Insured w/o cover note?

[Gompo]

Hi.

I am possibly picking my car up on Tuesday, and dont have insurance at the moment.
If I ring up for insurance on Monday, and get cover to start 1am Tuesday or whatever, am I ok to drive the car back while not having received the cover note? My policy will have already started so should be alright??

The car wont be taxed (it's SORN'd) either (been at garage, having MOT work done, MOT now passed a couple of weeks ago and not been on the road since), so I will be effectively driving back from the MOT test, thus exampt from tax.. I plan to get tax on Sat (October).

So there are two things I could get pulled on, but both are legal in this case (I hope!)?

Cheers, Greg.

[Dwight VanDriver]

I think I have pointed out this before:

Section 147 Road Traffic Act 1988 states that a Policy of insurance shall be of no effect until there is delivered by the insurer to the person by whom the policy is effected a Certificate in the prescribed form and containg such particulars of any conditions subject to which the policy is issued.

IMHO this means that until such time as that Certificate/Cover Note is in your hands your not insured.

I am given to understand also (on the grapevine) that Insurers get round this by stating they are acting as your Agent to it is in your possession immediately it is issued. On the phone call to the Insurers confirm the call is being recorded and get their permission to use before Certificate arrives. Someone in the Insurance field may like to confirm the Agent aspect please.

Journey straight back home from test is exempt from
Excise duty. Any further use before 1.10 you will have to pay duty for September. Don't even think about trying to make a false declaration if you have used it as this IS a serious offence under the Vehicle Excise Act.

dvd

[anniesdad]

Check with your insurer as DVD said, but personally I'd be amazed if anybody were to suggest that you are not covered simply because you are not in possession of a cover note. As a Broker I used to arrange cover over the phone all the time and place immediate cover upon a vehicle. This is common practice with all Insurers and Brokers, isn't it?

If you are stopped and asked to produce docs, by the time that you are required to produce, you will have received your document. In that respect, the authorities will be none the wiser that you were not in possession of a cert/cover note at the time.

[zumbruk]

Lots of things related to insurance seem to have changed recently in order to further persecute the law-abiding. Of course, although these changes are ostensibly to reduce the number of people driving uninsured, they will ignore them, just as they ignored the law in the first place. When will politicians realise that passing more laws makes precisely zero difference to those who ignored the laws in the first place???

[Gompo]

Thanks for all the replies.

Ended up that I didnt get to pick up my car because it's not been MOT'd, although some of the above may well still apply once I do collect. Good to have a bit more knowledge on this subject anyway.

Cheers, Greg.