Frequently asked questions on car insurance

What sort of policy should I choose?

The main policy types to consider are third party, third party, fire and theft and comprehensive. Consider the pros and cons of each and choose the appropriate cover for your needs.

What's telematics insurance?

Telematics car insurance monitors your driving using either a mobile phone app or a 'black box' fitted to your vehicle and bases your premium around your motoring behaviour.

It's generally thought to be an option preferred by young drivers, but it has potential money-saving and other benefits for a wide variety of motorists.

How can I keep my premiums low?

There are multiple ways to keep your premiums down, such as limiting mileage and increasing voluntary excess. For a full guide, read our article on how to cut the cost of car insurance.

Will my premium get cheaper each year if I stick with the same insurer?

This is unlikely, certainly in the long term - when a customer gets out of the habit of shopping around, insurers typically take advantage and inflate renewal premiums. Read more about auto-renewal of insurance.

Did you know...?

• Even if you have comprehensive insurance you're not necessarily covered to drive other vehicles

Is it cheaper to pay annually or monthly?

It's almost always cheaper to pay up front annually.

What class of use do I need?

If you search for car insurance through Gocompare.com you'll be given the following four options and will need to choose which best describes your use of the vehicle:

• Social only: Covers you for normal day-to-day driving (such as shopping and visiting friends and family) but not commuting
• Social including commuting: Covers social use plus commuting to a single, permanent place of work
• Business use: Includes social use and also covers the designated drivers in connection with their jobs (such as driving to different sites or offices, and prearranged meetings away from the normal place of work)
• Commercial travelling: Covers social use and also using the vehicle for commercial travel, for example delivering goods or door-to-door sales. As there are different definitions of commercial travelling, you should check with the insurance company before you buy

What insurance group is my car in?

Different insurers judge insurance groups in different ways and the ratings are subject to change, but you can use our online car insurance group finder to find the current rating from the Association of British Insurers (ABI).

What's an excess?

Most policies include an excess, which is the amount to be paid by the policyholder in the event of a claim. There's both a compulsory excess, imposed by the insurer, and a voluntary excess. The phrase 'total excess' combines these two factors and is the amount you pay in the event of a claim.

Did you know...?

• If you pay to protect your no claims bonus you're only protecting the bonus, not the premium itself which will rise if you've made a claim

Taking the risk of choosing a higher voluntary excess may help to reduce your premium. If you make a claim, the excess can be deducted from the total amount paid out, or you may be asked to pay it up front.

What's uninsured driver excess?

You may be able to take out uninsured driver excess meaning that, if you're involved in an accident with an uninsured driver which is not your fault, your no claims bonus could be protected and you won't have to pay the policy excess.