Does no MOT invalidate insurance?

DullGreyGuy

diystarter7 said:

DullGreyGuy said:

The answer is... it depends on their policy wordings. 

Most mainstream insurers dont even mention MOT in their policywordings and so the only impact it can have is the devaluation of their own vehicle when considering a total loss.

Some budget providers do have clauses in the Own Damage section saying that no MOT means that section is void however that doesn't impact your claim against them as that's the Liability/Third Party section.

There are some bottle of the barrel providers who say that they can use no MOT to cancel or void the whole policy... https://quote.onecallinsurance.co.uk/existing_customers/website-documents/getDocument.php?doc_name=1652090033ERS.pdf&_ga=2.106959554.1994661735.1679829765-1759926225.1679829765 for example

Others will point out that the Financial Ombudsman does fairly often uphold complaints about claims being rejected for no MOT even if that's what the policy states as long as there wasn't a defect with the vehicle that caused the claim and that an MOT would have spotted however that is rather moot as a third party cannot go to the Ombudsman.

Even if the policy was cancelled the person still had a valid certificate of insurance at the time of the accident which would make that insurer the RTA insurer. Some insurers admit their RTA obligations straight away and deal with the claim, others make you go through the whole process of establishing them as such. At the end of the day as long as you are letting your insurers deal with it and not attempting to claim directly it's just a matter of duration. 

Hi

Polite heads up

From the AA site

Is car insurance valid without an MOT?

No, not having a valid MOT certificate invalidates your car insurance. So if you drive without an MOT, you're driving without insurance too.The penalties for driving while uninsured include a £300 fine and up to 6 points on your licence.The police also have the power to seize, and in some cases destroy, a vehicle that's being driven uninsured. And if the case goes to court you could get an unlimited fine and also be disqualified from driving.

As mentioned, its only some really bottom of the barrel insurances that invalidate the whole policy for no MOT

But the OP it a TP here and as you will see from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RTA_Insurer that would leave the insurer as RTA Insurer under Section 151  or Article 75 insurer. Given no insurer explicitly asks about MOT at point of purchase its RTA Insurer.

Aretnap

DullGreyGuy said:

Aretnap said:

Even in the worst case scenario, where he had no insurance at all, and you had third party only car insurance and no home insurance, you would still be able to claim from the Motor Insurer's Bureau for your losses.

Some would argue that isnt the worst case though... generally the MIB only covers uninsured losses (untraced and uninsured agreements are slightly different) and so whilst they cover the uninsured if you are insured then you have to claim off your own insurance which counts as fault claims. 

Unlikely to take effect in this scenario but sometimes the worst isnt what you think

I meant worst case scenario as in neither party having any (useful) insurance at all - even in that situation there are safeguards which mean the OP isn't going to have to pay for the repairs to his house and car entirely off his own back.

You're right that whether it's the worst case scenario in terms of the final outcome is a matter of opinion.

Aretnap

diystarter7 said:

DullGreyGuy said:

The answer is... it depends on their policy wordings. 

Most mainstream insurers dont even mention MOT in their policywordings and so the only impact it can have is the devaluation of their own vehicle when considering a total loss.

Some budget providers do have clauses in the Own Damage section saying that no MOT means that section is void however that doesn't impact your claim against them as that's the Liability/Third Party section.

There are some bottle of the barrel providers who say that they can use no MOT to cancel or void the whole policy... https://quote.onecallinsurance.co.uk/existing_customers/website-documents/getDocument.php?doc_name=1652090033ERS.pdf&_ga=2.106959554.1994661735.1679829765-1759926225.1679829765 for example

Others will point out that the Financial Ombudsman does fairly often uphold complaints about claims being rejected for no MOT even if that's what the policy states as long as there wasn't a defect with the vehicle that caused the claim and that an MOT would have spotted however that is rather moot as a third party cannot go to the Ombudsman.

