Indian insurance cover for a UK car?

Cyrus43 · 6th October 2010, 04:46

Just wanted to know opinions on this from the insurance experts. Insuring a car in the UK is a HUGE pain. So I wanted to know..

simply_sunny001 · 10th October 2010, 03:09

no i dont think so as company need to be registered here for doing business and the regulations here are much tougher than india.

whats the problem cyrus, you are facing in getting the car insured ?

Only thing i am aware of is the high premium for first time but some companies like HSBC do honour the NCB from indian insurance.

Cyrus43 · 10th October 2010, 04:49

Yeah. I am having HUGE issues about getting a car insured. That is the reason I cant buy a car. :(

VooDoo · 10th October 2010, 06:23

Surprising! as I found it was much easier in UK than in US. They honoured my Indian NCB, Indian driver License and Indian driving experience as well. As far as I can remember, I went with Directline, then Tesco and then (probably) with More.

condor · 10th October 2010, 09:09

First time insurance is often like that. Typical option is to go with a second rung / fringe players for the first couple of months. Once you have that small record, you can try for the regular insurance. This is the approach we have used when we were in US.

Cyrus43 · 10th October 2010, 09:14

The Problem though, Is that I dont really have any NCB. The cars are Cheap. It is the insurance that kills it.

condor · 10th October 2010, 10:15

The first insurance will help you build/create a NCB. When I first went to US, the All State Insurance guy himself asked me to go to another provider for 2 months, and then switch to All State. (All State was one of the bigger providers).

buntydey · 10th October 2010, 10:29

Post deleted by the Team-BHP Support : Please do NOT post one-liners that add little or no informational value to the thread. We need your co-operation to maintain the overall quality of this forum.

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jaaz · 10th October 2010, 14:15

No, Indian Insurance Companies cannot insure a vehicle registered outside India. The Vehicle in question should be used within the borders of India.

But when it comes to Life Insurance, it's different. The Life assured can be in any part of the world. The General Insurance is a bit complicated.

I don't know much about UK rules, but, what I've heard from others is to go for some other Insurance companies who may do it with a higher premium and then switch to a reputed one.

Now, I've question for you and others in UK. Recently, I was in UK and as per my friends, without Insurance, I can't drive their Cars. And the Insurance Companies will not insure visitors. So, even though Cars were available, I'd to hire a Car, just because of Insurance. Is there any way, that visitors can get insured to drive personal cars?

Raja · 10th October 2010, 20:56

Insurance in UK is based on a person and not a vehicle.
It is the person that builds up No Claims Bonus by avoiding or not making any claims throughout one year.
NCB is usually based on 12 months of claims free motoring.
When someone without any UK NCB wants to insure a vehicle, the insurance company assess what kind of risk you are and then creates a premium accordingly.

There are some barriers that when you cross, helps bring down premiums:
1) Off course making it through one year without a claim
2) Age. 18yrs old, you are going to get fleeced in terms of the premium, 21yrs old, gets slightly better, 25yrs old, now you can afford to insure your dream car.
3) The car itself. Cars are in insurance groups, 1 lowest and cheapest - 20 highest and most expensive. Off course, the higher the insurance group, the higher the premium. Many times you will find that on the second hand car market, a lower insurance group car will command a premium compared to a higher insurance group car!
4) Additional drivers that are added to the main principle driver are also thoroughly examined. e.g. trying to get dad to become the main principle driver and then adding young son/daughter as additional driver to keep the premiums low.
5) You have to declare all vehicles in the household if questioned. Remember, in UK, all main insurance companies tap into one central database for most information. Lying about number of cars in household or the fact that you had an accident 7-8 yrs ago (hoping they have forgotten) will get you caught. Welcome to Big Brother Society.

There are suggestions of switching insurance companies after a while, remember, you MUST stay with a company for 12 months and be claims free to get your NCB. At the end of your first year, when you receive your renewal notice, it mentions your NCB. Your next insurance company might ask for a photocopy of renewal notice or simply company name and policy number. They will automatically check via their internal system (and that central database) to confirm you are telling the truth.

Personal Experience.
When I insured my Lexus in UK, to add my wife on as an additional driver (even though she had not passed her test i.e. Learner Licence) and the fact she was over 30yrs old, my insurance premium went up by 1p - that's right ONE PENCE!

Buying a car in UK is extremely easy and relatively cheap.
It's the Insurance, Road Tax, and Servicing that will kill you! Driving a vehicle without insurance is a criminal offence and can land you in jail.

sachinj12 · 10th October 2010, 21:18

@ Raja, whatever you mentioned, is it applicable in US of A too?

Suppose I go to US/UK to pursue higher studies, how difficult is to get a international license and an insurance?

Brabus E V12 · 10th October 2010, 22:36

Cyrus have you tried these websites?

