A guide to motor insurance & FAQ's

sderref

Colemania wrote: »

My Australian girlfriend recently exchanged her australian license for an Irish one as we thought it would be easier to get insurance, and also for practicality, but nobody will give her a quote.

She has 7 years full license driving experience in Australia albeit the car wasn't in her name. She has no driving experience in Ireland as this would be her first policy in Ireland.

Does anyone have any experiences like this and could recommend an insurer?

Hi,
she will start over. Many insurers won't insure her as she was only named driver in an other country/continent.
Try insurance brokers, like liberty/cranandcrane ect.

Other way if you take her as a named driver for a year, she will have some kind of Irish driving history and try to insure her next year.Best of luck with it.

Colemania

jinkybhoy wrote: »

I've came across this a lot recently - emigrants returning after 2 years to ireland. Full bonus prior to going abroad but now that they are back bonus has expired. Some crazy quotes of 1500-2500!!

Would an option maybe would be for you to take out a 2nd policy with her as named to get driving experience? Some companies will give a discount equivalent to a full bonus on a 2nd car if you have a full no claim bonus already.

sderref wrote: »

Hi,
she will start over. Many insurers won't insure her as she was only named driver in an other country/continent.
Try insurance brokers, like liberty/cranandcrane ect.

Other way if you take her as a named driver for a year, she will have some kind of Irish driving history and try to insure her next year.Best of luck with it.

Thanks for the help! Is it possible to get a 2nd policy out in my name? Didn't think you could unless your main car was a work car. I'd do that no problem if you could.

Also, she only has an automatic license whereas I have a manual so she wouldn't be able to get insured on my car unfortunately.

jinkybhoy

Colemania wrote: »

Thanks for the help! Is it possible to get a 2nd policy out in my name? Didn't think you could unless your main car was a work car. I'd do that no problem if you could.

Also, she only has an automatic license whereas I have a manual so she wouldn't be able to get insured on my car unfortunately.

yes - you can insure as many cars as you want...if you have the money!!

The car would have to be registered in your name and her named as 2nd driver and advise insurer that she will drive the car more than occassionally.

sderref

Colemania wrote: »

Thanks for the help! Is it possible to get a 2nd policy out in my name? Didn't think you could unless your main car was a work car. I'd do that no problem if you could.

Also, she only has an automatic license whereas I have a manual so she wouldn't be able to get insured on my car unfortunately.

From the rsa site:
'If you pass your test in an automatic car, you can only apply for a full driving licence to drive an automatic car. If you later want to apply for a full driving licence for a manual car, you will have to pass a test in a manual vehicle before applying for a full licence to drive it. '
So you need to get a second car and make her second driver with an advisory note to the insurance company saying she will drive a car not only occasionally.

Colemania

Lads/lasses ye're legends! I'm currently with AA myself and have fully comp on a 1.4 Golf for about €480 and they wouldn't quote her on her own but with me as main drive on a 1.6 automatic corolla, its €666.40 fully comp! That's brilliant if i can do that! to be honest, i will drive the car now and again on long trips but yes she will be driving it most of the time. They'll be ok with that ya?

sderref

Colemania wrote: »

Lads/lasses ye're legends! I'm currently with AA myself and have fully comp on a 1.4 Golf for about €480 and they wouldn't quote her on her own but with me as main drive on a 1.6 automatic corolla, its €666.40 fully comp! That's brilliant if i can do that! to be honest, i will drive the car now and again on long trips but yes she will be driving it most of the time. They'll be ok with that ya?

Its a pretty fair premium considering her no claim/no experience in Ireland. I had a similar jump in premium years ago for my gf on my Honda when I took her on. 550-->710

RainyDay

Colemania wrote: »

Thanks for the help! Is it possible to get a 2nd policy out in my name? Didn't think you could unless your main car was a work car. I'd do that no problem if you could.

jinkybhoy wrote: »

yes - you can insure as many cars as you want...if you have the money!!

The car would have to be registered in your name and her named as 2nd driver and advise insurer that she will drive the car more than occassionally.

If you insure the 2nd car on the basis that you are the main driver of the 2nd car, when in fact, she is the main driver of the 2nd car, that would be fraudulent.

sderref

RainyDay wrote: »

If you insure the 2nd car on the basis that you are the main driver of the 2nd car, when in fact, she is the main driver of the 2nd car, that would be fraudulent.

