Bankruptcy and Car Insurance

Helen_Robertson

Dear all,
I have become confused and am hoping you can help. My bankruptcy period of 3 years (Scotland) has just finished and I am now able to get a car. However, any attempt my mother has made to add me to her car insurance has been difficult apparently because I was bankrupt. Is a credit cheque run each time I ask for a quote for car insurance? (If so, would this then affect any attempt to get a credit card to improve my credit rating?) Is it possible for me to get reasonable car insurance?

I have the money to buy the car outright as I have just inherited a small sum of money. However, would it improve my credit rating to buy it through hire purchase? This is something I would never have considered in the past but I am trying to improve my credit rating. (I went bankrupt simply because I lost my job in the public sector due to the Irish recession and my house fell to 15% of its original value, a drop of 75%). I am now back in the UK.

Thank you for your help.

peterkay369

Pay monthly or anually? Pay monthly is a credit agreement with the insurer and you will most likely be credit checked.

Some insurers do a "soft check" on you when getting a quote, this does not affect your credit rating.

If you can afford to buy the car outright, do this.

You may find hire purchase hard to obtain due to your bankruptcy. If you can obtain it, expect to pay over the odds.

In order to rebuild your credit score, check out the sticky thread at the top of the board.

Hope this helps.

GazHatesBanks

Helen_Robertson wrote: »

However, any attempt my mother has made to add me to her car insurance has been difficult apparently because I was bankrupt.

Why are you trying to get insurance under your mother's policy for your own car? You are far better off to get your own insurance being as it would be rated as though you are the main driver in any case and you will build up your own NCB.

Is a credit cheque run each time I ask for a quote for car insurance? (If so, would this then affect any attempt to get a credit card to improve my credit rating?) Is it possible for me to get reasonable car insurance?

When doing a quotation on the comparison sites, if it asks if you have been bankrupt then don't indicate that you have so that you get a quote and then ring the insurer to update the quote and make them aware of your bankruptcy. I've found that most will actually insure a discharged bankrupt but the system won't quote because you fail the credit/quotation check for paying by instalments.

If you're still having issues, contact a proper insurance broker (not Swintons!) who will be able to help.

Any searches that an insurance company makes at this stage is only a quotation search and/or id check - this is only visible to you on your credit record so won't affect your credit record at all.

I have the money to buy the car outright as I have just inherited a small sum of money. However, would it improve my credit rating to buy it through hire purchase?

I certainly wouldn't try for HP on buying a car - paying a ridiculous rate of interest on what is likely to be an overpriced car is certainly not a good way of improving your credit record! Get a credit builder credit card instead and make sure you pay off in full every month (e.g. Vanquis, Capital 1)