Car insurance

Legally, you must have at least third party cover for any car used on roads and in public places in the UK. This will cover for accidental damage against someone else's vehicle or property, but won't cover damage to your own vehicle.

If you drive or own a vehicle you are legally required to have third party insurance, at a minimum. If you have a car that you don't use then you can avoid paying to insure it by taking out a SORN (Statutory Off-Road Notification), and keeping it off the road (e.g. in a garage).

It depends.

Some insurance companies offer cover to drive cars which are not your own as an add-on, but this isn't commonplace.

Before driving someone else's car, be sure to check your policy documentation or call your insurer directly. If you aren't covered, you can always take out a short-term or temporary car insurance.

Statistically speaking, younger drivers (aged under 25) are more likely to be involved in accidents. With increased risk on the part of the insurer comes and increased financial burden on the part of the driver. Insurance prices dramatically reduce when you turn 25.

A no-claims bonus is a discount you can get on your insurance premiums by having a number of years in which you haven’t made a claim on your policy.

The longer the period of time you have gone without making a claim, the larger the discount you will be given on your premiums.

If you have a good history of not claiming and have a minor accident, it is often worth looking at paying for the repairs yourself; it will save your no claims discount from being reset and might work out better financially in the long term.

Can I protect my no claims bonus?

Yes you can. Some insurers will allow you to protect your no claims bonus if you are in an accident, but for an additional annual fee. It is worth investigating how much this fee is against how many year's no claims discount you have already; if you don't haven't gone too many years without claiming it might not be worth the additional cost to your premium.

There isn't an industry-wide rule regarding this. However, if you haven’t had an active car insurance policy for more than 2 years, you may struggle to get your new insurer to honour your previous no-claims history.

This depends on the insurer you end up going with though, so it is best to check with the provider if they are an exception to this general rule.

Yes, and there are a few different options.

If you are buying your own insurance policy, you will need to tell your new insurer that you are not the owner of the car when applying.

Otherwise, you can add yourself as a named driver onto the car owner's policy. This is commonly done if the car belongs to a family member or partner.

The car insurance excess is the amount you commit to paying if you make a claim your car insurance.

Usually the higher your excess, the lower the cost of your policy. When taking out a new policy you can volunteer to increase your excess to decrease the overall cost of the policy.

If you are in a car accident, the first thing to do is stop! It is an offence to drive away.

After that you should take the following steps:

• Check yourself, passengers, and any other people who were involved in the incident to see if they need medical assistance. Call an ambulance if needed on 999.
• Take the details down of any other parties involved in the incident, including their vehicle registration number and who their insurance company is. If you can, collect details from witnesses as well.
• Take photos if necessary.
• Contact your insurer.

For more information on what to do, check out our helpful guide on making a claim.

Car insurance providers look at a range of different factors when offering policies, including a driver's age, job, driving history, and credit score. Your credit score could affect your car insurance premium, as well as the likelihood you will be offered a policy by a provider, but it is not the only factor taken into account.