Hi there,
I would like to point out if the main driver informs the insurance company about this situation( the second driver will drive the car more frequently) its not fraudulent. Its called 'fronting'. However...its pretty grey area if we look at the usage of the vehicle on the daily basis.
According to chill.ie:
'Fronting
Fronting is a term that is used by insurers to describe a policy where a named driver is added to a car insurance policy but the majority of driving of the vehicle is done by the inexperienced driver. When insuring young drivers on any vehicle, thought needs to be given to how much use of the car they have and what they use the car for. If the young driver is regularly taking the vehicle to work or a place of education or if it becomes apparent that they use the vehicle more than the Policyholder, then insurers will argue that the young driver is the main user of the vehicle. If it comes to light that the young driver is the main user of the vehicle, the insurer may void the policy from inception and refuse to deal with any claims. '
Just to rectify, fronting considered to be illegal and in the event of a claim, could result in it not being settled. The simple rule is that if you don’t disclose something because you believe it would have made your policy more expensive, you will most likely have failed in your contractual obligations, so the policy may be cancelled.
However I would not be worry if the car is used like occasionally and the insurer has been informed when you take out the policy.But I would make sure I am with her as much as possible just to avoid any questionable situations.
Regards

Colemania

sderref wrote: »

Hi there,
I would like to point out if the main driver informs the insurance company about this situation( the second driver will drive the car more frequently) its not fraudulent. Its called 'fronting'. However...its pretty grey area if we look at the usage of the vehicle on the daily basis.
According to chill.ie:
'Fronting
Fronting is a term that is used by insurers to describe a policy where a named driver is added to a car insurance policy but the majority of driving of the vehicle is done by the inexperienced driver. When insuring young drivers on any vehicle, thought needs to be given to how much use of the car they have and what they use the car for. If the young driver is regularly taking the vehicle to work or a place of education or if it becomes apparent that they use the vehicle more than the Policyholder, then insurers will argue that the young driver is the main user of the vehicle. If it comes to light that the young driver is the main user of the vehicle, the insurer may void the policy from inception and refuse to deal with any claims. '
So I would not be worry if the car is used like occasionally but I would make sure I am with her as much as possible just to avoid any questionable situations.
Regards

Does the constant mention of "young driver" above make any difference? As she's an experienced driver on a full license, does this change things? She isn't a young inexperienced driver as referenced above

sderref

Colemania wrote: »

Does the constant mention of "young driver" above make any difference? As she's an experienced driver on a full license, does this change things? She isn't a young inexperienced driver as referenced above

Unfortunately, she has no Irish driving experience therefore she is 'young' or inexperienced driver with a restricted only automatic license, issued in other country/continent. Even with her years of named driver experience she considered to be a young driver.

Colemania

sderref wrote: »

Unfortunately, she has no Irish driving experience therefore she is 'young' or inexperienced driver with a restricted only automatic license, issued in other country/continent. Even with her years of named driver experience she considered to be a young driver.

At the end of the day, I don't know how much difference it will make. I put in 1 years named driver experience, pretending its this time next year, and a policy on her own and the quote was about 2 grand! Jesus I didn't think it would be this awkward to get insurance and she really needs a car!

sderref

Colemania wrote: »

At the end of the day, I don't know how much difference it will make. I put in 1 years named driver experience, pretending its this time next year, and a policy on her own and the quote was about 2 grand! Jesus I didn't think it would be this awkward to get insurance and she really needs a car!

Yes, unfortunately it will be very high for first year. But if I was you, I would call as much insurer as I can.

RainyDay

sderref wrote: »

Hi there,
I would like to point out if the main driver informs the insurance company about this situation( the second driver will drive the car more frequently) its not fraudulent. Its called 'fronting'. However...its pretty grey area if we look at the usage of the vehicle on the daily basis.
According to chill.ie:
'Fronting
Fronting is a term that is used by insurers to describe a policy where a named driver is added to a car insurance policy but the majority of driving of the vehicle is done by the inexperienced driver. When insuring young drivers on any vehicle, thought needs to be given to how much use of the car they have and what they use the car for. If the young driver is regularly taking the vehicle to work or a place of education or if it becomes apparent that they use the vehicle more than the Policyholder, then insurers will argue that the young driver is the main user of the vehicle. If it comes to light that the young driver is the main user of the vehicle, the insurer may void the policy from inception and refuse to deal with any claims. '
Just to rectify, fronting considered to be illegal and in the event of a claim, could result in it not being settled. The simple rule is that if you don’t disclose something because you believe it would have made your policy more expensive, you will most likely have failed in your contractual obligations, so the policy may be cancelled.

