Salvage Retention
One of the most important features of our VW car and campervan insurance policies is the option to retain your vehicle should the worst happen.
Salvage retention is offered within our car insurance cover (although it’s dependent on policy) and it doesn’t cost you a penny more. Salvage retention with Just Kampers Insurance allows you to buy back your car should it be deemed uneconomical to repair.*
* Subject to policy selection
How does salvage retention from Just Kampers Insurance work?
Salvage retention allows a vehicle owner to retain their car after it has sustained damage from an accident. This typically occurs once a vehicle has been written-off by an insurer. If the owner chooses to take the car back, the value of the salvage of the car is deducted from the insurance pay-out.
Different categories of insurance write–offs mean different things for salvage retention. There are four distinct kinds of write-off categories, and Just Kampers Insurance salvage retention allows you to retain any Category S, N and the usable parts from Category B. We explain each category below.
The different categories of insurance write-off
Prior to 1st October 2017, write-off categories were A, B, C, and D, with A being the most severe and requiring full scrap, and D being smaller repairs that may not be initially economical.
Now the categories, as set by the ABI Salvage Code, are as follows:
- Category A:
This describes a complete write–off and the vehicle must be crushed. A category A car will never appear on the road again.
- Category B:
The body of the car should be crushed, but parts of the car can be salvageable. Reclaimed parts can be used in other cars, but the car itself will never appear on the road again.
- Category S (formerly C):
The car has suffered structural damage that requires professional repair, but it may appear on the road again in its original form. It won’t be able to be put back on the road until repairs are complete.
- Category N (formerly D):
Vehicles in category N haven’t sustained structural damage, but instead the damage may be cosmetic or electrical. It will need repairs to make it as new, but some Category N’s can be driven, although this is not common.
Why Use Just Kampers For Cat D & N Car Insurance?
Regardless of the category classification, as long as the vehicle is road-worthy, Just Kampers Insurance will be able to provide you with a competitive quote.
- New or classic vehicles covered
- Covered against malicious damage, fire and theft
- Agreed values and salvage retention
- Dedicated UK Call Centre Specialists
- Up to £100,000 of Legal cover
- Modifications cover
Why Choose Just Kampers Insurance?
We offer a range of policy choices and additions designed to suit a range of needs, from Agreed Value cover that protects the true value of your vehicle, to short-term temporary insurance.
Get 10% off all parts and accessories at our sister company justkampers.com
A friendly team, there if you need assistance
Salvage Retention FAQs
We cover some of the most popular FAQs around salvage retention and how they affect your policy and claims.
How does my agreed value policy affect salvage retention?
If you have chosen an agreed value policy add-on for your car, this will be the value paid out in case of a write–off, but also the one deducted from your pay-out in case of salvage retention.
Rather than using market value, Just Kampers Insurance will use your agreed value to calculate the salvage retention cost. Get in touch with our team if you wish to add agreed value to your policy.
How will the category of my car be chosen?
When damage is sustained to a car, a claims handler will oversee the process. They send out an approved engineer to review the car, who looks at the damage and looks at the repair cost of that, before comparing it to the value, either agreed or market, of the scrap of the car.
If you would like to talk to our team about Salvage Retention, please call 01256 444546 or use our web call-back service, and we will call you back at a time that suits you.
Does Cat C affect insurance?
Category C write-offs are vehicles that suffered structural damage and are not deemed roadworthy anymore. These can be repaired, and as long as they pass a valid MOT and get the all-clear, they can be insured again.
This may come at a premium, as some insurers don’t cover write-offs.
Does Cat D affect insurance?
Category D write-offs are vehicles that have suffered damages worth more than 50% of the vehicle value and are therefore considered not cost-effective to repair. If they are repaired and they pass a valid MOT, they can be insured again.
This may come at a premium, as some insurers don’t cover write-offs.
Does Cat U affect insurance?
Category U cars are what are known as “unrecorded insurance write-offs”. This happens when the vehicle was involved in an accident of some sort but the damage wasn’t reported to the insurance company.
This may come at a premium, as some insurers don’t cover write-offs.
Does Cat N affect insurance?
A Category N write-off is the same as a Category D write-off. It was updated by the DVLA recently.
Category N write-offs are vehicles that have suffered damages worth more than 50% of the vehicle value and are considered not cost-effective to repair. If they are repaired and they pass a valid MOT, they can be insured again.
This may come at a premium, as some insurers don’t cover write-offs.
Are Cat N cars more expensive to insure?
Some insurers don’t cover vehicles which has been written off before, so it might come at a premium as it will narrow who can insure it.
Are Cat S cars more expensive to insure
Some insurers don’t cover vehicles which has been written off before, so it might come at a premium as it will narrow who can insure it.