Been driving without insurance for a year without knowing!!!

[Tvquizhelp]

Very long story short - need some advice desperately please -

I’ve just discovered I’ve been driving my car without insurance for a year. Went online to renew as its in my diary to expire next week and made the discovery that it is, in fact, currently uninsured.

How this has happened is a long, irrelevant story so won’t be going into details, that’s not why I’m posting. I will of course be calling tonight to take out insurance. I literally feel sick this has happened.

Does anyone know what happens in this scenario? Do insurers ask who the last years insurance was with? How does it work with the no claims discount discrepancy in years etc??

I know I won’t be the first or last for this to have happened to. I’m desperate for advice. Thanks so much in advance

The mse website has a whole bit on the optimum time to do motor insurance- the price DOES fluctuate according to when you buy it.

Okay, so, some misinformation in this thread.

Your NCB will be fine - it lasts for two years for almost all insurers (though it is a discretionary discount so although I can't think of any this might not be true for all).

Price does fluctuate depending on when you sort the insurance, from memory 26 days before renewal gets the best price, with it going up marginally every day closer to your renewal date. Again, this will be different for different insurers but it's considered a risk factor, as well as just business sense. At the last minute they don't have to tempt you with good deals - you need the insurance at that day so someone will take it. Plus statistically last minute sallys cost the business more money than people who set aside some time to research the best deals. With insurance EVERYTHING is a risk factor (except protected characteristics because that would be illegal).

Just sort the insurance to start today and it'll be fine. No one will even question it.

Tax isn’t an issue with this car

Tax is an issue with every car, by the sounds of it yours just costs £0. You still need to renew it online every year otherwise you're not taxed either.

I had this happen to me. I phoned up to renew the day before it expired and also changed the names of named drivers on my policy. Assumed allhad been done. Received what I thought was the new certificate. Had my car broken into/window smashed and even paid the excess in order to get the glass replaced, rather than claim. Then, a year later, discovered that the company had failed to renew it. I was apoleptic with rage. The company then, having pointed out the error to them, tried to bill me/threatened to take me to court for the full cost of the repairs that I had successfully 'claimed' on a none existent policy. They had a record that I had phoned the day before the policy was due to expire and had even changed the named drivers on the policy which was due to expire several hours later! Yet still they said that this was insufficient proof that I had actually instructed them to renew my policy. I was incredulous and kept asking what reason I would have for calling them up to change the named driver for just three hours!! And of course it buggered up my no claims. Unfortunately the new insurers were very understanding and allowed me a grace period in which to produce evidence of their cock up/previous no claims. And eventually, after me having to lose it on the phone to the initial crap insurers, they agreed to write a letter to my new insurer which sorted everything out.

You have 2 years to put your NCB on another vehicle, before you lose it.

Just goes to show how many ANPR cameras actually work!!