Car insurance question - how long have you held this license?

geekonthepc

Hi there

I hope this question hasn't been asked already but I'm a bit unsure.

My car insurance renewal is coming up. This is how it is: I've had my FULL UK driving license for 2 years (when I renew my policy anyway) but I actually have 3 years of NCB because I held a provisional license and insurance policy for a year previous and earned a year of no claims bonus on that. I can verify this with proof of NCB.

When I asked confused.com for a quote, it asks:
What type of license do you have?
How long have you had this license?

So I say full license and I've held that license for 2 years.

I then called Aviva and asked them to quote me and they told me I've done it wrong. They said insurance providers are asking how long you've held that particular license (i.e. how long you've held the license with the same license number) - NOT how long it's actually been a full license.

As a result, he's quoted me as having had a UK license for 3 years and 3 years NCB.

Is this correct? And can I now go to other providers and also say I've had a license for 3 years (i.e. put that in on confused.com) or is that likely to be specific to Aviva? The Aviva rep said all insurers should see it the same way - but before I go and get a policy that's invalid, I'd like to check.

Hope that makes sense. Thanks so much in advance.

So the facts are:
Got my provisional license in April 2011.
Passed my test on 7 April 2012, license shows start date as 18 April 2012.
I consider that having held a license for 2 years (as of when I renew the policy on 22 April), but Aviva say I've actually held the license for 3 years.
Are they correct and is this the same for all providers?

rs65

If the question is 'how long have you held a full licence' then the answer will be two years next month.

I would phone Aviva back and speak to someone else.

[Deleted User]

Hi geekonthepc

In terms of noting your driving history, we take into account how long you've held a provisional licence on top of your full licence, so yes it's correct that you can state on our quote that you've held a licence for 3 years (so long as it will be 3 full years in total at the start date of the policy).

In terms of other insurers and how they record your driving history, I won't be able to speak for them. Although I suspect many will have the same approach; there will be others who won't so it would be best to check with them specifically if there's any element of doubt.

I hope this helps.

Many thanks,

Martin Banwell
Aviva Social Media Support

geekonthepc wrote: »

Hi there

I hope this question hasn't been asked already but I'm a bit unsure.

My car insurance renewal is coming up. This is how it is: I've had my FULL UK driving license for 2 years (when I renew my policy anyway) but I actually have 3 years of NCB because I held a provisional license and insurance policy for a year previous and earned a year of no claims bonus on that. I can verify this with proof of NCB.

When I asked confused.com for a quote, it asks:
What type of license do you have?
How long have you had this license?

So I say full license and I've held that license for 2 years.

I then called Aviva and asked them to quote me and they told me I've done it wrong. They said insurance providers are asking how long you've held that particular license (i.e. how long you've held the license with the same license number) - NOT how long it's actually been a full license.

As a result, he's quoted me as having had a UK license for 3 years and 3 years NCB.

Is this correct? And can I now go to other providers and also say I've had a license for 3 years (i.e. put that in on confused.com) or is that likely to be specific to Aviva? The Aviva rep said all insurers should see it the same way - but before I go and get a policy that's invalid, I'd like to check.

Hope that makes sense. Thanks so much in advance.

So the facts are:
Got my provisional license in April 2011.
Passed my test on 7 April 2012, license shows start date as 18 April 2012.
I consider that having held a license for 2 years (as of when I renew the policy on 22 April), but Aviva say I've actually held the license for 3 years.
Are they correct and is this the same for all providers?

rs65

OP, I suspect Aviva are different from most. As Martin says, they ask how long you have held a valid licence.

The help bit says:-

Please tell us how long you have held a valid UK or European Union driving licence (starting from when you were issued with a provisional licence). You must be able to provide a copy of your driving licence documents if required

geekonthepc

Thanks to both of you - so useful to have that cleared up. OK so at least Aviva have given me a valid quote.

I now need to go other insurers and ask them the same questions. Nonetheless, it does prove that the comparison sites aren't always the simplest solution!

(Had I have known this last year I could have probably got my insurance cheaper - even if only a little bit!) -.-

Thanks again folks, really appreciated.

vaio

and the other problem you could well get is "the computer saying no" when you tell it you've had a licence for two years and have three years NCB

geekonthepc

vaio wrote: »

and the other problem you could well get is "the computer saying no" when you tell it you've had a licence for two years and have three years NCB

Yeah I've already had that twice - you just end up having to call the insurance provider and asking them to do it manually.