[Mikeyboy]

I took delivery of my EQA 350 4matic AMG Line 3 weeks ago, having chopped in my A250e, which had been insured with Direct Line, who charged me an extra £10 to change to the EQA until expiry next month. I received a letter from Direct Line this morning saying that they're not going to offer renewal, despite the fact we have 20+ years' NCB (although they only register their maximum which is 9+ years) and have another car plus our house insurance with them! I called the number on the letter to be told that their underwriters "do not have an appetite" for this model of car although they are happy to continue insuring our Skoda Kodiaq L&K 4x4 which is bigger and faster! Has anyone else come across this ridiculous situation? I obtained a quote this afternoon from Admiral (for both cars plus the house / contents) and the EQA was only 73% of the premium for the Skoda. Has anyone else come across this ridiculous situation?

 

[Mikeyboy]

Follow up - I have contacts in the company and got this answer:
Quote
We cover the vast majority of cars including electric but sadly not your model of Mercedes. The reason for this is that sadly there have been some issues where if there has been a slight bump the whole battery needs replacing. I hope that you do not suffer this issue. The issue is under review but appreciate that it does not help at present.
Unquote
I can't say that I am happy to read this at all sorts of levels! Has anyone heard of this problem - is it specific to the 4matic or EQA range as a whole?

 

[PP1984]

Try Admiral. I am an EQV owner. I used to be with Aviva but they refused to insure the EQV (there was not enough data on the vehicle). Mercedes suggested their own insurer which required a tracker (although the car can be tracked through the Mercedes system) and was quite expensive. When I tried to install swivel seats the insurer refused to insure the car (beats me as they were TUV approved but never mind). So we found Admiral which was half the price and no bother at all. With regard to the reliability. I am sorry to say that I had a few problems already (cable does not work and waiting for replacement, a fuse (?) blew up the other day etc. I hope this helps.

 

[Mikeyboy]

Thanks, I have moved my whole insurance portfolio from Direct Line to Admiral (2 cars, house / contents and pet) which worked out slightly more than it had been with Direct Line but no problems with the EQA. I am still confused as to why Direct Line won't insure my EQA350 4matic - my local MB dealer had not heard of this being a problem and was surprised because the most common insurer for MB cars is Direct Line / Churchill (i.e. UK Insurance Ltd.) in their experience!

 

[Bedfordblue]

I had similar with Quote Me Happy in December whom I had been insured with for quite a while. Reason being slightly different in that they wouldn’t insure it only due to them having a £70k cap on list price.
Admiral where by far the cheapest but there were a surprising number who simply wouldn’t insure an EQC.

 

[FDR]

Direct Line renewed my EQA 300 4matic insurance last week without any problems.

 

[panos]

Direct Line renewed my EQA 300 4matic insurance last week without any problems.

It has to do with the specific model and for some electric cars insurers do not have enough data to calculate the risk. The industry has poor understanding about the technology (especially how the car battery works) and the numbers are not there yet to motivate insurers. In theory electric cars should be of lower risk for several reasons and eventually (self driving bots) there should be no need for expensive insurance. Hopefully things will get better in 3-5 years time.