Car Insurance - Buying Guide

Before you are able to legally drive on a UK road, along with a valid licence, TAX and MOT, you also require car insurance. Failure to comply with this can result in points on your licence, fines and in some cases - a jail sentence.

As vehicles can be incredibly costly to repair or replace, car insurance protects you against having to pay for any damages in the event of an accident.

The first part of applying for car insurance involves completing a proposal, which can either by done by post, over the phone or online. When filling out your proposal it's important to be completely truthful, answering all questions to the best of your knowledge; if unsure about something, then its best to talk with the insurer.

If you need to make a claim down the line, and it becomes apparent that you haven't been wholly truthful in your proposal, then the insurer could declare your insurance as null and voide, thus leaving you with a big bill on your hands.

It's important to note that when processing a claim your insurance company will only pay out the current market value of the vehicle, which is almost always less than what you will have paid for it originally.

Also, any alternations or modifications you make to your vehicle should be passed by your insurer; again, failure to do this could leave you with invalid insurance.

As mentioned, insurance can be purchased in a number of ways, the quickest and easiest generally being online. As well as all the popular high street brokers having online facilities, there are a number of comparison websites, which allow you to find the most competitive quote.

You are likely to get the option of paying for your insurance in a lump sum or instalments. Although instalments may be more manageable, it's generally more cost effective to pay upfront for a year or 6 months.

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