Car insurance FAQs

When buying car insurance there are a number of important factors to watch out for. The first of these is how your premiums are set. Insurance companies set premiums based on various different factors.

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Different insurance companies regard some things as more important than others so it always pays to shop around. Examples of the types of things that insurance companies look at include the following:

Your age
How experienced a driver you are
Your postcode
The age and power of your car
How long you have had your own insurance policy
Your profession
Your claims history
Whether you have any advanced driving qualifications
Whether your car is kept on a public road or is garaged

Another key factor that has an impact on your insurance premiums is the ‘No Claims Discount’. The ‘No Claims Discount’ is a discount to your regular premiums that builds up over time if you do not make any claims.

The discount you receive can vary from 30-60% of your annual premium, so clearly it is worth driving carefully! It is also possible to have a ‘Protected No Claims Discount’; this is done by paying a small additional premium which allows you to make a certain number and/or value of claims in a given period without adversely affecting your ‘No Claims Discount’.

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When comparing car insurance polices you should also take the excess into account. The excess is the amount that you have to pay if you have to make an insurance claim after an accident. The size of the excess will vary from policy to policy, and could have an impact on your insurance premiums.

The smaller the excess, the higher the insurance premium is likely to be as you are therefore more likely to claim for smaller bumps and shunts that might otherwise fall within the excess.

Uninsured Loss Recovery (ULR) is an important part of your insurance protection. ULR is the legal service that claims back some or all of any expenses you have incurred as a result of an accident from the other parties/insurers responsible/liable. These could include your excess or the cost of claiming repair costs from someone who has no car insurance.

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