Insurance Warning

[chrisjcoe]

I don't think that insurance checker is free though, perhaps the club could provide this service?

 

[GlennS]

ORIGINAL: chrisjcoe I don't think that insurance checker is free though, perhaps the club could provide this service?

Checking your own vehicle's insurance status is free [link]http://ownvehicle.askmid.com/[/link]

 

[geoff Ives]

ORIGINAL: ChasR

ORIGINAL: geoff ives A little advice. When you renew on the phone/online request that a certificate of insurance is e-mailed to you imeadiately. I usually say that it is required for an event that I have entered.

Some insurance companies refuse to do this, since they said many people will say that the certificate in a home printed form will not be acceptable. My local post office used to get quite funny about this as well until very recently. Thankfully that number seems to be dwindling. I am similar to Simon in how I check whether my cars are insured or not .

That is why I say I need it for an event... You can't convince them that you need it for road tax if you currently have tax... they can check that. The bottom line is to ask if the actually want your business.

 

[tscaptain]

ORIGINAL: GlennS

ORIGINAL: chrisjcoe I don't think that insurance checker is free though, perhaps the club could provide this service?

Checking your own vehicle's insurance status is free [link]http://ownvehicle.askmid.com/[/link]

Curious. I put my other car reg in on the askmid website. Not on the database it said! Odd as the renewal went through on the 8th June. Phoned insurer who said phone DVLA. Phoned DVLA and they said "nothing to do with us, contact MID" You can't contact MID - and certainly if you could they wouldn't change anything on my say-so! FAQ on their website says if the reg doesn't appear on the website I may be pulled over by the boys in blue - contact your insurer! Full circle. Second call to insurer who said the underwriters are the ones with the power to add details to the MID and why mine hadn't was a mystery. Of course had this thread not appeared the first I would have known about it would have been either when I was pulled over or tried to tax the car. Moral of the story - you may be insured but that doesn't mean the database, which everyone uses, is necessarily correct!

 

[GlennS]

ORIGINAL: tscaptain

ORIGINAL: GlennS

ORIGINAL: chrisjcoe I don't think that insurance checker is free though, perhaps the club could provide this service?

Checking your own vehicle's insurance status is free [link]http://ownvehicle.askmid.com/[/link]

Curious. I put my other car reg in on the askmid website. Not on the database it said! Odd as the renewal went through on the 8th June. Phoned insurer who said phone DVLA. Phoned DVLA and they said "nothing to do with us, contact MID" You can't contact MID - and certainly if you could they wouldn't change anything on my say-so! FAQ on their website says if the reg doesn't appear on the website I may be pulled over by the boys in blue - contact your insurer! Full circle. Second call to insurer who said the underwriters are the ones with the power to add details to the MID and why mine hadn't was a mystery. Of course had this thread not appeared the first I would have known about it would have been either when I was pulled over or tried to tax the car. Moral of the story - you may be insured but that doesn't mean the database, which everyone uses, is necessarily correct!

GIGO - the age old law of computers. "Garbage In, Garbage Out". The problem with any database of this sort is that it very often depends on "someone" entering the data. Human beings are fallible and data entry problems do occur - an incorrect digit (5 instead of a 6), someone forgets to do it... etc, etc. I always carry a current copy of my insurance certificate in the car glovebox and I check the database online after renewal to make sure it is correct.

 

[tscaptain]

ORIGINAL: GlennS GIGO - the age old law of computers. "Garbage In, Garbage Out".

I think this is more a case of "Nothing in, nothing out"[]

 

[geoff Ives]

Let's try an experiment. Time 10:28. Sturday 3rd. August. I have just renewed my policy with Heritage Insurance. I told them I wanted my Certificate e-mailed to me and I told them why. I will post again when I recieve it.

 

[geoff Ives]

ORIGINAL: geoff ives Let's try an experiment. Time 10:28. I have just renewed my policy with Heritage Insurance. I told them I wanted me Certificate e-mailed to me and I told them why. I will post again when I recieve it.

Certificate recieved 10:31. How's that for service.

 

[tscaptain]

Try another experiment Geoff. Over the following days put your reg in here http://ownvehicle.askmid.com/ and see if and when it shows that you have insurance![] It would seem that having a certificate, or even carrying one around in the glovebox, will not stop you getting pulled over and having to go through all the hassle of proving you are actually insured if your car doesn't appear on that database.

 

[rob.kellock]

ORIGINAL: chrisjcoe This is an important thing to remember, saying you believed you were insured does not mean a thing, even if you have circumstantial evidence to back it up. At the end of the day, if you are not insured, you are not insured, and it would be up to you to seek redress if you were justified. Then, you'd have to have the same fight with the DVLA over any penalties that they applied.

You would have no fight with the DVLA. The police would prosecute you for driving with no insurance and you would be summoned to appear before the Magistrates Court for the area you were stopped in. The only involvement the DVLA would have would be if you were convicted, your licence was ordered to be endorsed and you failed to surrender it for the points / disqualification to be added.

You wouldnt have received an endorsement or fine either, with an experienced motoring solicitor (special reasons argument).

You may well be right, but affording a solicitor is a bit of a problem for a lot of people.

You would have an almost textbook special reasons application but you it would be by no means guaranteed to succeed - I think some Magistrates would expect you to check that the premium monies left your account and/or query sooner why you didn't receive your certificate. I have never lost a case in similar circumstances but awaiting the decision gets nerve wracking sometimes and I have seen it happen. Unfortunately, special reasons applications follow a guilty plea so even if you win, you can't make a defence costs application to get your legal costs back (and even if you could, these are now restricted to legal aid rates so you end up out of pocket when you are completely innocent these days). Quite a cautionary tale really.

 

[geoff Ives]

ORIGINAL: tscaptain Try another experiment Geoff. Over the following days put your reg in here http://ownvehicle.askmid.com/ and see if and when it shows that you have insurance![] It would seem that having a certificate, or even carrying one around in the glovebox, will not stop you getting pulled over and having to go through all the hassle of proving you are actually insured if your car doesn't appear on that database.

OK. I entered 2 X Porsche cars, 1 Rover 200 and 3XDucati motorcycles... All OK. Geoff