Future Classic Bike Insurance

What is a future classic motorbike?

A future classic motorbike is a motorcycle that, while not yet considered a classic, has the potential to become highly valued and sought after in the future. These bikes often possess unique features, design, performance, or historical significance that will make them stand out over time.

Future classics sit somewhere on the timeline between classic bikes, and more modern machines.

As a rough guide, future classics will probably have gone past the point of depreciation, and have actually started to increase in value. The bikes are probably a scarce sight on UK roads, may have begun to attract the attention of collectors - but also crowds of those in the know at the local bike meet.

Characteristics of future classics may include:

• Uniqueness
• Rarity
• Performance
• Design
• Historical significance

Think early R1’s, Honda's SP-1, or perhaps something with a story to tell like a Suzuki TL1000 widowmaker. Ground breaking bikes, unusual bikes, or bikes with unique histories as opposed to more mundane motorcycles. Machines that could be as much an investment as they are an interesting way of getting from A to B.

Some may even decide to split the class even further, into “modern classic” and “future classic” – with the former being a bike from the modern era having already ascended to classic status, whilst a “future classic” merely is seen to have the potential to be a classic at an indeterminate point in the future.

Insuring your future classic motorbike.

When it comes to finding the right insurance cover for your bike, a motorbike insurance broker may appear to offer (or at least advertise) a future classic bike insurance policy, but use the same quote process and offer the same insurance cover as you’d get on a standard motorcycle insurance policy.

Others will quite happily provide a competitive quote on your bike with no mention of future classic status (to the broker, your future classic could just be another bike that pops up on the database).

Whether your broker considers the bike to be a classic/future classic bike or not is maybe a bit of a moot point. What's most important is that you're getting the right cover, and will be adequately compensated should the worst happen.

If you do require cover that's more bespoke than a standard policy, always speak with your broker and read any policy documents very carefully to make sure you're getting the level of cover you expect.

Bikes that are considered future classics could actually qualify for a full-on classic bike policy with some brokers. Agreed values and salvage retention rights are often possible with this type of policy. Some brokers allow bikes into the "classic" umbrella when they reach just 15 years old.

It's important to note that irrespective of your bike's age or status, it can still be insured on a standard motorcycle insurance policy.

Will being a future classic make any difference to my quote?

Maybe not. Underwriters will know the market value of the bikes they are insuring. If you think your future classic is worth more than an average equivalent model for whatever reason, you'll need to speak with the broker to see if an agreed value can be applied - although this is typically something applied to classic bike insurance policies rather than future classics.

In the same way insurers segment their business into separate classes of motorbike (adventure bike, superbike, commuter bike, learner bike etc), the phrase “future classic bike” is perhaps more of a marketing tool than an insurance one when seen through the bike broker's lens.

It’s an issue of semantics rather than insurance. Your quote will be determined by the same risk attribution model and calculations (based on your individual circumstances) that are applied to any other bike.

This trend for segmentation has amplified in recent times. Brokers who appear on the top of page 1 in Google have a huge advantage over their competition. And because bikers search for different phrases when looking for a motorbike quote, brokers seek to capitalise on this and try to appear on as many of the more popular search terms as they can.

Just as “adventure bike insurance” is a keyword which has seen an increase in searches over the last few years, so too is “future classic bike insurance”. Brokers respond by turning their lead generation efforts towards this, and could just be increasing reach rather than offering a unique or bespoke product for future classic motorcycles.

As all brokers differ on their definition of future, modern, classic or vintage bikes, it can pay to check with them directly. If you are only interested in achieving the lowest price insurance for your future classic, don’t care about how the bike is classified and aren’t looking for benefits associated with full on classic bike policies, simply compare insurance for your future classic using a comparison service.

After all, if you have a bike that you consider to be a future classic, but isn’t necessarily worth any more than the market value for a bike of its age, then classification is a matter of little consequence.