How to insure a car if you have no permanent address
12th May 2017 Insurance & Legal
When you are registering and insuring your car, you need to provide the authorities with a permanent address. What happens if you don’t have a permanent address, perhaps because you’ve retired and moved to France or Spain? Is it possible to have temporary car insurance as a non-resident?
A permanent address is required by law
Under the current legislation, it isn’t possible to register or insure your car without providing an address.
In order to register your car, you need to prove your current address in the UK. Gov.uk states that you need to do this by providing one of the following:
- Recent utility bill (within the last 3 months)
- Recent bank or building society statement (within the last 3 months)
- Medical card
- Council tax bill for the current year
When seeking for car insurance, your address must match the address in your vehicle registration. This means that you must have a permanent address in the UK prior to insuring your car.
Read more: Which insurance group is my car?
Not a permanent resident?
You might not be a permanent resident in the UK, but spend holidays in the country. Having your own car can be cheaper than renting a vehicle.
There are ways to insure a car without permanent residency in the UK, although a number of UK insurance companies won’t provide insurance unless you have a permanent address in the UK.
Read more: What your car hire company won't tell you
Temporary car insurance
Your first option is to look into the possibility of obtaining temporary car insurance. Although many insurance companies don’t provide this service for non-UK residents, you can use car insurance comparison websites to find insurers who do.
Keep in mind that temporary car insurance might not run for more than 28 days and the insurance premium is typically higher than normal car insurance.
Read more: How to cut the cost of your car insurance
European car insurance
Another alternative to consider is looking for car insurance quotes for European car insurance. If you still have permanent residency in the UK, but you travel frequently to the continent, you can insure your car with European insurance.
You can find cover for shorter trips or for a more extended period, for example, if you spend long periods abroad. If you are non-resident to UK, you can check insurance companies in your country and see if they provide European car insurance that allows you to drive freely in the UK.
Shop around and check with insurers
Whether you are after temporary car insurance or European car insurance, remember to compare car insurance quotes to get the best deal possible. You need to make sure that the insurance you get is tailored for your specific needs, so you don’t end up paying too much or find you have inadequate cover in the event of an accident.
In addition, it might be a good idea to check with insurance companies directly and explain your circumstances to them. You might not find appropriate cover from websites, even though the company might have the right kind of package for your needs.
Car insurance comparison websites often have a limited range of policies available, so contacting insurance companies directly can help you find insurance to suit your needs.
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