Fair point - I didn't realise that any of the insurance companies formally recognised these situations in any way.

The fraud that I'm thinking about was where a person is asked 'who is the main driver' and lies in response to that question - that is fraud.

Wanderer2010

I purchased insurance for my new car last Monday and they are waiting on the usual declaration form (which i signed and sent off yesterday) plus proof on no claims bonus from my last insurer. Thing is, my last insurer was Axa Direct, which have appalling customer care. Over the last year, they have sent me hostile letters demanding paperwork I already sent them, you ring them up and more often that not you get some clueless idiot reading from a script who doesnt know their a$se from their elbow. Needless to say I will never use then again.

Thing is, I have tried emailing and ringing my request and only on Wednesday did they agree to send it to me by post but warned it could take 5 working days, so when I rang looking for an update yesterday, turns out the letter wasnt sent in error and I will be waiting until next friday to get it! My current insurer said they need it by Monday (24th) or I may lose my insurance. Is it worth ringing them up to explain the situation and ask for a longer grace period? I really dont want to have to lose the insurance.

moleyv

Wanderer2010 wrote:

Thing is, I have tried emailing and ringing my request and only on Wednesday did they agree to send it to me by post but warned it could take 5 working days, so when I rang looking for an update yesterday, turns out the letter wasnt sent in error and I will be waiting until next friday to get it! My current insurer said they need it by Monday (24th) or I may lose my insurance. Is it worth ringing them up to explain the situation and ask for a longer grace period? I really dont want to have to lose the insurance.

The declaration will have a reference number that the other insurance co will check to make sure it is legit. I think that's how it works anyway.

Could you ask axa for that number and see if it will tide new company over?

Or see if axa will email it so you can print yourself?

To Elland Back

Wanderer2010 wrote: »

I purchased insurance for my new car last Monday and they are waiting on the usual declaration form (which i signed and sent off yesterday) plus proof on no claims bonus from my last insurer. Thing is, my last insurer was Axa Direct, which have appalling customer care. Over the last year, they have sent me hostile letters demanding paperwork I already sent them, you ring them up and more often that not you get some clueless idiot reading from a script who doesnt know their a$se from their elbow. Needless to say I will never use then again.

Thing is, I have tried emailing and ringing my request and only on Wednesday did they agree to send it to me by post but warned it could take 5 working days, so when I rang looking for an update yesterday, turns out the letter wasnt sent in error and I will be waiting until next friday to get it! My current insurer said they need it by Monday (24th) or I may lose my insurance. Is it worth ringing them up to explain the situation and ask for a longer grace period? I really dont want to have to lose the insurance.

Always interact with your insurer, never ignore a problem.If they never set a deadline nobody would ever send stuff in. Explain the situation and they should be flexible

Colemania

RainyDay wrote: »

Fair point - I didn't realise that any of the insurance companies formally recognised these situations in any way.

The fraud that I'm thinking about was where a person is asked 'who is the main driver' and lies in response to that question - that is fraud.

Just an update on this. I didn't think it was worth the hassle of putting myself as main driver as she'll have to work up her no claims bonus regardless and having her as named driver is just delaying the inevitable.

We got a quote of 1300 this morning but an interesting facet of this quote is that the original quote was about 1700 and we were told that by putting and experienced driver as a named driver on the policy, brings the price down. So in this instance by 400 euro. Never knew that so hopefully that might help some people here.

Thanks for the help anyway lads/lasses

FamousBelgian

Does anyone know how it works if you are moving to Ireland?
- do you pay more if you haven't built up your NCB in Ireland?
- is it better to go named driver on someone else's car?
- does LHD carry a big loading?
- does an imported car carry a big loading?

I called Liberty and I got a quote for over 1000 (more than three times what I pay now in Holland) but that was for an imported LHD car. The guy couldn't say for sure what effect LHD had on the total price.

