The Insurance News

Honest UK motorists are paying £1.25 billion a year to support the activities of dishonest drivers.

According to research from Co-operative Insurance, the average car insurance premium carries a £50 penalty to cover costs incurred by uninsured and fraudulent road users.

Launching a joint initiative with road safety charity, Brake, Co-operative Financial Services chief operating officer, Tim Franklin, said: “Millions of people are deliberately flouting the law by not insuring their cars at massive cost to honest road users and the wider insurance industry, posing an unnecessary and unjustified risk.”

He added: “Whilst work is continuing to highlight the dangers of uninsured drivers – and keep them off the UK’s public highways – by the police, road safety groups and the insurance industry, there is clearly more to be done.”

Last month The Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) identified the UK’s uninsured driving hotspots, placing Barkerend in Bradford (BD3) at the top of the list.

The West Yo

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Students who have just finished their A levels and are about to embark on a gap year should take some time to make sure they are properly prepared, including taking adequate travel insurance with them. While gap year travellers spend hours deciding where to go, specialist insurance provider Hiscox urges them to consider ways of protecting their personal safety and keeping out of trouble while they are abroad. Before they go, Hiscox suggests a few tips for preparation: investigate the health situation and ensuring they have had the required vaccinations; gain an understanding of local laws and customs to avoid a run in with the authorities; ensure necessary documents are carried and kept safe, taking along copies of important things like passports. Read more…

Almost a third of new mortgages do not have life insurance associated with them, new research from Defaqto has revealed. The financial research company has highlighted the risk of taking on debts such as mortgages without having sufficient protection in place should something happen to the borrower, leaving their family to repay the debt. The report points to figures from the Association of British Insurers from 2009 which show that 363,973 new mortgage-related life insurance policies were written, whereas the Council of Mortgage Lenders recorded a comparatively high 925,000 new mortgage advances for the same period. Read more…

When your auto insurance policy is underwritten, your insurance underwriter attempts to figure out whether or not you should be approved for the policy, what you should be charged and if there should be any special amendments to your policy. Many different factors and traits are considered during this process including: Your motor vehicle report: Your motor vehicle report (MVR) is a report that shows your driving record. It shows all the tickets you’ve gotten for reckless driving, speeding, and not obeying general traffic laws. This report is extremely important in determining how risky you are to insure. I Read more…

Mobile phone insurance is something most iPhone owners consider at one point or another. As friend’s tales of water damaged and stolen phones become more common however, iPhone insurance becomes a larger consideration.

Naturally, particularly for the iPhone generation, the easiest place to begin look for iPhone insurance is online. A quick search will reveal most of the iPhone insurance companies, and failing that it’s always possible to ask in a forum either specifically dedicated to iPhones or a financial and insurance forum.

But before you begin looking online specifically for insurance for your iPhone, why not talk to your home insurance company first? Read more…