Confused.com Cheap Car Insurance and Home Insurance Quotes Comparison
Cheap loans | mortgages | credit cards | home & car insurance - moneysupermarket.com
Car insurance & Home insurance - Challenge us for cheap insurance - Direct Line
Gocompare.com
Cheap Car Insurance UK | Online Car Insurance Quote | Home & Life Insurance | MORE TH>N

I would be very surprised if you cannot manage to get a quote from one of the above. I would suggest you go in for a car which is no more than 1200cc as such cars are the cheapest to insure for first timers.

The bigger the engine the higher the insurance premium or companies even refusing to insure you.

Raja · 10th October 2010, 22:44

@ sachinj12

Sorry, no idea about USA. I have only lived in UK. My experience is limited to UK.

One place to try is car insurance brokers.
Most used to advertise in 'Auto-Trader' and those type of magazines. Just look at the back pages of car magazines and hopefully they should still advertise there.

If you are new to UK, brokers might be a good starting point as they specialise in insuring out of routine cases. They do the legwork in finding the best quote for you. Direct insurance companies are not always the cheapest.

simply_sunny001 · 11th October 2010, 02:18

Cyrus, there is no other way out of it at least a honest way as i have seen people getting false NCB letters from india and getting lesser quotes.

But i dont agree to such things and dont suggest as well.

And if you are living in london, i mean proper london you dont need a car soo much if you dont have a family, kids etc.

and you can get cars rented per hour basis by using Streetcar thing when you have to do small trips like grocery shopping etc etc and rent out a car for outstation trips from avis/hertz.

and it works perfectly well.

jaaz · 26th October 2010, 13:08

@Raja, Can you answer my previous question -

Now, I've question for you and others in UK. Recently, I was in UK and as per my friends, without Insurance, I can't drive their Cars. And the Insurance Companies will not insure visitors. So, even though Cars were available, I'd to hire a Car, just because of Insurance. Is there any way, that visitors can get insured to drive personal cars?

This question applies to US also. I'm planning to go to US once again. The only problem is about the Insurance? I may borrow my Friends Vehicle.

6th October 2010, 04:46	#1
Cyrus43 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: London Posts: 5,019 Thanked: 230 Times View My Garage	Indian insurance cover for a UK car? Just wanted to know opinions on this from the insurance experts. Insuring a car in the UK is a HUGE pain. So I wanted to know..
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 03:09	#2
simply_sunny001 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: London & Rohtak Posts: 1,338 Thanked: 19 Times View My Garage	no i dont think so as company need to be registered here for doing business and the regulations here are much tougher than india. whats the problem cyrus, you are facing in getting the car insured ? Only thing i am aware of is the high premium for first time but some companies like HSBC do honour the NCB from indian insurance.
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 04:49	#3
Cyrus43 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: London Posts: 5,019 Thanked: 230 Times View My Garage	Yeah. I am having HUGE issues about getting a car insured. That is the reason I cant buy a car. :(
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 06:23	#4
VooDoo BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: CA, US Posts: 59 Thanked: 0 Times	Surprising! as I found it was much easier in UK than in US. They honoured my Indian NCB, Indian driver License and Indian driving experience as well. As far as I can remember, I went with Directline, then Tesco and then (probably) with More.
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 09:09	#5
condor Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Speed-brkr City Posts: 16,242 Thanked: 16,858 Times View My Garage	First time insurance is often like that. Typical option is to go with a second rung / fringe players for the first couple of months. Once you have that small record, you can try for the regular insurance. This is the approach we have used when we were in US.
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 09:14	#6
Cyrus43 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: London Posts: 5,019 Thanked: 230 Times View My Garage	The Problem though, Is that I dont really have any NCB. The cars are Cheap. It is the insurance that kills it.
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 10:15	#7
condor Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Speed-brkr City Posts: 16,242 Thanked: 16,858 Times View My Garage	The first insurance will help you build/create a NCB. When I first went to US, the All State Insurance guy himself asked me to go to another provider for 2 months, and then switch to All State. (All State was one of the bigger providers).
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 10:29	#8
buntydey BHPian Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 155 Thanked: 3 Times View My Garage	Post deleted by the Team-BHP Support : Please do NOT post one-liners that add little or no informational value to the thread. We need your co-operation to maintain the overall quality of this forum. Please read our rules before proceeding any further. Last edited by GTO : 27th October 2010 at 19:02.
	() Thanks $Received Infraction$

