Car insurance quotes

[tigwig]

Our car insurance is due for renewal and earlier in the year my hubby ran into a stationery vehicle at about 2mph no one was hurt and this was claimed off our insurance so as a result we lost approx 2 years off our no claims bonus to 3 years. My question is as we have been 'punished' by this claim once does it matter if we don't declare it when getting new quotes. It was such a minor bump that the garage that fixed the other persons car ripped off our insurance company and when I am getting new quotes you don't get chance to say exactly what happened just that it was driver fault accident which obviously could mean a much more serious accident. If we don't declare this bump will we get found out and will it make the insurance void?

[gina32]

insurance companies exchange information with each other so even if you dont tell them they will find out and should you have an accident and try to claim and they find out your claim will be void and that means you may end up paying out thousands for the sake of a few quid

[milliezoe]

If you dont declare it and you have an accident they will make the cover null and void the companies talk to each other !!!! there is an article on Martins money saving tips out today which may help you save some money

[gouldc]

Declare it - the amount of people who don't is growing, yet they never realsie that every claim you have is inputted into databases left, right and centre.

If a claim is picked up that you haven't disclsoed, then combined with otehr rating factors, it has the potential to void your policy from inception.

You will have the opportunity to declare the cost and circumstances of the accident when you take out a policy. At the end of the day, failure to maintain a safe braking distance caused the accident, and this will be taken into account

[Buenchico]

If an insurance company finds that you've failed to provide full information when seeking cover, they might report the matter to the police. 'Attempting to gain a pecuniary advantage by deception' is an offence under Section 16 of the Theft Act 1968, which can result in up to 10 years imprisonment. (You'd also find it extremely difficult to get any form of insurance in future. Additionally, most banks refuse to allow anyone with a fraud conviction to have an account with them).

If you did manage to get insurance by keeping quiet about the accident, the insurance company might carry out further investigations if you made a claim. As well as the possibility of criminal action (as above), the insurers would refuse to pay out, leaving you to pay any claims from the other driver. (If someone suffered injuries, from an accident caused by a driver without valid insurance, resulting in them requiring life-long care, the other driver would be personally liable for paying a multi-million pound bill).

Chris

[Mel_C]

I work for a large insurer and agree with all the above comments. All insurance companies will ask you whether you have had any motoring accs/claims in the last 3-5 years as they are deemed to be material facts which form the basis of your insurance, so should you chose to non-disclose and your insurance company find out then you could have your policy voided.

[tigwig]

OK point taken! I spoke to my insurance company and they confirmed that I did have to declare it, unfortunately. I was just unsure with us already losing 2 years of no claims bonus