Understanding Motor Insurance
Drive safely – know you’re covered
You can choose to buy insurance for many different things – your health, your home, your car, your pet, your business, your life. But some insurance is required by law and motor insurance is one of those. If you want to drive a vehicle you must be insured. It’s the law.
Very often, motor insurance is the first type of insurance we ever buy. It’s a competitive market with a number of providers offering cover. The best advice for choosing the right policy is to shop around. And do keep in mind that the right policy might not always be the cheapest. Rather chose the level of cover that suits your needs and your circumstances at the best possible price.
Where to buy motor insurance cover
Contact a regulated insurer directly, either online or over the phone.
Seek professional advice through your financial adviser/broker.
What to consider when choosing a motor policy
What do you want from your policy – full comprehensive insurance or third-party, fire and theft cover?
While there are many options available, in a general sense, there are two types of policy to choose from when insuring your private car - comprehensive and third-party, fire and theft. A comprehensive policy will carry a higher cost but in return you receive a higher level of cover.
If you have an accident, your comprehensive insurance policy will generally pay for the cost of repairs to your car and cover any other damage to another vehicle or injury to third parties. You’re also covered against loss of or damage to your car through fire or theft, loss of personal belongings and often windscreen damage.
Third Party, Fire & Theft covers damage you cause to another vehicle and or injury to third parties. It also covers loss of or damage to your car through fire or theft. The difference between this and comprehensive cover is that third party, fire & theft doesn't cover your own vehicle if it's damaged in an accident.
What do you not need cover for?
Only buy the insurance you need. Do you need to be able to drive other vehicles? Do you need to have coverage for driving with a trailer? Cut out unnecessary extras if you don’t need them. Your policy will be a better fit and costs will reduce without unnecessary extras.
Use of car: If you only use your car for domestic and social purposes, only insure for those purposes. Not only will your insurance reflect your needs, but you are also likely to get the best value insurance as cars used for commercial purposes generally also have higher annual mileage resulting in more expensive insurance. Equally, if you use your vehicle for commercial purposes – using your car to drive to and from work is not considered commercial – get cover for commercial insurance which will cover you for higher mileage too.
What are the exclusions, terms and conditions and excess on the policy? Does the excess on your policy suit your needs?
This excess is the amount that you need to pay toward a claim that you make on your policy, particularly if you are at fault. For example, in very simplistic terms, if you are making a claim of €3,000 against your insurance and your policy has an excess of €500 this is deducted by the insurer from the claim amount and your claim amount will be €2,500. The lower the excess the higher your premium. If you drive a lot, a policy with a lower excess may be the best one for you. Discuss this with your insurer or broker to work out what excess suits your needs. There may also be some exclusions on your policy which set out certain risks that the insurer is excluded from providing insurance cover for. Details of any exclusions will be found in the policy’s terms and conditions.
Not disclosing or providing correct information can invalidate your insurance policy. For example, under inaccurate reporting penalty points or other endorsements can invalidate your insurance claim. Enjoy peace of mind by making full disclosures when buying your insurance. And once you have a quote, shop around for a better quote using the same information, to get the best price for the cover you need.
Take the time to read the details in your policy or contact your insurance company or broker to ask them to explain queries to you.
Who needs to be covered by the policy? A spouse or a partner, a named driver or others?
Consider who needs to drive your vehicle during the year. The most cost effective time to add an additional driver is at the time of purchase or renewal of your policy. This minimises administration costs that arise when additional drivers are added mid-way through an insurance period.
Does the policy include a No Claims Discount?
What to do if you have an accident?
If you’re involved in an accident, gather as much information as possible:
Take a note of the names, contact details and car details of all parties involved.
Get the insurance details, including the policy number, of all parties involved.
Write down details of any witnesses to the incident or members of An Garda Síochána that may attend the scene of the accident.
Take photos of your car and the other vehicle involved – but only if it’s possible and safe to do so.
Contact your insurer or broker, who will guide you through the claims process.
Insurance Mythbusters
PLEASE NOTE
Insurance is a very detailed subject and the outlines above are not intended to be exhaustive. Instead we recommend that you ask your insurer or broker to explain each one in detail.
Learn more about Home Insurance, Life Insurance, Pension and Health Insurance.
Want to know more?
Our FAQ section on Motor Insurance answers some of the more common questions you may have.