10th October 2010, 14:15	#9
jaaz BHPian Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Earth Posts: 674 Thanked: 678 Times	No, Indian Insurance Companies cannot insure a vehicle registered outside India. The Vehicle in question should be used within the borders of India. But when it comes to Life Insurance, it's different. The Life assured can be in any part of the world. The General Insurance is a bit complicated. I don't know much about UK rules, but, what I've heard from others is to go for some other Insurance companies who may do it with a higher premium and then switch to a reputed one. Now, I've question for you and others in UK. Recently, I was in UK and as per my friends, without Insurance, I can't drive their Cars. And the Insurance Companies will not insure visitors. So, even though Cars were available, I'd to hire a Car, just because of Insurance. Is there any way, that visitors can get insured to drive personal cars?
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 20:56	#10
Raja BHPian Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Pune Posts: 419 Thanked: 70 Times	Insurance in UK is based on a person and not a vehicle. It is the person that builds up No Claims Bonus by avoiding or not making any claims throughout one year. NCB is usually based on 12 months of claims free motoring. When someone without any UK NCB wants to insure a vehicle, the insurance company assess what kind of risk you are and then creates a premium accordingly. There are some barriers that when you cross, helps bring down premiums: 1) Off course making it through one year without a claim 2) Age. 18yrs old, you are going to get fleeced in terms of the premium, 21yrs old, gets slightly better, 25yrs old, now you can afford to insure your dream car. 3) The car itself. Cars are in insurance groups, 1 lowest and cheapest - 20 highest and most expensive. Off course, the higher the insurance group, the higher the premium. Many times you will find that on the second hand car market, a lower insurance group car will command a premium compared to a higher insurance group car! 4) Additional drivers that are added to the main principle driver are also thoroughly examined. e.g. trying to get dad to become the main principle driver and then adding young son/daughter as additional driver to keep the premiums low. 5) You have to declare all vehicles in the household if questioned. Remember, in UK, all main insurance companies tap into one central database for most information. Lying about number of cars in household or the fact that you had an accident 7-8 yrs ago (hoping they have forgotten) will get you caught. Welcome to Big Brother Society. There are suggestions of switching insurance companies after a while, remember, you MUST stay with a company for 12 months and be claims free to get your NCB. At the end of your first year, when you receive your renewal notice, it mentions your NCB. Your next insurance company might ask for a photocopy of renewal notice or simply company name and policy number. They will automatically check via their internal system (and that central database) to confirm you are telling the truth. Personal Experience. When I insured my Lexus in UK, to add my wife on as an additional driver (even though she had not passed her test i.e. Learner Licence) and the fact she was over 30yrs old, my insurance premium went up by 1p - that's right ONE PENCE! Buying a car in UK is extremely easy and relatively cheap. It's the Insurance, Road Tax, and Servicing that will kill you! Driving a vehicle without insurance is a criminal offence and can land you in jail. Last edited by Amartya : 10th October 2010 at 21:29. Reason: Edited out a reference deemed gratuitous.
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 21:18	#11
sachinj12 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 1,187 Thanked: 169 Times	@ Raja, whatever you mentioned, is it applicable in US of A too? Suppose I go to US/UK to pursue higher studies, how difficult is to get a international license and an insurance?
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 22:36	#12
Brabus E V12 BHPian Join Date: May 2008 Location: London/NewDelhi Posts: 392 Thanked: 56 Times	Cyrus have you tried these websites? Confused.com Cheap Car Insurance and Home Insurance Quotes Comparison Cheap loans \| mortgages \| credit cards \| home & car insurance - moneysupermarket.com Car insurance & Home insurance - Challenge us for cheap insurance - Direct Line Gocompare.com Cheap Car Insurance UK \| Online Car Insurance Quote \| Home & Life Insurance \| MORE TH>N I would be very surprised if you cannot manage to get a quote from one of the above. I would suggest you go in for a car which is no more than 1200cc as such cars are the cheapest to insure for first timers. The bigger the engine the higher the insurance premium or companies even refusing to insure you.
	() Thanks

10th October 2010, 22:44	#13
Raja BHPian Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Pune Posts: 419 Thanked: 70 Times	@ sachinj12 Sorry, no idea about USA. I have only lived in UK. My experience is limited to UK. One place to try is car insurance brokers. Most used to advertise in 'Auto-Trader' and those type of magazines. Just look at the back pages of car magazines and hopefully they should still advertise there. If you are new to UK, brokers might be a good starting point as they specialise in insuring out of routine cases. They do the legwork in finding the best quote for you. Direct insurance companies are not always the cheapest.
	() Thanks

11th October 2010, 02:18	#14
simply_sunny001 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: London & Rohtak Posts: 1,338 Thanked: 19 Times View My Garage	Cyrus, there is no other way out of it at least a honest way as i have seen people getting false NCB letters from india and getting lesser quotes. But i dont agree to such things and dont suggest as well. And if you are living in london, i mean proper london you dont need a car soo much if you dont have a family, kids etc. and you can get cars rented per hour basis by using Streetcar thing when you have to do small trips like grocery shopping etc etc and rent out a car for outstation trips from avis/hertz. and it works perfectly well.
	() Thanks

26th October 2010, 13:08	#15
jaaz BHPian Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Earth Posts: 674 Thanked: 678 Times	@Raja, Can you answer my previous question - Now, I've question for you and others in UK. Recently, I was in UK and as per my friends, without Insurance, I can't drive their Cars. And the Insurance Companies will not insure visitors. So, even though Cars were available, I'd to hire a Car, just because of Insurance. Is there any way, that visitors can get insured to drive personal cars? This question applies to US also. I'm planning to go to US once again. The only problem is about the Insurance? I may borrow my Friends Vehicle.
	() Thanks