Pay as you go
New cost-per-mile insurance launched
Insurance firm MCE have devised a new scheme where you only pay for the miles you ride. Called Subscribe & Ride, you pay an initial set-up fee of £25 and then a monthly subscription of £5. Distance travelled is tracked using a device called a Milemate, which is about the size of a 50p and talks to an app on your phone. There’s then a small additional cost per mile ridden.
‘We know it’s different and people might be afraid to try it but all I’ll say is, get yourself a quote,’ says MCE’S Alan Atkins. ‘The team have been working incredibly hard over the last few months to create something the likes of which no one has seen before, an insurance product that gives flexibility, great prices and customer led control.’
We did a survey on Bike’s social media and 58% of you said you’d be interested in a pay-per-mile policy. Andrew Davies is a 61-year-old rider from the Isle of Wight who owns a Honda VFR750, BMW R1200C and Yamaha GTS1000 – yes, great mix of bikes – and his low annual mileages sometimes make it hard to justify his insurance cost, so the scheme has appeal. ‘One of them will have done 2000 miles, one will have done 1000 and the last will have done about 200. You end up thinking, is it really worth it?’ he told Bike. ‘If I could pay, I don't know, 50p a mile and not have to worry about anything else then it’s all good to go. It comes down to cost at the end of the day.’ MCE made headlines in 2022 after underwriters MCE Insurance Company Limited fell into administration. To avoid befuddlement, the UK broker was unaffected by this and so can continue to arrange cover with a different underwriter. Phew.