Even if the policy was cancelled the person still had a valid certificate of insurance at the time of the accident which would make that insurer the RTA insurer. Some insurers admit their RTA obligations straight away and deal with the claim, others make you go through the whole process of establishing them as such. At the end of the day as long as you are letting your insurers deal with it and not attempting to claim directly it's just a matter of duration. 

Hi

Polite heads up

From the AA site

Is car insurance valid without an MOT?

No, not having a valid MOT certificate invalidates your car insurance. So if you drive without an MOT, you're driving without insurance too.The penalties for driving while uninsured include a £300 fine and up to 6 points on your licence.The police also have the power to seize, and in some cases destroy, a vehicle that's being driven uninsured. And if the case goes to court you could get an unlimited fine and also be disqualified from driving.
https://www.theaa.com/mot/advice/driving-without-an-mot#insurance


Thanks

You will no doubt be shocked to learn that search engine optimisation text written by the intern and dumped on websites purely for the purpose of attracting Google clicks doesn't always tell the whole story.

diystarter7

Aretnap said:

diystarter7 said:

DullGreyGuy said:

The answer is... it depends on their policy wordings. 

Most mainstream insurers dont even mention MOT in their policywordings and so the only impact it can have is the devaluation of their own vehicle when considering a total loss.

Some budget providers do have clauses in the Own Damage section saying that no MOT means that section is void however that doesn't impact your claim against them as that's the Liability/Third Party section.

There are some bottle of the barrel providers who say that they can use no MOT to cancel or void the whole policy... https://quote.onecallinsurance.co.uk/existing_customers/website-documents/getDocument.php?doc_name=1652090033ERS.pdf&_ga=2.106959554.1994661735.1679829765-1759926225.1679829765 for example

Others will point out that the Financial Ombudsman does fairly often uphold complaints about claims being rejected for no MOT even if that's what the policy states as long as there wasn't a defect with the vehicle that caused the claim and that an MOT would have spotted however that is rather moot as a third party cannot go to the Ombudsman.

Even if the policy was cancelled the person still had a valid certificate of insurance at the time of the accident which would make that insurer the RTA insurer. Some insurers admit their RTA obligations straight away and deal with the claim, others make you go through the whole process of establishing them as such. At the end of the day as long as you are letting your insurers deal with it and not attempting to claim directly it's just a matter of duration. 

Hi

Polite heads up

From the AA site

Is car insurance valid without an MOT?

No, not having a valid MOT certificate invalidates your car insurance. So if you drive without an MOT, you're driving without insurance too.The penalties for driving while uninsured include a £300 fine and up to 6 points on your licence.The police also have the power to seize, and in some cases destroy, a vehicle that's being driven uninsured. And if the case goes to court you could get an unlimited fine and also be disqualified from driving.
https://www.theaa.com/mot/advice/driving-without-an-mot#insurance


Thanks

You will no doubt be shocked to learn that search engine optimisation text written by the intern and dumped on websites purely for the purpose of attracting Google clicks doesn't always tell the whole story.

Hi

So the AA wesite inc the full link I posted is total rubbish, is it?

I thought the AA was a highly respected motroing organsation that is trusted by millions

Tnaks

TooManyPoints

Sorry but the AA should be ashamed of themselves.

There are very few reasons available that enable insurers to repudiate cover for Third Party risks and having no MoT is not one of them. The RTA actually provides a list of specific exceptions which insurers cannot use to deny cover and it states that should any such exception clauses be written into a policy, they shall be of no effect. Lack of MoT is not among them, but the "condition of the vehicle" is. If an insurer tried to deny cover due to lack of an MoT I cannot imagine any court or arbitrator  agreeing that this was a valid exception. Drivers can commit serious motoring offences and their insurance is still valid. Frankly, the notion that lack of an MoT invalidates insurance (with or without a clause in the policy) is nonsense and an organisation like the AA should not be spreading such misleading information, especially if it is done solely as "clickbait." If it was true, all fixed penalty notices for lack of MoT would be accompanied by another for either driving or keeping a vehicle without the necessary insurance. Similarly any court prosecutions for the offence would be accompanied by a similar charge for no insurance. And quite simply, they're not.

