Exact meaning of "Any claims free years?" for new car insurance policy

thrifty_pete

I have driven various cars claims-free on and off since I got my licence 23 years ago. Looking more closely at the last decade, when my memory / records are better:
I owned and insured a car with a policy in my name from summer 2011 to December 2016 and have been insured as a named driver on another car since August 2017.
My 5 years NCD has after 3 years without a policy just expired. So I tell the quote system "NCD = 0" but it then asks for "claims free years" so this must be separate from the NCD.
Do the claim free years have to be contiguous without gaps?
I am loath to phone insurers as they are so busy with the crisis.

TELLIT01

They want to know how many years you can go back, without a break, from the current date "claims free".  So they want contiguous years, not the total claims free years since you started driving.

thrifty_pete

I have also driven hire cars during the small gap.
So the years I have without claims count for nothing, unlike a NCD which remains intact for 2 or 3 years after it has been earned even without driving?
I think a huge voluntary excess will get me down to something sensible.