Okape, well I bought an ’88 Bros a while back for €700. Needed some work, wasn’t unwilling to have that work done since most similar ones I see are twice that price in better condition so I didn’t mind too much.

Turns out that the bike’s a lemon. Total write-off. I asked my mechanic to change the chains and sprockets and he ended up finding out that there was something wrong with a gear shaft – something to do with splines. Plus some other problems, he claimed it would cost €2,500 to fix everything, so that’s that.

Here’s my problem: I’ve paid off the insurance already.

What I need now is procedural advice. Obviously, the bike is scrap, and the mechanic advised I cancel my insurance and get a refund of the outstanding time.

Other people have told me never to cancel insurance because that will handicap me in future applications, despite the fact that I have paid in full and can prove it.

So like what? What should I do? Let the insurance run out and not renew? Or can I cancel just fine and dandy, like the mechanic said?

Oh, and if you see a man named Robbie Hand (or his brother Derek for that matter) selling a bike, do not buy it from him. It’s my fault for being stupid enough to buy it from him, but he sold it to me knowing these issues were outstanding, being a “mechanic” himself.