Sorting out your annual car insurance policy can be one of the most difficult, confusing and expensive times of the year whether you’re doing it for the first time or the fiftieth. With so many different insurance providers to get quotes from and so many different types of cover available you’re often left scratching your head and wondering what all the different terms mean and why there can’t just be one type of policy and one flat-rate fee.
There are two main types of insurance policy – fully comprehensive and third party, fire and theft. The different policies cover drivers for different circumstances and feature different prices and who is at fault. Fully comprehensive, as the name suggests, covers drivers regardless of who is at fault; whereas third party, fire and theft only covers damage done to other people’s property if the accident is your fault and also if your car is stolen or damaged by fire and you can often find budget third party car insurance.
While we’re all looking to keep costs as low as we can, the fact of the matter is that insurance is essential. Without it, you cannot legally drive on the roads so you need to factor car insurance into your annual or monthly budgets.
Fully comprehensive is usually the most expensive type of cover as it protects drivers against all risks to them and their vehicles; while third party cover is usually the least expensive and appeals to new and younger drivers or those struggling financially who quite simply have to be on the road to get to and from work.
With fully comprehensive cover, you are often offered a series of optional benefits to your package that might include restricted driver discounts whereby you can state to the insurer that the youngest driver on the policy is over 25, for example. In this instance, you may be offered a lower premium. You can also add on roadside assistance so that you can be helped if you end up on the side of the road with a puncture or any mechanical issues. Raising your excess will also help to reduce your premium, informing the insurer that you’re confident that you will not be involved in an accident.
Third party, fire and theft policies often include the two previously mentioned benefits, (restricted driver discounts and roadside assistance), but often little or no more than that. After all, if you require any greater cover you would normally be asking for it!