Reduce your excess by 50% with a Ride Forever course

19 December 2018

Ride Forever is a great initiative from ACC to give motorcycle riders access to cost-effective training to stay safe and make better choices on the roads. So far, around 16,000 riders have completed at least one Ride Forever course resulting in a 27% reduction in crashes and the associated claims costs reducing by 45%.

Fewer crashes with less severe consequences for the riders.

This phenomenal result is the reason why we recommend that our Star Motorcycle customers take a Ride Forever course. We’ll even sweeten the deal for you...

Take a Ride Forever course and reduce your excess

Any Star Motorcycle policyholder that completes one of the Ride Forever courses and subsequently needs to make a claim for accident damage in the following 12 months, will receive a 50% reduction in their excess.

Enrol here: https://www.rideforever.co.nz/coaching/on-road-coaching/

Let’s take a closer look at the formation and growth of this exciting initiative that is saving lives.

Why did ACC launch Ride Forever?
Motorcycling increased significantly in popularity from the early 2000s, and with it came the increased costs in claims from $47m in 2005/6 to $71m in 2008/9. This prompted a review into what could be done as conventional safety approaches, messaging and education weren’t effective.  

ACC started the Ride Forever initiative in 2008 with an informative website and a regular presence at motorcycle events to build credibility and engagement at a grassroots level. The Ride Forever brand grew steadily until 2013 when the programme expanded significantly with certified nationwide rider coaching.

NZTA-accredited national training programme
With contributions from many experts and a lot of hard work, a certified training syllabus was developed and appropriate providers were selected to deliver it. Ride Forever coaching became a global first, and is still the only nationally available, certified advanced rider training programme in the world.

Launching with Bronze, Silver and Gold level courses, and national coverage from three training organisations, the cost to riders for these eight-hour courses was a mere $20 or $50 to their provider. ACC funded the remaining $249 per person.  

Scaling at speed
In its first year, just over 1,000 riders took Ride Forever courses, and every year since, this number has almost doubled.

A fourth course–Urban/Scooter–was soon added and provider numbers doubled to six in 2016. Another three providers were added in 2018, including the AA.

Ride Forever is on track to deliver 10,000 riders through its courses in 2018/19 and 2019/20, which will take the total riders trained to over 35,000.

Has Ride Forever worked?
In a word, yes. Riding a motorcycle takes skill and confidence. If either is lacking, high-quality coaching has been proven to address any shortcomings. Sound data about benefits of advanced training has been hard to find. But in another world-first, the Ride Forever programme has been tested through ACC’s robust statistics system, and compared against like-for-like sample groups.

The great news is that those who undertake Ride Forever coaching are 27% less likely to submit an ACC claim than those who don’t.

ACC’s significant investment in Ride Forever coaching courses over the years has driven incredibly positive outcomes for motorcycle riders across New Zealand. Star Insurance Specialists is proud to be associated with ACC’s Ride Forever programme. Visit Ride Forever’s site at https://www.rideforever.co.nz/coaching/on-road-coaching/ to enrol in a course nesar ypu and take advantage of our reduced excess offer.