have say a second hand audi tt with oem 17 inch wheels, and you change them for oem 18 inch wheels, how on earth would your insurance know 'you' changed them?
you would tell your insurance company the alloys came with the car and as far as your concerned they are standard

otherwise you would be declaring different brand tyres as they are not 'standard'

same goes for remaps, if you buy your car second hand and get it remapped, no point in telling your insurace company because you would just say' it came like that when i bought it, and how on earth am i supposed to know its mapped ' :thumb:


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## Welshquattro1 (Dec 6, 2013)

I argee with what jayz son has said. I have 18's on my A4 and it came with them,they are genuine Audi ones. So how do I know if the previous owner put them on or it came from the factory. Also does that mean when they ask for any extras I have to tell them every thing that's a option on my car?


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## Matty12345 (Nov 3, 2012)

I lowered my Astra sportshatch on AP coilovers and fitted VXR Wheels to it (16" to 18") and the insurance company said the wheels are fine but they are going to charge me for the coilovers which in total cost me an extra £26 a year.


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## Blueberry (Aug 10, 2007)

You are supposed to tell your insurance company about ALL modifications to your car from OEM. If you do not declare something and you make a claim then the company may well refuse to pay out because they were not informed of changes. We all know insurance companies have their own rules and will avoid paying out if at all possible. Better not to take any chances.

Even if you are not charged any extra they will probably keep a note just for their records. In a lot of cases you are not charged extra.


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## Welshquattro1 (Dec 6, 2013)

Blueberry said:


> You are supposed to tell your insurance company about ALL modifications to your car from OEM. If you do not declare something and you make a claim then the company may well refuse to pay out because they were not informed of changes. We all know insurance companies have their own rules and will avoid paying out if at all possible. Better not to take any chances.
> 
> Even if you are not charged any extra they will probably keep a note just for their records. In a lot of cases you are not charged extra.


So from what you say the insurance companies what us to contact the car manufacturers to find out what extras have been added to the car as options!! They are only interested in taking money off you and never pay what the car is worth.


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

Everybody has a choice, if you know your vehicle has been modified, you either disclose this to your insurers and stay safe in the knowledge that your insurance is in order and will pay out in the event of a claim or you lie to your Insurers and risk having your policy null and void in the hope that the Insurers don't discover the modifications.

There will be times that people genuinely don't know about modifications - the approach to this is explained here - http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/ombudsman-news/46/46_non_disclosure_insurance.htm



jayz_son said:


> thing is, if you have say a second hand audi tt with oem 17 inch wheels, and you change them for oem 18 inch wheels, how on earth would your insurance know 'you' changed them?
> you would tell your insurance company the alloys came with the car and as far as your concerned they are standard
> 
> otherwise you would be declaring different brand tyres as they are not 'standard'
> ...


This is misinformed and poor advice. To recommend that there is no point in telling an insurer because you can lie about it and then to not inform of the potential consequences of such actions could cost someone a lot of money, especially if the modification was a contributing factor. Loss adjusters will dig deep including checking with previous owners. I have even known of adjusters checking owner clubs forums (especially when a club sticker is displayed on the car).

The consequences of having a policy null and void could be very serious. You could be convicted of no insurance, you will have no cover for your own vehicle and whilst the Insurers will initially be made to pay any third party costs, they will have a right of recovery against you.

It's not the end of the world if you dent your wing on a lamp post and your insurers don't pay out, but if you are involved in an RTA with multiple injuries and costs running into several thousands of pounds, you will want your insurance to be in order and not risk things for the sake of saving a few pounds on your policy by lying about modifications.


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## Welshquattro1 (Dec 6, 2013)

What do you mean by modifications? Does that include factory fitted extras like sat nav,alloy wheel,leather seats and so on! My car has 18's on it and came with them when a got it and are the manufacturers wheels but they could be optional extras what do I do?


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

It depends on the wording of the question by the Insurers. Manufacturers options are normally fine, as the question normally asks if it has been modified from the manufacturer's original specification. Your car was built to a manufacturers specification by the manufacturer.

If it left the factory/showroom with 17's and you then fit 18's, they would need to be disclosed.

If in doubt, ask your Insurers to clarify what you need to disclose.


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## Welshquattro1 (Dec 6, 2013)

Thanks Lloyd will do. I'm not sure if the car came with them or not so will have to get in touch with audi which will probably cost me.


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## Andyrat85 (Oct 7, 2013)

Anything you do should be declared to the insurance I even told them about changing number plate bulbs to led and all sorts.

The way I see it the more you tell them less chance they can wriggle out should you make a claim etc


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## JwilliamsM (Dec 20, 2011)

Shiny said:


> Everybody has a choice, if you know your vehicle has been modified, you either disclose this to your insurers and stay safe in the knowledge that your insurance is in order and will pay out in the event of a claim or you lie to your Insurers and risk having your policy null and void in the hope that the Insurers don't discover the modifications.
> 
> There will be times that people genuinely don't know about modifications - the approach to this is explained here - http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/ombudsman-news/46/46_non_disclosure_insurance.htm
> 
> ...


