I was on a group Croissants and Coffee call with a great bunch of people hosted by Tim Seymour, of Profit First Professionals recently, and James Langridge advanced the proposition that he could have easily covered every Insurance claim he’d had, or was likely to have, by saving instead of paying premium.
For some, in fact, for a lot, of people, this is no doubt true.
But do you want to?
A senior couple I insured a few years back on a big world trip lost their way slightly in Dubai airport, arrived at their gate a little slower, sat down, waited, got in line for boarding only to be told their plane had been the previous flight to leave that gate.
The result? Two fresh tickets and £1,500 on the credit card.
Unaffordable? No. But the ideal way to start a holiday?
A quick call from their destination and we were able to assure them it would be paid, on their return, by their Insurer.
Any buyer’s remorse over the cost of the policy slipped away and they carried on with their dream trip with lighter hearts.
Which? Magazine today have published an article (link in comments) on whether self insurance makes sense.
DENTAL INSURANCE
Save up for Dental work? Makes sense, according to Which?. Even with quite a bit of work and regular treatment and scan every year, they’d come out roughly even. With average levels of work, you might save £1,000 in ten years.
BREAKDOWN
Breakdown cover? Yes, given the reliability of most cars these days over you’d need to have more than 5 call outs in 10 years to get close to breaking even according to their figures.
PET INSURANCE
Some pets cost a lot of money in Vet’s bills. A doggie hip replacement can cost £9,000, which would blow out any savings on cover – but the average best friend will fall under the premiums paid over a 10 year period.
However, Which? warns that though savings can be made on House, Car (taking Third Party, not Comprehensive for example) or Travel cover, they are essentially gambles that you may not be afford to lose.
A house fire, however unlikely; a single vehicle accident that damages your car beyond economic repair, or a serious illness whilst on a trip can be very serious for long term financial health, rather than an irritating drain on your savings.
The link to the Which? article is here
https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/is-cutting-insurance-to-save-money-ever-a-good-idea-ayplT9C5wKrm