Dealers still have a long way to go to exploit the oportunities provided by GAP insurance, according to research that shows that in the past year motorists have faced a collective insurance pay-out shortfall of £619 million for written off or stolen cars.
According to research by GAP insurance provider Mapfre Abraxas one in five adults (22%) who have had their car vandalised or had an accident that caused damage to it in the past year had their car written off.
And of all car owners who had their car written off or stolen in the past 12 months, one in five (20%) still had some years remaining on a finance or contract hire agreement.
84% of those who suffered a write-off or had their car stolen didn’t have GAP insurance at the time and were left to pick up an unexpected bill as a result, in many cases totalling several thousands of pounds.
Of those who have suffered a write-off or stolen car in the past year, more than twice as many would recommend GAP insurance to a friend as those who wouldn’t, according to the findings.
Nancy Rignall, head of Mapfre Abraxas, said: “Our research shows that unfortunately the vast majority of people who have suffered a write-off or had their car stolen didn’t have GAP insurance. However, after suffering an incident of this nature they are much more likely to recommend GAP to a friend than not.
“There is still a lot of work to do to persuade people of the value of GAP, but by providing clear, transparent and easy-to-use products, we believe there is room to achieve much greater penetration into the car buying population.”
Author
Jeremy Bennett
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