You have to have motor insurance before you can drive your vehicle in a
public place.
Why motor insurance is required
Motor insurance protects
you, your vehicle and other motorists against liability in the event of any
accident. It provides financial compensation to cover any injuries caused to
people or their property.
Types of
insurance cover
Third party only
This cover is the legal
requirement. This level of cover ensures that compensation is available in
respect of injury to other people (including your passengers) or damage to
other peoples' property resulting from an accident caused by you. It doesn't
cover any costs incurred by you as the result of an accident.Most insurance companies offer additional levels of insurance cover that go beyond the legal requirement. The precise nature of cover will vary from company to company.
Third party fire and theft
This provides the same
cover as third party only and also insures you should your vehicle be damaged
by fire or stolen.
Comprehensive
This provides the same
cover as third party fire and theft. However, it also covers you should your
vehicle be damaged in an accident. Many additions to this level of cover are
available from insurance companies including:- providing a courtesy car while your car is being repaired, legal
expenses, insurance to recover your uninsured losses (such as your excess)
- roadside recovery schemes
- vehicle repairs in case of breakdown
If you're involved in an accident
If you have an accident
that causes damage or injury to any other person, vehicle, animal or property,
you must give both your own and the vehicle owner's name and address, along
with the registration number of the vehicle, to anyone having reasonable
grounds for requiring them. If you don't give your details then you should report the accident to the police as soon as possible within 24 hours. You must also report the accident to your insurer, even if you're not intending to make a claim.
If you're involved in an accident with an
uninsured motorist
Any accident with an
uninsured driver should be reported to the police. You should also report any
accident to your insurer, who'll advise you further as regards to any claim.
Additionally, the Motor Insurers' Bureau (MIB) ensures that compensation is available
to the innocent victims of uninsured drivers or hit and run (untraced) drivers.
United Kingdom (UK) motor insurance and
driving overseas
All UK policies provide the
minimum cover required by law in other European Union (EU) countries or the minimum
cover required by UK law if that is greater. This cover doesn't automatically
include theft or damage to your car. Most people want the same protection they have in the UK when travelling abroad, for example comprehensive or third party, fire and theft. This could, in addition to the legal minimum of third party liability cover, include accidental damage to, or theft of or from, your own vehicle depending on the policy cover.
A number of insurers automatically provide this extended cover for a specified period and often without additional charge. It's important, however, that you check with your insurer or insurance adviser before you go abroad.
The Green Card system and driving overseas
Outside of the EU, a Green
Card provides proof that your domestic motor insurance policy covers the
minimum legal requirements in the country being visited.
The Green Card system
The
Green Card system is designed to make it easier for vehicles to move freely
over borders and to protect the interests of the victims of foreign registered
vehicles.
The Green Card
The Green Card is a
document that is recognized in over 40 countries including all the countries of
Europe.It offers no insurance cover. It is proof that the minimum legal requirements for third party liability insurance in any country for which the Green Card is valid are covered by the insured person's own motor policy.
It’s overseen by the Economic Commission for Europe based in Geneva.
Where the Green Card is needed
A Green Card is not
required by law to cross borders within the European Union and some other
countries. This is because all EU countries and certain other countries comply
with the first directive on motor insurance, which says that every insurance
policy issued in the EU must provide the minimum insurance cover required by
law in any other EU country. The countries that don't need a Green Card are:
Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
The countries that do need a Green Card are: Albania, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), Islamic Republic of Iran, Israel, Moldava, Morocco, Russia, Serbia and Montenegro, Tunisia, Turkey and Ukraine.
Where to get a Green Card
Many insurers will issue a
Green Card, but have no obligation to do so. If they won't, you may wish to
make enquiries with other insurers or ask about getting border insurance at the
point of entry into the country.The Green Card document itself is only proof that the minimum third party liability cover required by law in the visited country is in force. You should check with your insurer to make sure that your UK policy cover is fully in force when you travel abroad whether or not a Green Card is issued.
Within the countries where frontier inspection is no longer required, the Green Card is still the insurance document most readily recognised and understood by national police forces. As you may need to produce evidence of insurance other than at a border for example after an accident, you may consider it advisable to carry a Green Card to avoid any inconvenience.
The Green Card system is administered in the UK by the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB).
Motor Insurers' Bureau
Linford Wood House
6-12 Capital Drive
Linford Wood
Milton Keynes
MK14 6XT
- Visit the MIB website(external
link)
- telephone 01908 8300 01
- fax 01908 6716 81
- email:
enquiries@mib.org.uk
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