Thanks to sjw for recommending Brentacre. Just had a good chat with them and I liked the cut of their jib. So you can add cosmetic mods at anytime for no charge. They are enthusiasts so know what you are talking about which really helps and saves misunderstandings. No compulsory excess. Not the cheapest but cheaper than my renewal. I will probably go with them.
Glad to hear your experience matched mine. I could have renewed cheaper with Admiral this year, but they are a pain in the arse to deal with on the phone. Brentacre, like you say, are enthusiasts and quite enjoy having a chat about your car. Plus, with the exception of once when I phoned them at a lunch time, they've picked up the phone within 5 minutes, so not long on hold at all listening to their campervan message!
Should note as well that they count things like lowering the car etc as cosmetic mods, as far as I can tell. If it doesn't add power, it's free to add to your policy. And in the event of a claim they will
replace the mods like-for-like, rather than other companies which will give you the standard part
or try and use the mods to get out of paying! I know I said this earlier in the thread but thought I'd reiterate. The like-for-like policy is the reason they give for being slightly more expensive than some of the larger brands, but by more expensive, I'm talking <£50 in my experience. That is good enough for me to know that any mods I make will be covered.
The only downside to them that I've found (never had to make a claim, so can't comment on that) is that there are some cars that, in my case, they just flat out would not insure me on until I'd had the car at least a year, I think it was. This, I was told, included "high-power RWD cars and anything with a BMW badge". I asked about an M2 Comp and the guy basically implied that it wasn't even worth his time to check in the system, he knew it would come back no.
