Do I need insurance to tax my car?
No you do not need car insurance to tax your car. You can tax your car over the phone without a certificate of car insurance. Although you do need to be insured at the time of taxing your vehicle, the DVLA will check you have insurance in place.
Do I need insurance to tax a vehicle?
The same principle applies as above, to tax any vehicle you do not need insurance. Although the DVLA will check that you do have an insurance policy in place. It is a legal requirement to have insurance on a motor vehicle on public roads.
Do I need insurance to tow a caravan?
It is not compulsory to have insurance to tow a caravan. If you have car insurance the caravan will not be covered, unless you take out specific insurance on the caravan. Also check your driving licence, some licences do not permit drivers to tow a caravan unless a course has been completed. You will not be able to take out an insurance policy if you don’t have the right licence.
Do I need insurance to hire a car?
Yes you need insurance to hire a car. Hire companies offer a wide range of insurance policies. You can chose what extra insurance you wish to take out at the time of hire. There is a minimum level of insurance required in the UK and through out Europe. Break down cover is generally an extra so check with the vehicle hire company.
Do I need insurance to test drive a car?
Car dealers usually have their own cover. Check with them first! If you are buying a car privately you need to check your own insurance policy. You are looking in the policy to see if it says you can drive another car with the owner’s permission. This is known as DOC or Driving Other Cars cover. If it does not say this then you are not covered and if anything goes wrong you are liable!
Do I need insurance as a learner driver?
Yes you need insurance as a learner driver. If you are driving with a friend or relative they need to add you on their policy. It is a legal requirement to have insurance when learning to drive.
If you are learning to drive with a professional teacher then the insurance should be included in the price of the lesson. Ask the driving instructor about their insurance policy before you book a lesson with them.
Do I need to have insurance to buy a car?
Yes you need insurance to buy a car from a dealer. You will not be able to complete the deal and drive away without car insurance. How ever if you are buying from a private seller then insurance is not always necessary as the private vendor has no way of checking if your insurance policy is valid.
Do i need car insurance for an mot?
No you do not need insurance for an MOT, however you will need car insurance to drive it to the MOT garage in the first place. It is a legal requirement to have insurance in place. You could put the vehicle on a trailer and tow it in order to take it the MOT garage.
Do i need insurance before i get my license?
No you do not need insurance before you get a licence. You can’t even get behind the wheel without at least a provisional licence. Once you have a provisional licence you can get insured on a friend or family members insurance.
How ever you can take out a car insurance policy on behalf of someone that holds a valid driving licence. You have to prove though that you will not be driving the car. This is usually done on behalf of someone with a physical disability that prevents them from driving.
Do i need insurance before i buy a motorcycle?
Yes you need insurance if you buy a motorcycle and intend to ride it on the road. You do not actually need insurance to buy the bike, especially if sold privately. However most licensed dealers will require you to show valid insurance in order for them to process the paper work.
Do I need insurance before I register my car?
No you do not need insurance before you register your car, in fact many standard insurers will not insure your car until it has been registered. You can get specialist insurers to insure your car before it is registered but you can’t drive it until it is both registered and insured. It is against the law to do so and the DVLA will know almost immediately.
This only really applies if you are importing a car, most cars are already registered in the UK so it should not be a problem.
Do i need insurance before leasing a car?
Yes you need insurance before leasing a car. Car insurance is a legal requirement in the UK. Before you lease any road vehicle you must have at least 3rd party insurance. Often the place where you leased the car from will also provide insurance policies if you do not have one of your own.
Do i need car insurance before i get my number plates?
No you do not need car insurance if you are buying new number plates. However if you already have a car on which the new plates will be displayed then you should already have insurance. You can only get new plates made up through a registered supplier. The number plate supplier only requires you to prove your address and that you own the vehicle the new plates will be attached to. There is no requirement for them to see car insurance details.
Do i need insurance for a courtesy car?
Yes you need car insurance to drive any vehicle on UK roads. Courtesy cars are generally provided by insurers as part of your policy. If this is the case your insurers would have cover in place as part of your existing courtesy car insurance policy, although it is worth checking with your insurer if this is the case.
If a garage or anyone else provides you with a courtesy car then you will need to check your own insurance policy to see if it covers you to drive other vehicles with consent from the owner. If it does not then you will have to check that the owner of the courtesy car has you covered under their scheme.
Do i need gap insurance on a new car?
It depends if you have borrowed money to buy a new car. For example if you have borrowed 10k to buy a car and write it off in an accident your insurer may only pay out 3k. This as a result of your car insurance policy or what the insurers deem the car to be worth. Gap insurance fills this void so you will get at least what you paid for the car. Gap insurance will cover your finance payments but that is it, you will be left with no money and no car unless you have further insurance or it was not your fault.
Do I need insurance on PCP agreements?
Yes you should take out gap car insurance on PCP agreements. If you can not make repayments then you can get into debt and worse. Gap insurance covers your finance repayments and will leave you free from debt, this in the case of the car being written off before you PCP agreement is finished.
Do i need car insurance if car off road?
No you do not need car insurance if your car is off the road. It does not have to be insured as long as it declared to the DVLA and declared as off the road (SORN). This rule is called ‘continuous insurance enforcement’. If you break the rules you could face prosecution and fined.
Do i need car insurance in Europe?
Yes you need at least 3rd party car insurance to travel around Europe in your vehicle. How ever it is advised to get break down and other cover when in Europe. If you break down and have to get towed it can be very expensive and stressful. So it will be worth having a good car insurance policy to avoid any potential extra stress.