Hypothetical insurance question

[rottie102]

When you insure your car they ask you:
- Brand
- Model
- Year
- Spec
- Engine size
- Reg number

nobody ever asks about vin number or even colour.

So, just out of curiosity, if one would be moving a registration number from one vehicle to another with all the above staying the same, the car currently with that reg number on would be fully legally insured, without having to notify the insurance company? Am I correct?

[Blue Oval84]

So you insure a Red 2005 Fiesta Zetec with reg AA1 1AA, you then transfer that registration to another identically specced red 2005 Fiesta Zetec? Is that what you're asking?

I suppose you could argue that you would be covered. But why would anyone do that?

[rottie102]

Blue Oval84 said:

So you insure a Red 2005 Fiesta Zetec with reg AA1 1AA, you then transfer that registration to another identically specced red 2005 Fiesta Zetec? Is that what you're asking?

I suppose you could argue that you would be covered. But why would anyone do that?

Yupp, that's exactly what my question is about.

And as I said - it's hypothetical. I'm sure if one would ever be in a situation like that and phone the insurance company, they would ask for "administration charge" to change the insurance from "2005 Fiesta Zetec with reg AA1 1AA" to "2005 Fiesta Zetec with reg AA1 1AA"

[Chiswickboy]

Insurance is (legally) a contract of good faith.

This means that you (the insured) must tell the insurance company any material information that may have a bearing on thier judgement of risk, so if you did not tell them about the change and they found out they could argue that your insurance was invalid.

In practical terms, you must tell them everything and even if the broker forgets to advise the insurer (see other threads on here) they will either put the premium up, cancel the policy, put special clauses on you or decrease the amount they pay you in the event of a claim.

They, however only need to send you a very long and complex document with loads of small print in obscure legal terms that most people cannot be bothered to read and will tell you, when you need to claim, that it was up to you to advise them that there was a mistake in the middle of the policy (which you didn't understand anyway) and they will not be paying anything like the true value of your written off vehicle.




Cynical? Moi?

[tomsugden]

Wouldn't the DVLA have a record of the swap?

[Ozzie Osmond]

Nothing to see here.

You started out with an xyz car with value pdq and registration number abc.
You still have an xyz car with value pdq and registration number abc.

All things being equal, there is nothing you have failed to disclose.

[rayny]

In my experience most insurance companies/brokers also ask how long you have owned the car -
If you have changed the car, then the answer to that question will have changed so you need to notify the insurance company.

[ZOLLAR]

A number of insurers ask the year of purchase, so if you bought an 05 fiesta new then the engine died 2 years later and you bought the exact same car and transfered the reg you would have to notify of the change in year of purchase.
Also if a claim happened and through various checks the insurer finds out the transfered reg was previously on car of the exact spec and that the transfer of reg occured whilst you were insured eyebrows would be raised not necessarily due to "physical risk" but due to "moral risk" as you've attempted to fool the insurer which would possibly lead to loading of your policy at renewal so that you change insurer due to cost.

[entwisi]

• Cough* so buying two identical old mercs( and only registering one with DVLA ) and just swapping the plate to the other car if the first one broke down would be naughty then.....

ANPR would see reg XNNNXXX as a brown merc, so would the plod/cameras.. I guess if you crashed and they started checking VIN plates it could get sticky unless you claimed you didn't check it matched when you bought it, it must have been like that all along officer.....

Not that I've thought about any of this...

[Petrolhead_Rich]

entwisi said:

*Cough* so buying two identical old mercs( and only registering one with DVLA ) and just swapping the plate to the other car if the first one broke down would be naughty then.....

ANPR would see reg XNNNXXX as a brown merc, so would the plod/cameras.. I guess if you crashed and they started checking VIN plates it could get sticky unless you claimed you didn't check it matched when you bought it, it must have been like that all along officer.....

Not that I've thought about any of this...

fine until a motorbike hits you (their fault) and dies, thus causing an investigation by PLOD and your up the stter for fraud, car cloning, no insurance and god knows what else....

not worth the risk IMO!

Call them up and argue that the admin fee isn't applicable as they don't need to update MID, print new certificate etc!

[ZOLLAR]

Petrolhead_Rich said:

entwisi said:

*Cough* so buying two identical old mercs( and only registering one with DVLA ) and just swapping the plate to the other car if the first one broke down would be naughty then.....

ANPR would see reg XNNNXXX as a brown merc, so would the plod/cameras.. I guess if you crashed and they started checking VIN plates it could get sticky unless you claimed you didn't check it matched when you bought it, it must have been like that all along officer.....

Not that I've thought about any of this...

fine until a motorbike hits you (their fault) and dies, thus causing an investigation by PLOD and your up the stter for fraud, car cloning, no insurance and god knows what else....

not worth the risk IMO!

[b]Call them up and argue that the admin fee isn't applicable as they don't need to update MID, print new certificate etc![b]

This is probably the best course of action, thy still would update certain things but would waiver a charge if you pushed abit (may vary per insurer).

[tomsugden]

Wouldn't the DVLA have a record of the swap?

[rottie102]

tomsugden said:

Wouldn't the DVLA have a record of the swap?

Of course they would.
But the question is - would that make the insurance void. I signed a contract that they will cover my driving a Fiesta Zetec with registration number xyz etc etc. And that's exactly what I would be doing.

[saaby93]

rottie102 said:

But the question is - would that make the insurance void. I signed a contract that they will cover my driving a Fiesta Zetec with registration number xyz etc etc. And that's exactly what I would be doing.

Have you considered the phone conversation with the insurance bod that you want to transfer your insurance from a Fiesta reg S1 LLY to a Fiesta reg S1 LLY.