I then called a broker and they said that most companies would not insure someone who had lived in Ireland for less than one year. They never got back to me with the names of companies who would do this.

I tried a bunch of online quotes (Britton's site was the least difficult to use) and it seemed to come down to the old reliable: engine size. Location and driving history don't seem to make much difference. I also saw that Third Party mostly cost more than Fully Comp which seems illogical.

Anyone got any experience of this?

Colemania

FamousBelgian wrote: »

Does anyone know how it works if you are moving to Ireland?
- do you pay more if you haven't built up your NCB in Ireland?
- is it better to go named driver on someone else's car?
- does LHD carry a big loading?
- does an imported car carry a big loading?

I called Liberty and I got a quote for over 1000 (more than three times what I pay now in Holland) but that was for an imported LHD car. The guy couldn't say for sure what effect LHD had on the total price.

I then called a broker and they said that most companies would not insure someone who had lived in Ireland for less than one year. They never got back to me with the names of companies who would do this.

I tried a bunch of online quotes (Britton's site was the least difficult to use) and it seemed to come down to the old reliable: engine size. Location and driving history don't seem to make much difference. I also saw that Third Party mostly cost more than Fully Comp which seems illogical.

Anyone got any experience of this?

As you'll see in the comments above, I just sorted out insurance for my girlfriend, who is Australian. Having no NCB in Ireland or the UK was the main reason for not being able to get a quote initially. Me being named driver brought the price down alright and we got it for 1233 eventually. Fully comprehensive on a 1.6 automatic corolla. We went with AA as I have them myself and find them very cheap

commited

I see it coming up quite a bit so I'll offer my piece of advice for non-nationals living here and returning ex-pats..

I returned from Oz last year. Prior to leaving, I had built up 3 years NCB with Quinn Direct terminating in early 2009. I started insurance in Oz in late 2010. I built up 2 years and 10 months NCB in Oz (stupid to cancel the last policy) before returning home last year.

I contacted a broker and explained above and they said they'd see what they could do. Managed to swing that I had 5 years NCB and now, 1 year later, I have a cert with 6 years NCB on it. During my renewal quotes, I have stumbled across 2 assumptions which would "invalidate" my quote:
- NCB must have been earned in Ireland/UK
- Have been resident in Ireland over last x number of years

Any insurance company I've spoken to have waived the above as I'm Irish by nationality and have a current cert saying 6 years NCB. This year my quotes are coming back at a great price so it's worth the hassle!

The above took a bit of work - chasing all companies involved to get "up to date" certs etc but in the end, while my insurance wasn't as cheap the first year back as I could have got myself assuming 5 years NCB, it was still a hell of a lot cheaper than it would have been otherwise. Brokers are ideal for this sort of scenario, then again I never tried to get it through myself directly.

Liam McPoyle

FamousBelgian wrote: »

Does anyone know how it works if you are moving to Ireland?
- do you pay more if you haven't built up your NCB in Ireland? - Yes, many insurers wont insure you with no driving experience from Ireland
- is it better to go named driver on someone else's car? - Yes, if the other person has a bonus built up then get named on their policy to build up 1 years driving experience
- does LHD carry a big loading? - Most insurers wont insure LHD cars for drivers with no NCB in Ireland.
- does an imported car carry a big loading? - Yes, alot of insurers will not insure cars imported from outside of Ireland / UK

I called Liberty and I got a quote for over 1000 (more than three times what I pay now in Holland) but that was for an imported LHD car. The guy couldn't say for sure what effect LHD had on the total price.

I then called a broker and they said that most companies would not insure someone who had lived in Ireland for less than one year. They never got back to me with the names of companies who would do this.

I tried a bunch of online quotes (Britton's site was the least difficult to use) and it seemed to come down to the old reliable: engine size. Location and driving history don't seem to make much difference. I also saw that Third Party mostly cost more than Fully Comp which seems illogical.

Anyone got any experience of this?

See answers in bold above.

Sh1tbag OToole

FamousBelgian wrote: »

Does anyone know how it works if you are moving to Ireland?
- do you pay more if you haven't built up your NCB in Ireland?
- is it better to go named driver on someone else's car?
- does LHD carry a big loading?
- does an imported car carry a big loading?

I called Liberty and I got a quote for over 1000 (more than three times what I pay now in Holland) but that was for an imported LHD car. The guy couldn't say for sure what effect LHD had on the total price.