Typhoon2000

Yes some of the information on the website is rubbish, yes it is trusted by millions. And yes, millions of gullible people about.

Aretnap

diystarter7 said:

So the AA wesite inc the full link I posted is total rubbish, is it?

Yes.

diystarter7 said:

I thought the AA was a highly respected motroing organsation that is trusted by millions

No, they're the people who tow your car away when it breaks down, and sometimes try to flog you a very overpriced battery while they're about it.

DullGreyGuy

diystarter7 said:

Aretnap said:

diystarter7 said:

DullGreyGuy said:

The answer is... it depends on their policy wordings. 

Most mainstream insurers dont even mention MOT in their policywordings and so the only impact it can have is the devaluation of their own vehicle when considering a total loss.

Some budget providers do have clauses in the Own Damage section saying that no MOT means that section is void however that doesn't impact your claim against them as that's the Liability/Third Party section.

There are some bottle of the barrel providers who say that they can use no MOT to cancel or void the whole policy... https://quote.onecallinsurance.co.uk/existing_customers/website-documents/getDocument.php?doc_name=1652090033ERS.pdf&_ga=2.106959554.1994661735.1679829765-1759926225.1679829765 for example

Others will point out that the Financial Ombudsman does fairly often uphold complaints about claims being rejected for no MOT even if that's what the policy states as long as there wasn't a defect with the vehicle that caused the claim and that an MOT would have spotted however that is rather moot as a third party cannot go to the Ombudsman.

Even if the policy was cancelled the person still had a valid certificate of insurance at the time of the accident which would make that insurer the RTA insurer. Some insurers admit their RTA obligations straight away and deal with the claim, others make you go through the whole process of establishing them as such. At the end of the day as long as you are letting your insurers deal with it and not attempting to claim directly it's just a matter of duration. 

Hi

Polite heads up

From the AA site

Is car insurance valid without an MOT?

No, not having a valid MOT certificate invalidates your car insurance. So if you drive without an MOT, you're driving without insurance too.The penalties for driving while uninsured include a £300 fine and up to 6 points on your licence.The police also have the power to seize, and in some cases destroy, a vehicle that's being driven uninsured. And if the case goes to court you could get an unlimited fine and also be disqualified from driving.
https://www.theaa.com/mot/advice/driving-without-an-mot#insurance


Thanks

You will no doubt be shocked to learn that search engine optimisation text written by the intern and dumped on websites purely for the purpose of attracting Google clicks doesn't always tell the whole story.

Hi

So the AA wesite inc the full link I posted is total rubbish, is it?

I thought the AA was a highly respected motroing organsation that is trusted by millions

Tnaks

Its worst case scenario focused on the first party.

The OP isnt the first party in this situation and you have to understand the motivation of promoting the worst case scenario to drive positive outcome rather than saying "buy from the likes of DL or Aviva and no MOT is barely an issue" 

user1977

diystarter7 said:

Aretnap said:

diystarter7 said:

DullGreyGuy said:

The answer is... it depends on their policy wordings. 

Most mainstream insurers dont even mention MOT in their policywordings and so the only impact it can have is the devaluation of their own vehicle when considering a total loss.

Some budget providers do have clauses in the Own Damage section saying that no MOT means that section is void however that doesn't impact your claim against them as that's the Liability/Third Party section.

There are some bottle of the barrel providers who say that they can use no MOT to cancel or void the whole policy... https://quote.onecallinsurance.co.uk/existing_customers/website-documents/getDocument.php?doc_name=1652090033ERS.pdf&_ga=2.106959554.1994661735.1679829765-1759926225.1679829765 for example

Others will point out that the Financial Ombudsman does fairly often uphold complaints about claims being rejected for no MOT even if that's what the policy states as long as there wasn't a defect with the vehicle that caused the claim and that an MOT would have spotted however that is rather moot as a third party cannot go to the Ombudsman.

