Changing cars , where do i stand with my insurance

trets77

i am buying a new ( 2nd hand) Car which is quite a few insurance groups above what i currently own.

My question is what can i expect from my current insurer (swinton) . doing a quote with them i get a price of £170 above my last premium (£200 paid in full when i took out the policy) , am i being foolishly naive in thinking this what i will be asked to pay if i ask them to upgrade my current policy ?

also i was unaware that i could not simply take out a new policy with any insurer and use my ( substantial ) no claims discount i used to obtain my current policy on a seperate policy .( well at least according to my Father in law) .

i take it Swinton cannot charge me a cancelation fee if i want to cancel my current policy and start a fresh policy with someone else ? i don't expect to see any of my orginal premium back of course .

loofer

Firstly, assuming you did a brand new quote for a full years premium, when you change your car, you insurance company will normally only charge you a pro-rata amount of that £170 depending on how months you have remining on your policy. Some insurers may even charge an amendment fee.

You could be looking at £370+ when you come to renew (very rough estimate).

You can only use NCB on one active policy at any time. Can not be used simultaneously. If you get a cheaper quote elsewhere, just cancel with swinton and get them to send you written confirmation of your NCB to date. Forward to your new insurer.

You may get a pro-rata refund of unused premium and some insurers do also charge small cancellation fee

dacouch

Swintons are not an Insurer, they are an intermediary so the quote you got off their website for your new vehicle may well be with a different Insurance Company than you are with. Which means its best to ignore the £170 as this may be wildly inaccurate.

Your best bet is to ring Swintons up for a quote to adjust your policy, they will calculate the difference in premium between your current car and new car and then pro rate it (Take into account the difference in days until your renewal date). It is very likely they will add an admin charge of £25 to the difference.

With regard to cancelling you will probably have a penalty from the Insurer for cancelling the policy, out of the refund they give Swintons will take an admin fee out of this of £50.

I'm not sure where the above poster gets their info on most policies being cancelled pro rata and "some" Insurers charging an admin fee as the vast vast majority of Insurers / intermediaries will charge an admin fee and most do not cancel pro rata

The simple advice is to pick the phone up and ring Swintons and ask them for a quote to change the policy over