I then called a broker and they said that most companies would not insure someone who had lived in Ireland for less than one year. They never got back to me with the names of companies who would do this.

I tried a bunch of online quotes (Britton's site was the least difficult to use) and it seemed to come down to the old reliable: engine size. Location and driving history don't seem to make much difference. I also saw that Third Party mostly cost more than Fully Comp which seems illogical.

Anyone got any experience of this?

Did you try AA? They insured me on a provisional with 0 years no claims in an imported LHD before. You might need to call them on the phone because the online form won't let you specify LHD.

If you don't have any Irish no claims bonus it's always going to be expensive no matter what car you drive for the first year anyway. If I was going to leave Ireland for a few years I would make sure to insure myself on some rustbucket that may or may not have an actual working engine in it that's declared off the road to preserve my no claims

joseph brand

For the second year running, my renewal quote is double the previous quote. This is infuriating.

Full License: 8 years+
NCB: 8 years+ (incl. provisional)
Age: 35+
Residence: Navan, Meath.

Last year I paid €368, the same insurer now wants €724!! It was a similar story last year.

What's going on? Is this a way of getting rid of me? All it does is force me to shop around and ultimately change insurer (give another company over 300 euro for doing absolutely nothing).

My car is a 1993 Corolla 1.6. (Not sure if the car has any relevance, as they insured me last year, although it is old).

imurdaddy

joseph brand wrote: »

For the second year running, my renewal quote is double the previous quote. This is infuriating.

Full License: 8 years+
NCB: 8 years+ (incl. provisional)
Age: 35+
Residence: Navan, Meath.

Last year I paid €368, the same insurer now wants €724!! It was a similar story last year.

What's going on? Is this a way of getting rid of me? All it does is force me to shop around and ultimately change insurer (give another company over 300 euro for doing absolutely nothing).

My car is a 1993 Corolla 1.6. (Not sure if the car has any relevance, as they insured me last year, although it is old).

Join the club last year I paid €520ish on a Mercedes Slk 200 Kompressor, this year they wanted €1387 for TPFT nothing had changed no claims etc, so did a bit of shopping around today and yesterday and best I got was €860 TPFT and worst €3400 now all this was online quotes so may get a bit lower on the phone, but to say im less than impressed. We're been ripped off for insurance and especially when you have done nothing wrong accidents or point's, I have a month to find a better price but id say ill struggle!

Staph

Hey,

I have been getting quotes for car insurance. One of the cheapest is Kennco. I was wondering if any of you have been with them and is their customer service ok? Can you get them easily if you want to alter details, etc?

joseph brand

imurdaddy wrote: »

Join the club last year I paid €520ish on a Mercedes Slk 200 Kompressor, this year they wanted €1387 for TPFT nothing had changed no claims etc, so did a bit of shopping around today and yesterday and best I got was €860 TPFT and worst €3400 now all this was online quotes so may get a bit lower on the phone, but to say im less than impressed. We're been ripped off for insurance and especially when you have done nothing wrong accidents or point's, I have a month to find a better price but id say ill struggle!

It makes no sense to me. One would think that an insurance company would endeavour to keep existing customers (especially when they have not claimed) and gain new customers. Rather, it seems their business model involves chasing existing customers away. They have made me an offer I must refuse.

I'm also 'lucky' enough to have a Japanese import, along with the car being 22 years old this year. Most insurance companies won't even offer me a quote. When I ask them why?, they say that they have no idea. I guess it's a big secret.

delta_bravo

joseph brand wrote: »

I'm also 'lucky' enough to have a Japanese import, along with the car being 22 years old this year. Most insurance companies won't even offer me a quote. When I ask them why?, they say that they have no idea. I guess it's a big secret.

They're rarely going to say why but they're a higher risk in terms of theft, cost of replacement parts, claims history....

scamalert

does anyone know if NCB expire if you cancel insurance but remain with same company as named driver on another policy.thx

jinkybhoy

scamalert wrote: »

does anyone know if NCB expire if you cancel insurance but remain with same company as named driver on another policy.thx

Your bonus is good for 2 years - named driving experience won't extend this. So if you stay as a named driver and don't take a policy out in your name within 2 years - it's gone.

scamalert

thx gotta love the system in place :cool: