Car Insurance

Paying for your hire car excess insurance

Essentially, there are two principal ways of paying for your hire car excess insurance, so it might be helpful briefly to compare the two:

Buying from your car rental company

• when you pick up your hire car, the company typically advises you of the excess that applies to any car rental insurance you may also have bought;

• the amount of that excess – an effectively uninsured liability for which you remain responsible – varies from company to company and from country to country, but may range from several hundred to rather more than a thousand pounds;

• because of the large sums typically quoted in the company’s rental and insurance agreement, therefore, the option of purchasing hire car excess insurance may be offered;

• optional excess insurance cover is typically quoted at a daily rate;

• you might consider that the cost of the daily premium is high and adds a considerable percentage to the overall cost of your car hire;

• typically, you may purchase such insurance from the rental company either at the time of paying for your rental or at the check-in desk;

Buying from a specialist hire car insurance provider

• an alternative source for the purchase of your hire car excess insurance is a specialist provider;

• these independent providers are registered with and regulated by the UK’s Financial Services Authority and sell standalone insurance policies that might nonetheless supplement your car rental agreement;

• not only are such providers specialists in their field, you might also find that the excess insurance they offer may often be cheaper than that arranged by your car rental company;

• furthermore, the excess cover provided might also extend financial protection to you for any damage caused to your hire car’s windows, roof, underside or tyres (areas typically excluded from the insurance cover offered by many rental companies);

• a one time purchase of a standalone product from such an insurance provider may give you year round cover for multiple car rental periods during any number of trips either to Europe, the United States or the rest of the world;

• the different packages are each likely to come at a different price and it might simply be a question of deciding where in the world you are most likely to be travelling;

• if you are deciding from which of these two suppliers you wish to purchase your hire car excess insurance, you might wish to give serious consideration to an independent specialist provider.

Fast Cars Need Solid Insurance

photo credit: Aaron_Rosenberg

It may seem obvious, however, many sports car enthusiasts feel that because they only drive their cars to and from trade-shows, occasional exhibitions, or out for an impressive night on the town, they do not need the added expense of premium car insurance. The unfortunate truth of the matter is that Newton’s Law remains in effect. No matter how carefully we park our new toys and vintage classics several spaces away from that dented minivan, we must prepare for the worst.

Recently, a close friend of mine was very excited to show me what his newly modified Mustang Cobra, complete with over 500 hp, was capable of on the highway. I secured the safety belt over both shoulders and leaned back into the incredibly comfortable seat. As we pulled out of the neighborhood, heads turned hundreds of feet before we passed, and next strained to allow our audience to follow the thunderous sounds of the engine. Within seconds of entering our local interstate, he flew from first to fifth gear much faster than I had expected. As we hit 165 miles an hour, my heart pounded loudly in my ear as the force pushed me farther back into the seat.

Clearly, the vehicle was a thrill to own and an absolute dream to drive. After a few short months of burning copious amounts of overpriced premium fuel and bankrolling bar tabs to secure his image, he was worse than broke. He was in debt. In order to keep up with the payments, he decided to drop his insurance policy for a few months to get his finances back under control.

Although it seemed like a good idea at the time, he was driving around a monthly bill that was higher than his rent with no protection. He had to stop shopping at his favorite local organic food stores and revert to penny-pinching at Wal-Mart. Upon returning to his once stunning red and black Cobra from inside the store, he found the passenger side of the car scraped of its paint from hood to trunk. The note left behind for him read, “Sorry, hope your insurance covers this.”

His faint memory of the Forest Green minivan that he had parked next to when reaching the store was not enough of a lead for the police report. The costs to repair the exterior damages of which were in thousands, were minute compared to what it would cost to replace the 20 inch chrome alloy rims and internal damage to the suspension.

If you are unhappy with your current insurance premiums or feel that you cannot afford premium coverage, speak with your agent before canceling. If you feel that your agent has not done a good enough job of finding sufficient coverage at a cost you are comfortable with, shop around. Whatever you do, do not cancel your policy or sign up with an unreliable internet insurance company.

It is important to understand what your policy covers, how much your deductibles are, and when there may be savings available to you. There are plenty of agents hungry for your business. Insurance is in place to prevent financial struggle, lower your unexpected expenses and minimize the out of pocket costs of collisions, totals and the unexpected attack of uncoordinated minivan drivers.

F. P. Clark is a claims consultant from Great Britain. He suggests creating a photo archive to document your property in case of a loss. This is also a way to make certain that your home contents insurance coverage accurately covers any possible losses.

Mechanical Breakdown Insurance

Buying a brand new car? never bought one before? Finding the expenses tallying up already? Let’s get the biggest question out of the way straight away, do you need mechanical breakdown insurance from the outset, the answer is a definite NO. OK, yes you do but any new car from a showroom should come with manufacturers warranty for at least the first three years.

What does this do? It ties you into the garage for service, it’s a safety net for you but also a recurring revenue stream for the garage that sold you the car. Usually the terms and conditions of the in house mechanical breakdown insurance will state that you need to take your car in for a check up after every 10,000 miles, so you could be in and out three or four times a year depending on mileage.

That’s where the comparisons needs to be made, the small print, the terms and conditions, the value of work carried out and how much would end up being free of charge and part of the service. For instance if it costs a minimum £360 each service check up which covers all electronic faults, maintenance and oil change and when compared to an independent non model specialist works out to be the better deal then you’re on to a winner.

However if the mechanical breakdown insurance is double that of an independent garage, perhaps a warranty elsewhere would be best. Mechanical breakdown insurance comes into its own on older second hand models, do you need it?

Yes and no, as the electronics in a car become more and more advanced and intelligent the yes gets bigger and bigger, as it’s no longer a case of a nut being loose when computerised systems fail to work when ignition is flipped.

Instant Trailer Insurance A Big Hit

If there’s one thing people have in common with insurance and getting it in place, then it’s instant quotes, decisions, payment and cover and trailer insurance is one of the fastest with very little paperwork involved.

In fact in the time it takes you to read this article, you could have trailer insurance set up for your flat bed, horse trailer, tipping or box trailer by the end.

Instant trailer insurance is a big hit, with the ability to make comparisons online, you can easily compare quotes for horse trailers, catering trailers or anything that is towed behind a vehicle on the open road.

Most trailer insurance is easy to understand and sift through, the basics are new for old trailer and a replacement if under three years old, cover against accidental damage, fire and theft with at least thirty days cover when in transit through Europe.

Trailer insurance isn’t just for the trailer either, for example if you’re towing a fairground ride, a catering unit or a trailer tent you can find specific trailer insurance which will cover the value of what’s being towed as well as any damage or malfunction to the trailer itself.

When looking for trailer insurance whether it’s for a boat trailer, box van trailer, plant trailer or platform trailer remember there’s three parts to the quote, the frame, the wheels and the contents and what’s being carried. Compare the public liability and the replacement value and you’ll be able to compare quickly which premium and excess is best for your trailer insurance situation.

The good news is that your trailer can be quoted on and insured within half an hour of applying with documents arriving in the post the next day. Don’t risk your trailer and value of its content because it seems like another lengthy insurance nightmare, instant cover and peace of mind is possible in minutes when seeking out trailer insurance.

Car Insurance Breakdown Cover

Car Insurance Breakdown Cover

Car insurance brokers and insurers are championing new parliamentary legislation which makes it illegal for any one who owns a car to not have car insurance whether parked up or on the road.

However while several brokers are stating that the uninsured costs the average car insurance policyholder up to £30 a year extra, will prices actually come down?

The good news is three fold. It’s been a long term belief of many that if you have a car then it should have full breakdown insurance and be insured just like any other motor vehicle irrespective if it is continually on the road or not.

So firstly all cars in an incident will now or should be now fully insured, secondly premiums should fall and thirdly, recent news that the Office of Fair Trading is to halt an insurer process which enables insurance houses to compare their own products against each other and keep insurance policy prices inflated artificially.

Rather than save the premium payer £30 a year on car insurance and breakdown cover as insurers seemingly profess without actually stating any future price reductions themselves, the actions by the OFT and the new legislation should see prices fall much further across the board for every type of car insurance.

The funny side to all of this is the way an industry usually reacts to future news and puts measures in place before announcement, according to other reports, car insurance premiums rose a whopping forty percent during 2010 which should wipe out any good faith any insurance comparison shopper might have had in the market.

That’s not so say that there aren’t still deals and discounts to be found when searching out the best car insurance for your vehicle this year. Compare online and take your time finding the right car breakdown insurance policy to meet your needs.

Car Insurance Comparison

Car insurance is something we all have to deal with, and every year you probably just renew your existing policy to save time and hassle. Did you know that you could save hundreds of pounds by conducting a car insurance comparison online? There are loads of websites around dedicated to comparing car insurance, try out comparethemarket.com or gocompare.com to find cheap quotes.

There are three levels of car insurance available: third party only; third party, fire & theft; and comprehensive. If price is the major factor in your decision, you could consider third party insurance but you should be aware that you will be missing out on important features. This is the most basic level of cover that you are required to hold by law, but will only cover damage sustained to the other driver’s car. It is usually more appropriate to take out third party insurance if your car is of a very low value.

The next level of cover is third party, fire & theft, and as the name suggests, this cover will cover you in the event of fire and theft as well as standard third party insurance. More often than not, it is recommended that you obtain a fully comprehensive car insurance quotation which can offer you full financial protection in the event of an accident.

When you are carrying out car insurance comparison, make sure that you are comparing like-for-like quotes or could end up paying out for the wrong type of cover. Most comparison sites will allow you to tailor your quotation online and see the relevant annual premium. If you are not happy with any features of the policy offered, you could always pick the top competitors and contact them individually.

You should expect to receive a more expensive quote if you have recently obtained your full UK driving licence; are under the age of 25; live in an urban area with high rates of crime; have a previous driving offence or criminal conviction; or if you drive a car in a high insurance category.