The amount of cars i see with non oem tyres fitted, like sunnys federals acceleras etc, these clearly are not standard fit, so therefore a modification.
How many people declare budget tyres?

I still think its perfectly fine to fit different alloys that are oem and not tell your insurance, as i said, how on earth would you know if the car was second hand that the wheels were not fitted as new from factory?

I had to have my last car repaired through insurance before, i had the v6 TT alloys that had audi centre caps on them and the insurance didnt pay any attention and i had no problems, they didnt even notice the longlife exhaust or coilovers. I know that cant be applied to every insurance company though.

The vast range of alloys cars come with these days, how can an insurance company say which wheel is standard and which is not?


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## JwilliamsM (Dec 20, 2011)

by the way, for any BMW owners who want to find out their factory fitted options, type your last 7 digits of your VIN number in, it tells you all your options from new 

i know it works for ///M bmw's

http://www.rubmw.ru/vincode/eng/


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

Tyres are different, there is a manufacturer's specification that applies, not a specific make or model.

If you have 225/45/17 Z rated tyres and stretch on some 185/40/17 U rated tyres, then this could end you up in trouble if it is outside the manufacturer's specification range.

As i mentioned, small claims are a hit and miss affair as loss adjusters are rarely appointed. Even if they are, an insurer refusing to pay a £300 claim isn't the end of the world. But if you are involved in a fatality, your car goes off to a clean room for a nut & bolt police inspection. This is when you want your insurance to be in order.

It doesn't matter if the vast majority of cars come with alloys or not, it is a simple question of modification, if you have changed your wheels to a different set than it left the factory with, then you need to disclose it. You are asked a question, the answer is yes or no, if you chose to deliberately misrepresent the information or lie, then you are purchasing insurance by fraudulent means.

I "think" it is perfectly fine to drive at 80mph on a motorway, but that doesn't make it right. Even so, i am aware of the potential consequences of my actions and would never advise someone that it is OK to drive at 80mph and nothing will ever come of it.

All i can do is give facts on the insurance industry and how it works, including the potential consequences of not doing things right. It is up to an individual whether they choose to disclose modifications or not, but before they make that choice, they should be aware that potentially it could be a financially life crippling decision.


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## Captain Pugwash (Mar 23, 2011)

I can remember once the insurance wanted to load me as I had changed the brakes...not to anything uprated or anything like that, but when I mentioned the only thing I have done was change the brakes ...when I said but they are simple a replacement set of disc and pads from the local motor factors, they still said that was a modification and should get them from the dealer rather than a motor factor

needless to say I never went with them


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## CoOkIeMoNsTeR (Mar 6, 2011)

Shiny said:


> It depends on the wording of the question by the Insurers. Manufacturers options are normally fine, as the question normally asks if it has been modified from the manufacturer's original specification. Your car was built to a manufacturers specification by the manufacturer.
> 
> If it left the factory/showroom with 17's and you then fit 18's, they would need to be disclosed.
> 
> If in doubt, ask your Insurers to clarify what you need to disclose.


OK, quick question, my CLK has the dealer fit optional extra AMG alloys on it, the build code says it should have basic 16 inch ones because they were only on it from the build to the dealer, they were taken off by the supplying dealer and the AMG ones which were on the options list were fitted. So when the insurance company ask me 'are the wheels standard' what do I say? The car came from the factory with 16 inch wheels, but it left the showroom from day 1 with 17 inch AMG ones, which are genuine Mercedes options? Now of course this would be listed on the sales invoice, but what if I did not have a copy, the car is 13 years old and has had 3 previous owners, would you expect it to still have that invoice as proof? I would think it should be expected that in time the invoice will have been lost, so how could I prove they were fitted from new? I have the invoice with my car to show the wheels were paid for (£1478!!!) with the car, so would they be considered standard fit, or do I need to declare them? They are not currently fitted as they need a refurb, and the 16's on the car now are not the same set that came with it (dealer would have kept/disposed of them) but are the same style, so in which/any scenario would the car be considered 'modified?'

Also, my 407 now has cruise control fitted, but it didn't when it was new. It was a £330 optional extra, but the build data says it wasn't ticked, but the car has had the stalk installed and the cruise activated. It was like that when I got it, but reading the information on servicebox it says cruise was not fitted. Servicebox is only open to the trade and private individuals outside Peugeot do not have access to it, and as far as I was aware before I looked, the car was totally standard but what if it now is not considered standard in spite of cruise being a factory option? Regarding cruise, I can see the potential issue of me driving into the back of someone because the cruise wouldn't disengage (or some such hypothetical scenario) and the insurers saying that the car never had cruise from new and I didn't inform them , so I'd like to know where I stand.

I'd like the cars to be insured properly, as the Pug is a liability concern and the Merc is a mint, quite valuable car now and is laid up, and I'm not sure what would be covered should it be damaged or stolen (I know what is written on the policy, but in the event of a claim, how would the wheel situation affect things?) nor how I can account for having a random set of AMG alloys in the spare room.

Thanks


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## kh904 (Dec 18, 2006)

I've asked the same question before on this forum.