Even if the policy was cancelled the person still had a valid certificate of insurance at the time of the accident which would make that insurer the RTA insurer. Some insurers admit their RTA obligations straight away and deal with the claim, others make you go through the whole process of establishing them as such. At the end of the day as long as you are letting your insurers deal with it and not attempting to claim directly it's just a matter of duration. 

Hi

Polite heads up

From the AA site

Is car insurance valid without an MOT?

No, not having a valid MOT certificate invalidates your car insurance. So if you drive without an MOT, you're driving without insurance too.The penalties for driving while uninsured include a £300 fine and up to 6 points on your licence.The police also have the power to seize, and in some cases destroy, a vehicle that's being driven uninsured. And if the case goes to court you could get an unlimited fine and also be disqualified from driving.
https://www.theaa.com/mot/advice/driving-without-an-mot#insurance


Thanks

You will no doubt be shocked to learn that search engine optimisation text written by the intern and dumped on websites purely for the purpose of attracting Google clicks doesn't always tell the whole story.

So the AA wesite inc the full link I posted is total rubbish, is it?

Essentially, yes, it's a misleadingly alarmist generalisation to say that "not having a valid MOT certificate invalidates your car insurance".

It might do - if that is what your policy says (and even then, it may be arguable whether it's enforceable by the insurer).

Have you checked your policy? I've read mine (which is with Admiral) and there is no such condition.

diystarter7

user1977 said:

diystarter7 said:

Aretnap said:

diystarter7 said:

DullGreyGuy said:

The answer is... it depends on their policy wordings. 

Most mainstream insurers dont even mention MOT in their policywordings and so the only impact it can have is the devaluation of their own vehicle when considering a total loss.

Some budget providers do have clauses in the Own Damage section saying that no MOT means that section is void however that doesn't impact your claim against them as that's the Liability/Third Party section.

There are some bottle of the barrel providers who say that they can use no MOT to cancel or void the whole policy... https://quote.onecallinsurance.co.uk/existing_customers/website-documents/getDocument.php?doc_name=1652090033ERS.pdf&_ga=2.106959554.1994661735.1679829765-1759926225.1679829765 for example

Others will point out that the Financial Ombudsman does fairly often uphold complaints about claims being rejected for no MOT even if that's what the policy states as long as there wasn't a defect with the vehicle that caused the claim and that an MOT would have spotted however that is rather moot as a third party cannot go to the Ombudsman.

Even if the policy was cancelled the person still had a valid certificate of insurance at the time of the accident which would make that insurer the RTA insurer. Some insurers admit their RTA obligations straight away and deal with the claim, others make you go through the whole process of establishing them as such. At the end of the day as long as you are letting your insurers deal with it and not attempting to claim directly it's just a matter of duration. 

Hi

Polite heads up

From the AA site

Is car insurance valid without an MOT?

No, not having a valid MOT certificate invalidates your car insurance. So if you drive without an MOT, you're driving without insurance too.The penalties for driving while uninsured include a £300 fine and up to 6 points on your licence.The police also have the power to seize, and in some cases destroy, a vehicle that's being driven uninsured. And if the case goes to court you could get an unlimited fine and also be disqualified from driving.
https://www.theaa.com/mot/advice/driving-without-an-mot#insurance


Thanks

You will no doubt be shocked to learn that search engine optimisation text written by the intern and dumped on websites purely for the purpose of attracting Google clicks doesn't always tell the whole story.

So the AA wesite inc the full link I posted is total rubbish, is it?

Essentially, yes, it's a misleadingly alarmist generalisation to say that "not having a valid MOT certificate invalidates your car insurance".

It might do - if that is what your policy says (and even then, it may be arguable whether it's enforceable by the insurer).

Have you checked your policy? I've read mine (which is with Admiral) and there is no such condition.

So, will you be contacting the AA and telling them that and ensuring they revise the " misleadingly alarmist generalisation " information that I am guessing thousands read every year?

I would have contacted them but I'm not aware of the inforamtion source you have.

So please let us know as its not good for the AA to do something like as you have said