Car Insurance policy in ex partner's name

Elizabeth*

Hi - I hope someone can help.

I've just had my car insurance policy renewed automatically.
I'm the registered owner of the car, and sole user of the car now I've broken up with my partner - but the car insurance policy is in my ex's name with me as an additional driver as it was cheaper at the time.

Can you advise what the insurer might do when I tell them?
Will they be able to convert the policy to my name, and are they likely to charge me extra?

Thanks!

Annisele

Elizabeth* wrote: »

The car insurance policy is in my ex's name with me as an additional driver as it was cheaper at the time.

I'm going to assume you've worded that clumsily. Do you really mean that once you'd worked out how much insurance cost, between you you chose that your partner would do all the driving? (Not sure you know that fronting is a criminal offence - whether it's for a child or a partner).

Are you still in touch with your ex? If the current policy is theirs, they should be the one phoning the insurance policy to cancel it. I suspect you need a new one in your own name.

forgotmyname

The policy is theirs, your just a named occasional driver from your wording.

There are usually charges for most changes, will they swap it to your name? Possibly but expect issues if you failed to declare being the main and only driver.

tberry6686

They will probably need to cancel the old policy and you will need to take one out in your own name. From the way you have written this it sounds like you will have zero NCD so expect the policy to be expensive (and hope that the current insurer does not look at what was declared on the previous policy and decide that it is a case of fronting, certainly sounds like it).

Retrogamer

tberry6686 wrote: »

They will probably need to cancel the old policy and you will need to take one out in your own name. From the way you have written this it sounds like you will have zero NCD so expect the policy to be expensive (and hope that the current insurer does not look at what was declared on the previous policy and decide that it is a case of fronting, certainly sounds like it).

Surely then the policyholder would be the one getting in trouble for fronting and not the OP?

forgotmyname

The OP is party to the fronting also though.

specialboy

If the op was living with her their partner as man and wife then it's not fronting is it?

tberry6686

Not entirely certain of this but in my case I have found out that between couples, the car owner is of no real concern but who the main driver is.

In my case I own all three of our cars but am the main driver on only 2 of them (partner is the main driver on the other one and as such the policy holder). Whereas the op has freely admitted to being the main driver but having the ex partner as the policy holder because it was cheaper. Usually the main driver has to be the policy holder.

forgotmyname

specialboy wrote: »

If the op was living with her their partner as man and wife then it's not fronting is it?

If they falsely declared who the main driver was then yes its fronting.

Man/Wife or Parent/Child I don't think there is any difference, the main driver should be disclosed.

dacouch

forgotmyname wrote: »

If they falsely declared who the main driver was then yes its fronting.

Man/Wife or Parent/Child I don't think there is any difference, the main driver should be disclosed.

By the policy holder

System

If you have a shared family car and both use it then it becomes a bit academic who actually is the main driver. If one drives it to work 5 days a week but the other uses it every evening and shopping on Saturday then who is the main driver? Insurers don't seem to know or care very much.

But obviously if you split up then you immediately become the main driver.