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Boomerang tracker vs insurance vs dealership

6K views 19 replies 7 participants last post by  Evlengr 
#1 ·
OK, so my car has arrived, and it will be ready for pickup this Thursday (Montreal, Canada).

I called my insurance to get a quote. They said $2,200 without Boomerang, $1,500 with it. They said the dealership may install it.

I called the dealership, and they said BMW forbids the Boomerang location tracker installation, and it may void my warranty. They said insurance companies usually accept engraving as being "as good as" the Boomerang.

Called back the insurance company, and they said without Boomerang, my price would now be $2,600/year. !?!? And they're completely confused as to the dealership's claims, and they refuse to accept Sherlock engraving as being equivalent to the Boomerang.

Anyone have a similar experience? What was your outcome?
 
#3 · (Edited)
What's Boomerang?
Can you...er...lie?
It's a device that is installed in a secret location in your car (even you don't know where). You can't turn it off, and it transmits your location when the police request it. It can be used to recover your car if stolen (or presumably whenever the police desire to track you).

The insurance companies usually say it's mandatory to install it (ie: they won't insure you without it), or if they do insure you, they will charge a ridiculous premium. In my case, they're asking for an extra $1,100 -per year-.

The device costs $500 to install, and $200/year for their "service".

http://www.boomerangtracking.com

But my negative feelings towards this device don't matter. I'm just wondering if anyone else has had an issue with BMW claiming to void your warranty if you do install it, vs the insurance company requiring you to have one.

You can't lie, the insurance company asks for a contract # to prove the device is active. Privacy is long dead.
 
#4 ·
Oh man! That is pretty awful. We have something like that called lojack. But I've never heard of an insurance company requiring someone to have it installed. Is this the case with all insurance companies up there? If not, I'd switch companies.

Wouldn't BMW Assist fulfill the requirements of a tracking system?
 
#5 ·
They seem to be related. I'll try shopping around tomorrow, but I've heard that all/most companies ask for it.

I asked about BMW Assist, and they don't consider it sufficient.

At $2,600/year, I'm tempted to just decline theft coverage and simply "self insure".

Any stats on how often recent BMW cars are stolen? Have thieves been able to bypass all that new anti-theft gadgetry?

<sigh>
 
#7 ·
Man, shop around! They're squeezing you for money. Get a letter from the dealer stating the boomerang will violate your warranty, and call other places for insurance!
It takes considerable technology to steal a modern BMW. Anyone who can steal one can also disable boomerang or OnStar/BMWassist. Honestly I don't consider theft as a danger to my older BMW. Vandalism is much more of a concern for me.

My total insurance is $3k/yr. Your theft premium should NOT be nearly that high, no matter how new the car is. Maybe if it's a easy to steal car...
 
#8 ·
Now why would you this Boomerang thing? You already have one with BMW. In fact all new vehicles built after 2006 model year have tracking devices and remote turnoff that can be used by the police.
Sounds to me like the insurance company is in the pocket of the boomerang manufacturer. The only thing that is boomeranging is your money. Right into the manufacturer's pocket. LOL :mad:
 
#10 ·
This is the kind of thing I would call the insurance commissioner in our state.

I had an insurance company try to charge me more under the premise that my car was red and people with red cars have more speeding tickets and accidents.

I informed the ins comm. The company was cited and fined.
 
#11 ·
And you haven't had any speeding tickets or accidents either!:rofl: Of course, when I drive on the freeway the cars I see most often pulled over are --- Red!:thumbup: This boomarang thing intrigues me, it must be a Canadian deal as I have never heard of it here. LoJack for sure, but most accomplished thieves can disable that before they stick your bimmer unto a container for shipment overseas. Be careful about "self insure" you may want to just get a higher deductable or find a different company. This is just for theft right, and not the liability/collision coverage?:dunno:
 
#12 · (Edited)
All's well that ends well

Update: Had a long discussion with my insurance company, with whom I had always been satisfied prior to this episode. They wouldn't budge. It's either I get the Boomerang (LoJack) or I pay an extra $1,100 per year.

Thank goodness for capitalism/free market competition:

By total fluke, I got junk mail from a big insurer today (BelairDirect) encouraging me to apply for a quote. So I did. Wow, they don't care about the Boomerang at all, and they're saving me $400+$200/year over the other company's best price! (that's $1500 savings per year over the other company's non-Lojack price).

So, I'll now be paying under $1200/year for $2 million of coverage, with free car rental if my car is stolen, plus I get full price (no depreciation) if the car is totaled the first 4 years. And no need to pay $500 to install Lojack or $200/year to maintain it.

If anyone else from Canada runs into this problem, know that there is a solution.
 
#13 ·
Update: Had a long discussion with my insurance company, with whom I had always been satisfied prior to this episode. They wouldn't budge. It's either I get the Boomerang (LoJack) or I pay and extra $1,100 per year.

Thank goodness for capitalism/free market competition:

By total fluke, I got junk mail from a big insurer today (BelairDirect) encouraging me to apply for a quote. So I did. Wow, they don't care about the Boomerang at all, and they're saving me $400+$200/year over the other company's best price! (that's $1500 savings per year over the other company's non-Lojack price).

So, I'll now be paying under $1200/year for $2 million of coverage, with free car rental if my car is stolen, plus I get full price (no depreciation) if the car is totaled the first 4 years. And no need to pay $500 to install Lojack or $200/year to maintain it.

If anyone else from Canada runs into this problem, know that there is a solution.
Woohoo! Score one for the good guys! Too bad you don't have the same options for health insurance. :p
 
#14 ·
You should make sure to pass that on to your dealer. Let the insurance company know that you have done so as well.
 
#18 ·
My total insurance is $3k/yr.
Ouch. Really? And I was stunned at the $2,600/yr I was asked for. I now got it down to under $1,200/yr total. Another company (TD Financial) offered me $600/yr, but I declined it because I wanted a bunch of extras which they didn't have. So the extra million $ in coverage, "new value for 4 years", rental car, etc. got the price up to $1,200.

pass that on to your dealer. Let the insurance company know
I told them I was leaving, and I told the dealer too. I just don't get it, I have lots of other accounts with them, so their inflexibility surprised me.

I hope other people from Montreal Canada chime in with their experiences.
 
#20 ·
Wow, you guys get reamed on insurance. We have full coverage on my 08 X3 and my wife's 10 MCS and we pay about $1,500/yr.

And we live outside of Washington DC some of the most congested driving in the US.
 
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