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Car Insurance Guides & FAQsBaffled by terms? Need tips on getting cheap car insurance?Read our car insurance guide to learn how to find the cheapest motor insurance quotes and obtain the cover that best suits your motoring needs. Understand how UK car insurance companies operate and how your personal circumstances affect the cost of your insurance. Learn how to lower your premium and compare car insurance companies to find the best quotes.

· Car Insurance Guides
Learn how to get cheap motor insurance quotes and better cover by reading our car insurance guides.

How to get the best car insurance deal
Car insurance is almost certainly the financial product most commonly held by consumers in the UK, with the possible exception of a bank or savings account. This is hardly surprising: if you drive a vehicle, insurance is compulsory.

In theory, this ought to make everyone a car insurance expert, able to get the best deal on their motor cover.

Yet too many of us tend to stick with the same insurer for too long and end up paying hundreds of pounds more a year than we need to. We only change policies when premiums become very noticeably too dear.

Conversely, we pat ourselves on the back because we have found ultra-cheap car insurance – only to discover that when we make a claim, certain items were never covered under the terms of that policy.

Shopping around is the starting point for anyone who wants the best car insurance deal. Our car insurance comparison tool allows you to search for and compare quotes from more than 60 top insurers and brokers in the UK.

But knowing how motor insurance works can help you get an even better deal – not just on price but in terms of the service you may need from your insurer. This guide is designed to help you achieve that.

It tries to answer some of the most typical concerns of motorists: everything from explaining how your quote is set and tips on how to cut the cost of your cover, to the various steps involved in making a claim.

We also offer a jargon-buster – explaining some of the more typical terms used when taking out car insurance.

Of course, no guide can ever attempt to answer every query. If you have any further questions,

How to get the best car insurance deal.
Third party: the minimum type of motor insurance you can take out is “third party”. This covers liability for:
· Injuries to other people, including passengers
· Damage to other people`s property
· Passengers for accidents caused by them
· Arising from the use of caravan or trailer while attached to the car.
TIP: Third party cover is OK for people who cannot afford a better type of car insurance.
It may make sense if you are driving an old banger where almost any repair would cost more than the car is worth, or where its replacement might only cost a couple of hundred pounds at most.
But if your car costs more to replace, you need to consider something better.
Third party, fire and theft: the next step up is “third party, fire and theft”, sometimes written as TPFT. This provides the above cover, plus fire or theft of the vehicle. If you are at fault in the event of an accident, TPFT will not pay for repairs to your car.
TIP: TPFT cover is useful for those whose car is not worth much – but would still cost more to replace than the cost of excesses. It can also be useful for younger drivers who might find fully comprehensive policies very costly, those who only drive occasionally or have minimal no-claims bonuses.
But it is generally unsuitable for regular drivers, or those with expensive cars.
Fully comprehensive: this is the most complete form of car insurance and protects against the above, plus:
· Accidental damage to your car
· Personal accident benefit
· Medical expenses
· Loss of or damage to personal effects in the car
TIP: Not all “fully comp” insurance is the same. Although all insurers will cover off the basics, many will offer additional variants on their policies, such as courtesy cars in the event of theft, breakdown or accident, or protected no-claims bonuses.
You may also want free cover for driving in Europe and, in some cases, legal aid when the accident is not your fault. These benefits may incur an extra cost.

What kind of motor insurance do you need?
What drives the cost of car insurance
People often grumble about rising car insurance costs. Why do prices go up?
Clearly, there are many factors that influence the quote you will be given. Some are personal to you and will be discussed in another section of this guide.
Others depend on the level of benefits you want from your motor insurance policy. Details of these – which you can pick and choose between and thereby influence the price you pay – are also detailed elsewhere.
But there are factors that you have little or no control over and depend on outside circumstances.
Here are some factors that influence how much you pay for your motor insurance.
1) The soaring cost of litigation: drivers are more likely nowadays to claim for personal injury, like a serious case of whiplash, and the amounts paid out for injuries are much higher than they used to be.
Insurers have attempted to intervene to control these costs. But courts that find in favour of claimants still make very significant awards in cases of serious injury or death. And from the point of view of claimants, this is a positive thing.
2) NHS costs: accident and emergency departments can now claim for cost of treatment from the insurance company. This includes ambulance costs.
If you are the blameless victim of an accident, the bill will be paid by the opposite party’s insurer. Conversely, if you are to blame, your insurer will have to pick up the tab. NHS bills can, perhaps surprisingly, be very expensive.
3) Uninsured drivers: official statistics say that one in 20 drivers is uninsured. But recent research carried out by pollsters Mori suggests that this figure is more like one in 10 drivers, albeit that the uninsured period in many cases may run to just a few days or a few weeks.
This is cold comfort to someone who is involved in an accident with an uninsured driver. This adds around £30 to the average annual premium.
Ironically, this can produce a Catch-22 situation: as premiums get higher it becomes even more tempting for some people not to take out car insurance.
4) Stock markets: few people realise that insurers try to “stockpile” funds so that they can pay out in the case of claims. This means money taken in premiums is often invested until it is then paid out.
This strategy is more obvious in the case of home insurance, where storms can lead to very large – and sudden – claims. But to a lesser extent it also applies in the case of motor insurance policies.
Inevitably, this is not much use if markets are plummeting. Again, the recovery in world stock markets since 2003 is what has helped keep premiums at “reasonable” levels.