Insurance query - gap between car sale and car purchase.

trust.no.1

Hi Everyone,

My situation is that I have an old "banger" which is 27 years old. The MOT runs out in 2 months time and will require significant expenditure to pass the next one. I love the car and it has served me well, but the time has come to move on

Rather than scrappng it, I planning to put the car on Ebay this week and look around and purchase a newer car once the sale (hopefully) is complete. There could well be a period of 2 or so weeks (I'm very picky when it comes to cars) between the sale of my current car and the purchase of a newer one. In the meanwhile I am a named driver on my wife's car.

So my question. Would insurance companies allow a policy to continue if the car it covers is sold - until such time as the policy can be transferred to another car? Is there a maximum time period for a policy to be in this state?

I'll give my insurance company a ring on Monday, however in the meanwhile I'm posting in case someone is familiar with this type of situation?

Any advice appreciated.

KimJongUn88

They can normally suspend your policy for a period of time whilst you’re between cars. It’s important to tell them about moving on your old car so it’s no longer insured by them if someone else buys it.

Flight3287462

Why not buy your new car before selling the current one and then just transfer the insurance over.

trust.no.1

Flight3287462 said:

Why not buy your new car before selling the current one and then just transfer the insurance over.

Ideally i would like to but I need to sell my current car asap while the MOT is still valid. I want to cover off the distinct possibility that my current car will be sold before I get a suitable replacement. Just making sure that all bases are covered

trust.no.1

KimJongUn88 said:

They can normally suspend your policy for a period of time whilst you’re between cars. It’s important to tell them about moving on your old car so it’s no longer insured by them if someone else buys it.

Thank you for your response. This is good to know. I will have a chat with my insurance company with the aim of insuring that I am suitably covered no matter how things play out.

AdrianC

trust.no.1 said:

Flight3287462 said:

Why not buy your new car before selling the current one and then just transfer the insurance over.

Ideally i would like to but I need to sell my current car asap while the MOT is still valid.

Just bear in mind that few buyers are so daft as to overlook a very short MOT, even on a cheap shed.

Even if the car comes with a failsheet, that's better than just with a few weeks left.

Remember, too, that a car MUST be roadworthy, both while you're using it and when you sell it (unless you make sure the buyer is aware of the unroadworthiness and does not drive it away). If you're expecting it to fail an MOT so badly as to be not worth fixing, then is it actually roadworthy before the test...?

Yes, as a driver, it is your legal responsibility to ensure your vehicle is roadworthy at all times.

trust.no.1

Yes, as a driver, it is your legal responsibility to ensure your vehicle is roadworthy at all times.

Understood. The car was laid up for several months since the last MOT becuase of COVID and I typically now take it for a run on the motorway every week to keep it ticking over. There are number of advisories from the last MOT and some eg rrusted wheel arch will need signficant expenditure. I was planning to sell immediately after the last MOT but COVID hit and  it only has been for the weekly motorway run since lockdown was lifted. I'll bear in mind what you say and get my mechanic to have a look before I list it for sale - or simply list it as non-running spares or repairs.

Edit to add. Just to be clear I am planning to list the car with a lsit of the advisories from the last MOT and the fact that it needs expenditure to fix these as well as the other known issues such as sticky runroof etc. No intention to mislead! My thought was that I would probably get more for it (despite the issues) than if I were to have it scrapped.

AdrianC

trust.no.1 said:

There are number of advisories from the last MOT and some eg rrusted wheel arch will need signficant expenditure.

Because of sharp edges risking pedestrian injury? Gaffer tape.
Or because the structure is seriously weakened within 30cm of suspension or seatbelt mounts? Unroadworthy...

or simply list it as non-running spares or repairs.

Edit to add. Just to be clear I am planning to list the car with a lsit of the advisories from the last MOT

That was a year ago. Put it through a new test... £40ish... That way anybody seriously interested knows what it needs.

My thought was that I would probably get more for it (despite the issues) than if I were to have it scrapped.

Find out how much scrappers will pay first! If it's worth breaking or repairing, they'll probably be quite happy to give a reasonable amount.