Insurance FAQ

This section will be updated as necessary:

Do I need Insurance

Yes if you live in live withing the European Union (Including the UK), the minumum insurance requirement is Third Party Only

What are the levels of insurance available

• Fully Comprehensive, this covers your vehicle, and any third party whome you have an accident with. These policies often allow you third party cover on any other insured cars which do not belong to you. Please check your documentation though before you drive somebody elses vehicle. Fully comprehensive policies are often the most expensive insurance option.
  
• Third Party Fire and Theft (TPFT). This cover does not ensure your vehicle against accident damage where you were fully or partly to blame. The third party will be coverd for any damage you have done to their vehicle (or person) provided you were at fault. Third Party Fire and Theft will also cover your vehicle in the event of accidental fire, and in the case that your vehicle has been stolen. Some policies may have an annexed contents and glass protection policy, which may be part of the total cover or available at an extra cost.
• Third Party Only. There is no cover for your vehicle, cover is extended only to the third party in an accident where you were fully or partly to blame. This is the mimumum amount of cover you are allowed in the UK and most of europe. This is often the cheapest option. Bare in mind that you may be restricted to using your vehicle only in the mainland of England Wales and Scotland with this policy.

Bare in mind that if you're covered by a third party policy and the accident was not your fault the repairs to your vehicle will be covered by the other persons insurance (providing they have any)

What affects the price of my insurance

The price of your premium is calculated using a risk rating. The higher the risk you are considered to be, the more your insurance premium is going to be. Here are a few factors that are taken into consideration:

• Your gender, males tend to be higher risk
• Your age
• Length of time you've held a full license
• Aproximate anual mileage
• Your post code's crime rating
• Where you keep the car overnight
• The type of use of your car (i.e. do you commute to work or just drive on weekends)
  
• The number of doors/seats in your car
• Vehicle insurance group rating
• Vehicle safety rating (related to the grouping above)
• The value of your vehicle
• The engine size and power of your vehicle
• The type of vehilce e.g. sports car, MPV, cabriolet etc...
• Pass Plus and Driving Qualifications (e.g. IAM)
• Modifications

Remember that each of the above will effect your premium and excess amounts. You should insure all modifications you make to your car, and if you're not sure something counts, contact your insurer. As a basic rule, anything that makes your car more appealing to a thief (i.e. makes the car look more sporty etc...) or increases the power the engine can produce will be seen by the insurance companies as a modification. Don't take the chance of having your insurance withdrawn because you haven't declared your cars modifications.

Yes, there are a number of insurers who offer short term car insurance, from one day up to six months.

Example of such insurers:

• http://www.dayinsure.co.uk/

Links (to third party sites) on this page are not sponsored or endorsed by FiatForuml.com. FiatForum.com is not responsible for the content of third party sites. Posts on this site are the opinion of the individual users and do not necessarily represent the views of the FiatForum.com

If you think you have cause for complaint about your insurance, you should in the first instance persue your complaint through your insurance compaines complaints procedure. Information of this can be found by visiting their web site, calling up their customer relations line or by writing to the customer relations department. You will find these numbers and addresses with the policy documentation you received from them.

If you can't resolve your complaint through the above, you can write to the Financial Services Ombdusman who are independent comittee who may choose to look into your complaint and mediate with the your insurance company to achieve a resolution. The FSO details are:

Post
Financial Ombudsman Service
South Quay Plaza
183 Marsh Wall
London E14 9SR

Phone
0845 080 1800

E-mail
complaint.info@financial-ombudsman.org.uk

web
http://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/

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