Refused insurance after (unintentionally) uninsured driving - help please!

lgregory2012

I really hope someone can offer some advice...
My husband had his own van insurance policy and I had my own car ins policy on which he was a named driver. In the belief that he was covered to drive any veh on his policy we decided to remove him from my policy to save money. One day when driving my car, a car swerved into the car and smashed the wing mirror. The other driver made off without stopping. We tracked her down and swapped details. I then immediately contacted my insurance company, diamond, and reported the accident (concerned that the other driver would not accept fault, seeing as she'd not even stopped at the scene).
Long story short, the other driver never reported the accident, and diamond closed our claim. They even put my husband back as a named driver. However at time of renewal they wrote to me saying they were refusing to insure me for the following year.
Having then been refused insurance I have struggled to find insurance and have been forced to go through a broker and paid a great deal more than I was previously.
I accept my husband was driving whilst uninsured, but it was not intentional and I wonder if there is anything that can be done in these circumstances, or will it stay with us forever?? We surely cannot be classed as the same as the many people out there who drive regularly and deliberately without insurance?
Help someone please?!

hcb42

unfortunately, I dont think ignorance of the facts is an excuse - or everyone would be doing it...it will drop off eventually.

Quentin

lgregory2012 wrote: »

........I accept my husband was driving whilst uninsured, but it was not intentional and I wonder if there is anything that can be done in these circumstances, or will it stay with us forever?? We surely cannot be classed as the same as the many people out there who drive regularly and deliberately without insurance?
Help someone please?!

You will have to disclose "for ever" that you have had a policy cancelled.

However as far as "us" is concerned:

Assuming your husband "got away" with driving uninsured (ie no conviction), then he has no cancelled policy to disclose in future, and no conviction for ininsured driving, and can take out a normal policy (as long as you are not on it!) - though he would have to disclose the collision!

paddedjohn

Quentin wrote: »

You will have to disclose "for ever" that you have had a policy cancelled.

However as far as "us" is concerned:

Assuming your husband "got away" with driving uninsured (ie no conviction), then he has no cancelled policy to disclose in future, and no conviction for ininsured driving, and can take out a normal policy (as long as you are not on it!) - though he would have to disclose the collision!

The policy wasnt cancelled, they refused to renew. Totally different.

bouncydog1

Declined to offer renewal sounds better than refused! This is not a cancelled policy by insurers.

Quentin

paddedjohn wrote: »

The policy wasnt cancelled, they refused to renew. Totally different.

Well.....more pedantic than "totally different".

When you apply for insurance you are asked to declare that all drivers "Have not been refused car insurance renewal or had a policy cancelled" (or similar wording)

The problem that has caused the thread is the OP has had her renewal refused, and whether the problem is a refused renewal or a cancellation, the consequences are the same, as she has found out!

paddedjohn

What I can't understand is, if the op's husband thought he was covered dov under his van policy then why did they try to claim off the op's policy? Seems fishy to me.