Whether we like it or not, car insurance is mandatory in the UK. If you want to take your vehicle out on the road, it must be insured.
Although vehicles which are subject to a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) don’t legally need to be insured according to the government, it can still be a good idea to have your vehicle covered in case of theft or damage.
Of course, once you have your insurance sorted, that’s not the end of the story. There are many ways that you can inadvertently invalidate your insurance.
Oversights
One of the most obvious ways that you will invalidate your insurance is if you don’t have a valid MOT certificate, and thousands of drivers forget every year.
You can also invalidate your insurance if you make modifications to your vehicle but forget to inform your insurance provider
Driver Misdemeanours
Insurance is often invalidated simply by ignoring driving conditions or by relying solely on your sat nav. If your sat nav says turn right over the bridge but it looks likely to collapse, or you want to turn left but there’s a flood warning or road closed sign, then don’t do it! You will have a hard time justifying either of these actions to any insurer.
Similarly, leaving your keys in the ignition to defrost the car while you finish your coffee will leave you red-faced if the car is stolen, as your insurer won’t pay out.
You’ll also invalidate your insurance if you take money to give someone a lift. It’s all right to share the cost of petrol if you car-share with a colleague, but making a profit is a no-no.
Finally, if you want to use your vehicle as a rally car, you will need to take out a special insurance policy.
There are also lots of ways that you can lower insurance premiums too. Many drivers have a tracking device fitted to their vehicle so that insurance companies can monitor how they’re driving. The better you drive, the lower your premium. In commercial vehicles many will have a truck camera fitted like those supplied by http://www.backwatch.co.uk, as this will record what’s happening while they’re driving.
So remember: just because you have car insurance, it doesn’t mean it will pay automatically pay out.
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