I just can't see it being practicable and reasonable to expect every car owner to know if their car has been modified (within reason) if they've bought it second hand. Especially when many owners now upgrade their cars, buying genuine dealer option parts from ebay (alloys, leather interior etc). 
For the average driver (who's not a car enthusiast) will genuinely believe that their car isn't modified.


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## Blueberry (Aug 10, 2007)

With the Internet it's easy to find out anything. You know what model you bought and trim level so 5 minutes spent doing a search will show what was OEM and what's extra on your car.


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## Deniance (Jun 28, 2008)

I hate insurers, nothings ever easy, youd think with the amount of money you give them that they would bend over backwards to help you, but no. A woman hit me in the lanes on way to work, rang insurance and they did not want to know, no witnesses no white lines no care!

then they wanted me to fit a tracker to one of my cars, guess what my insurance went up a fiver!, declared my oem wheels from usa another 50 quid!


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## HEADPHONES (Jan 1, 2008)

From my personal experience it seems more insurance friendly sticking to rims/modifications which were available as optional extras from manufacturer.

Many of the companies offering the best quotes for my Zed would not quote for aftermarket mods. However, when told that the bodykit was factory fit and that the 19's were genuine Nismo rims that were an optional extra I was accepted.
It's been the same story for the past 6 years every time I shop around come renewal.

This year I'm down to £195 fully comp with protected no claims with Swift who said they couldn't quote if the rims were aftermarket.


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## Welshquattro1 (Dec 6, 2013)

Blueberry said:


> With the Internet it's easy to find out anything. You know what model you bought and trim level so 5 minutes spent doing a search will show what was OEM and what's extra on your car.


So if I go by want you say then I have to tell them I have a lighting pack,chrome pack,sat nav,Bose sound system,leather seats,18's, window pack and not forgetting sline car mats!:wall:


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## Blueberry (Aug 10, 2007)

Welshquattro1 said:


> So if I go by want you say then I have to tell them I have a lighting pack,chrome pack,sat nav,Bose sound system,leather seats,18's, window pack and not forgetting sline car mats!:wall:


Didn't mean to thank you - anyway yes if you want to. They probably won't be too interested in those items apart from the Sat Nav and wheels possibly. As I said earlier always better to be up front then you are not leaving anything to chance come the time to make a claim. I have heard lots of stories of where the insurance company did not pay out because the car was not as described.

The choice is there for everyone, declare or not. You take the risk if you want.


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## CoOkIeMoNsTeR (Mar 6, 2011)

HEADPHONES said:


> From my personal experience it seems more insurance friendly sticking to rims/modifications which were available as optional extras from manufacturer.
> 
> Many of the companies offering the best quotes for my Zed would not quote for aftermarket mods. However, when told that the bodykit was factory fit and that the 19's were genuine Nismo rims that were an optional extra I was accepted.
> It's been the same story for the past 6 years every time I shop around come renewal.
> ...


So with the Merc, if I just said it has AMG alloys fitted from the factory options list, they shouldn't rape me too much? I have a copy of the 2001MY brochure for the CLK and the alloys are listed in there as optional extras and were fitted from new, so I would have considered the car to be standard as that is how it was ordered, there are no modifications from the sales invoice I have. To me, modified is like a remap, different sound system, aftermarket alloys, but to the lay person, one set on Mercedes alloys looks like the next set, I think I'll tell the insurers that it has AMG wheels fitted and argue the toss over the phone when I put the car back on the road in a few months time, I don't think my premium should increase, the car is still standard.

I rang the insurers about the Peugeot this morning to check they knew it had cruise, they were fine with it and didn't charge extra :thumb:


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## Richrush (Jun 25, 2012)

jayz_son said:


> thing is, if you have say a second hand audi tt with oem 17 inch wheels, and you change them for oem 18 inch wheels, how on earth would your insurance know 'you' changed them?
> you would tell your insurance company the alloys came with the car and as far as your concerned they are standard
> 
> otherwise you would be declaring different brand tyres as they are not 'standard'
> ...


You might get away with it for the wheels, as long as the manufacture fitted those wheels to the car in the first place, i.e. upgrade etc.

As for the re-map, I can tell you 100% you will not get away with that. I know someone who smashed there car up, the insurance company took the car away and found that the ecu had been mapped. He had not declared this when insuring the car and told them that it must have already been done. This went of for some months, went to court and he lost. It was found that it is of the owner's responsibility to know about the car and to declare any modifications. Harsh but that's how it is, otherwise we would all be doing it!


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## Dixondmn (Oct 12, 2007)

Rule of thumb.... Ignorance is no defence.
So if you should find your self in a bit of a pickle one day you will very quickly come unstuck by saying "I didn't know"


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## Shiny (Apr 23, 2007)

I'll post this link again, it describes the difference between deliberate, reckless, innocent and inadvertent non disclosure - http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/publications/ombudsman-news/46/46_non_disclosure_insurance.htm

There are a lot of questions in this thread now, i can only really say if you are unsure if you should disclose something or not, then i recommend that you disclose it and let your Insurers decide if it is a material fact. :thumb:


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