Car insurance exists to protect you financially in the event of an accident, whether or not it is your fault. You must factor-in car insurance as part of your motoring expenses. If you have an accident in your car, you will be glad that you invested in good car insurance for the financial protection that this will give you.
Unfortunately, not all policies will cover damage to your car, or protect you against liability, legal fees or property damage. Bolt-on niche insurance products such as inconvenience cover, gap insurance and even legal protection insurance can prove to be invaluable additions to your comprehensive car insurance to ensure an accident does not end up costing you more than you can afford should the worst happen.
Choosing the right car insurance will protect not only you, but your vehicle, and third parties in the long run. If you want to drive a vehicle in the UK, you must prove that you have a valid car insurance policy. The type of car insurance cover that you choose will determine the level of protection that your insurance company will give you.
WHY YOU SHOULD SHOP AROUND FOR NEW CAR INSURANCE
Shopping around for car insurance is very important for several reasons:
• You may find better quotes
• Effects of car depreciation
• Your personal circumstances may be different
• Financing could place your car in a greater risk banding
• It may be possible for an insurer to cover the loss of certain personal effects
• A different insurer may include breadown cover in your policy
• Some insurers may offer you legal cover included in your policy
• It may be possible for an insurer to also cover a second car
• You may be offered an introductory discount
Just because you have used the same insurance company or insurance broker for several years, does not mean you are getting the best deal. It really only means just that - you have used the same insurance company or insurance broker for the past several years.
An insurance broker already familiar with your demands and needs from your insurance history will probably be in a position to get you the best deal. This is also the case with car insurance as they can often consolidate your insurance needs into an all inclusive package which most insurance companies only make available to brokers.
Your car will depreciate in value according to both age and usage. Car depreciation starts as soon as you drive it away from the car dealership. The value of your car will decrease every year. You should insure accordingly by getting the same coverage at a lower price. This is logical but often people can overlook the obvious. For this reason you should make sure that you have your assumed car’s value checked against its current blue book value as opposed to against the purchase price. This is because even fully comprehensive policies will only cover a vehicle to its blue book value rather than it’s purchase price. So make sure that that is what you declare the car’s value to be. The more expensive a car is the more it can cost to insure. It’s possible that your insurance company may offer you a like-for-like replacement after an accident - but this is uncommon. There is however an insurance product called Vehicle Replacement Insurance which does just that! Click on the link to find out how it works in more detail.
Your personal circumstances may be different that at your last renewal. Perhaps you do not drive as far or often as you did, or perhaps your children have grown and want the keys to the car. Allow your insurance policy to reflect these changes by renewing accordingly. You can get a significant discount from your insurer if you are a low mileage driverYou can add additional drivers to your policy for relatively little expense, especially if you wait until it’s time to renew. Adding additional drivers mid-year often incurs administration fees which could be avoided if done at inception or renewal time.
WHICH LEVEL OF CAR INSURANCE IS THE BEST CHOICE?
There are three different types of cover available in the UK.
1. In many countries including the UK, Third Party Insurance is mandatory. If you are involved in an accident, this type of cover will protect you financially against damage to the other vehicle or its occupants. This type of insurance covers your liabilities in the event of damage to another vehicle or person in an accident. The insured is not protected against bodily injury or damage to their own vehicle with this type of policy. There is no reimbursement of repair costs with this type of insurance.
2. Third Party, Fire and Theft Insurance will cover the benefits of third party insurance and includes any financial loss to the insured vehicle caused by fire or theft. This type of cover can offer the best value for a policyholder if the car does not have a high market value. A leased or financed vehicle will require a fully comprehensive insurance cover.
3. A Fully Comprehensive policy will give you the widest range of cover.It provides the basic insurance of third party, fire and theft and covers damage to the insured vehicle and any bodily injury suffered by the policyholder in an auto accident. If the vehicle value is higher than the insured can afford to pay to replace it, then fully comprehensive is the preferred choice. There are specialised insurance products like Finance Gap or Vehicle Replacement Gap which can top up the gap between what your insurance company will pay out and the cost of getting a new car - you can find out more online by doing a simple search.
There are lots of factors affecting car insurance and most insurers offer secondary products which can meet any specialised needs of the policyholder.
FACTORS AFFECTING CAR INSURANCE
1. The Policyholder
• Age of the policyholder
• Gender of the policyholder
• Marital status
• Your postcode is a factor
• Engine and car size
• How much your car will cost to replace
• Any modifications that have been made to the vehicle by its owner
A younger less experienced driver will pay a higher insurance premium than someone with several years driving experience.
A married personis considered more responsible for their actions than a person is with no commitments. It stands to reason that married men with kids have more responsibilities than single men and the insurance companies therefore consider married men a lower risk category.
Where a person lives also affects the insurance cost. Rural areas that have less traffic and areas with a lower crime rate will mostly likely get a better premium than towns or high crime areas.
A powerful car is more likely to lose control at the hands of younger drivers: expensive cars cost a lot to replace if scrapped and should they simply require repairs the sum of the replacement parts often costs more than the used car’s value, making more powerful cars very expensive to ensure.
Modifications are more likely to alter the vehicles safety; performance is improved, and handling may be compromised making the vehicle more unpredictable. These factors translate to increased risk for insurance purposes, and premiums will increase as a result.
2. Driver History
• Years of driving experience
• Previous claims
• Driving convictions
• Annual mileage
The number of years a person has been driving suggests their understanding of the rules of the road, shows the driver has built up experience of driving under varied driving conditions and has attained a certain level of confidence while behind the wheel. Certain assumptions and associated levels of risk are made according to the number of claims made in the previous five years. Most driving convictions negatively affect motor insurance premiums for drivers. Parking offenses do not push up your premiums unless you incurred points.
Annual mileage is a factor too. The more a vehicle is on the road, the higher the risk for an accident.
3. Vehicle History
• Current vehicle value
• Is the car owned, leased or financed
• Car make and model
• Engine size and performance
• Modifications to the vehicle
If the vehicle has a low book value, it may not seem to be cost effective to pay for comprehensive insurance; however this is not necessarily the case. Often as the named driver with many years of no claims under the belt, fully comprehensive motor insurance could cost no more than third party insurance, but with additional perks. Many on-line insurance buyers find that for just a small premium increase, many additional benefits can be included. It is mandatory for a leased or financed vehicles to have fully comprehensive insurance. You need to be able to reimburse the leasing or finance company for any damage to the car. This will be covered if you have fully comprehensive insurance.
There may be other benefits included in your car insurance policy, which are not always necessary but sometimes advisable:
• Breakdown insurance
• Courtesy vehicle
• Roadside and/or breakdown insurance cover
• Help with legal fees and advice
• Windscreen replacement
• No Claims protection
• Compulsory or voluntary deductible amount
Choosing the correct insurance and getting the best quote can be daunting as there are so many variables to consider. Good websites make it easy to get quotes with little aggravation. A good place to start is on an insurance aggregator website. Aggregator websites are easy to use. They will search the insurance market for you and show you the products which best match you needs based on the answers to some initial questions. Once they have collected all the quotes, you will be able to compare insurance policies against each other, save and email your quote to your personal email address, go back and change your options to include or reduce the benefits you may be considering and - when you’re happy - buy on-line. Before you commit to a purchase it’s a good idea to first tell your broker the results of your search to see if he can get you a better deal. When comparing quotes on-line, remember to do so on a like-for-like basis. This may not always be as simple as you at first think. Good luck on finding your ideal car insurance.