Does anyone know whether the Third Party Only cover provided by UK insurers for use in the EU is of an indefinite nature - or is it restricted to 'holiday length' periods of time?
I will be working in Ireland (Republic of) for the next six months, and would like to bring over my 'oldie but goldie' (car, that is!) from the UK. TPO cover would be fine, so do I have to inform my insurers of this fact - or am I automatically covered for this period?
BTW, insurance in Ireland is quite pricey!:-(
Cheers.
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LHM, you are in for a bit of a nightmare if my experience is anyhting to go by.
A short while ago I tried to get a car insured for about 2 months in the UK and then the remaining 10 months in continental Europe. To cut a long story short only one company would quote, Admiral I think, and they wanted the car registered to a buisness in the UK. They would then insure it fully comp only at the not insignificant cost of £3,700 for a year. I could then drive it anywhere in Europe and be fully covered.
It appears if you are insuring a bog standard hatchback for 10k miles per year to do the school run and drive to work insurance companies can cope. Anything even slightly out of the box throws them into complete disarray.
When you think that French, German, Belgian and Dutch insurers must cover their customers for other countries why the hell can't we do it.
Integrated Europe my rear end.
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Blimey, Denis - that's not what I wanted to hear!!!
My car is currently insured and has about ten months to run on this policy. I've read the policy documents carefully, and it appears that Third Party Only cover is automatically included for use in all EU countries. Sure, if I want comprehensive cover they will whack on an additional premium - but the car's just not worth it.
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The fact that your car will be in a different country for six months is a material factor in the assessment of the risk and a material change over the risk they originally assessed and underwrote. Therefore you have no choice but to tell them.
Unfortunately I suspect that when you do tell them they will refuse to cover it.
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Mark,
As you work in the insurance business can you explain why UK companies can't develop insurance that covers you throughout Europe. Whenever I do a booze cruise I see French cars in Belgium, German cars in France, Dutch cars in Germany et al. I imagine they are not all driving without cover.
Is it just that 22 miles of water that makes UK insurers so miopic.
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DenisO,
There is a difference between \"can\'t\" and \"don\'t want to\".
Firstly they obviously can, since if you drive off to France on your holidays your car will be insured either automatically or by exception if it is not a normal part of your cover.
However, you have a duty to inform your insurer of any material change. Now, it could be argued that a week holiday in Ireland is not a material change. Of course, it actually is, but you could probably argue a successful defence that you didn\'t realise it could be considered as such which would at least be taken as some level of mitigation. However, even to the most dense of us, it is clear that 6 months living in Ireland is a material change from living in England and as such you would have no defence with even the most generous of courts.
Since the risk is materially different, the insurer is able to decline it. Although under certain circumstances they would have to justify why they had declined it and would have to show it was in keeping with their normal approach.
As to why they don\'t, its because its too hard and too expensive. They would be without a current business based upon a single language, single tax system, knock-for-knock agreements, inspector networks, approved repairer schemes etc. etc. which all help to keep their profits and our premiums in a better place than they would be otherwise.
Equally there are agreements which exist between some european countries to which we are not party - and these affect traffic laws, other laws, financial agreements and many others.
Now, there are some countries where they are currently not able to offer insurance. There are rules around licencing, home country ownership, bond recognition and the like. However, those are all solvable (well, not all but most) if the will is there.
The number of countries where it is is impossible to offer insurance is few.
It is also worth noting that many of our insurers do operate abroad. However, with essentially separate organisations - an organisation which they already either own or are owned by and with which it makes no sense to compete.
Not unlike credit card companies. Visa UK and Visa France may be, at some level, the same organisation, but you have no chance of speaking to one about your business with the other. Or, for that matter, car dealers who have only recently started doing business in each other\'s countries and even that is not willing or whole-hearted.
And, by the way, I don\'t work in insurance, although I used to.
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Thanks Mark. I appreciate you taking the time to explain. As you say can't or don't want to. I guess as we become more integrated with the EU then they will have to.
With the old green card system and whatever has now taken it's place there is obviously an infrastructure set up to manage UK insurance issues in all Euro countries.
Perhaps one of the big Euro insurers will come into the UK market place and start to offer competitive policies that cover us for all the EU or would that be free trade in Europe!!!
Sorry not to notice you had a change of carreer.
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I've not got the policy in the office, but I think the NFU give me 60 days full cover in the EU and many other countries as standard. Since I've never taken the Land Rover overseas, I've never double checked, but I did think when I first read it I thought it was a) generous and b) nice and clear
The last car I took abroad I had to pay extra for just a few days.
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Commercial Union Offer Annual European EU use subject to a max of 90 days per trip (and I think 180 days total) on some comprehensive policies. Not the cheapest company but very convenient.
I believe RSA ? Royal Sun Alliance? offer annual cover with no explicit max trip time.
pmh (was peter)
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If you are over 50 Saga give you 12 months cover abroad.
I think either Liverpool Victoria or Cornhill Direct give you 6 months. Surely all others do up to 60 or 90 days then charge you extra for any more.
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John, I never thought of Saga but will give them a go next time. At a sprightly 51, of course i can now use them.
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I ended up insuring with Elephant who offer a maximum of 90 days EU cover in any 1 year but you can only use 30 days at any one time. I suspect most companies do similar and not with prohibitive costs attached. It's when you want to have full Euro cover at any time without restrictions that the costs become intergalactic.
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I'm with Zurich, and they give you full 365 day cover in the EU and you don't have to inform them. Saga give identical cover.
I also have a touring caravan which is stored in the Dordogne. in France, and my UK insurer wanted over £400 renewal this year. However, I managed to insure it with AXA in France at a cost of 267 Euros, about £182 at the time. This also covers me if I take anywhere in the EU, including the UK. The cover is also much better then I was offered by Bakers of Cheltenham, my former insurer.
Perhaps you should approach an insurance company or broker in RI.
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On a slightly broader note it "should" be possible to get insurance from any company in the EU (free trade and what not) so it may be possible to get insurance in Germany or Spain etc. (good luck with the small print) Has anyone tryed this even if you only drive in the UK?
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