Car insurance costs

[maude]

Hi Folks.dont know whether this is the correct section,but here goes.I own a Laguna 1.9 DCI of 1999 vintage,for which I am charged 450euros insurance per year with full (50%) no claims .I think this is extortionate,and have just been quoted £165 for the same cover at my last address in UK,albeit 5 years ago.This seems much more realistic,and wondered if anyone can explain why the cost is so high(French registered,Controle Tech good,everything else legal).Seriously coming to terms with the myths of being cheaper to live here,as apart from the lack of road tax,everything else does not seem to be cheaper running a vehicle which is definately a must in France.Even car spares of a Renault seem to more expensive,without even thinking of tyres.

 Confused, Maude

[cooperlola]

For a kick off, breakdown cover is usually included here.

[suein56]

[quote user="maude"]

I own a Laguna 1.9 DCI of 1999 vintage,for which I am charged 450euros insurance per year with full (50%) no claims .I think this is extortionate [/quote]

Have you tried getting quotes from other companies in France?

We bought a car from a friend who was returning to the UK and the difference between the insurance premiums for him and my OH was about 160 euros p.a. Although there was a slight age disparity, in my OH's favour, it seems to be a question of different companies, different premiums for the same car.

Sue

[TheVicar]

As in the UK, you will probably get a better deal on the internet. Try

www.direct-assurance.fr for example. They are the French equivalent of

Direct Line.

[Val_2]

A lot depends on what you have insured for,whether the car is garaged or not and the distance you drive yearly. It can be varied if you want less cover. My daughter recently discovered that as a new driver/owner she was not covered for breakdown less than 50kms from home but now her three years probation are up she has a new better contract and is covered for home breakdown so you need to find out exactly what you are covered for. Car insurance is not cheap anywhere these days but in terms of service and reimbursement perhaps the french comes out better than the UK equivalent offer.

[Gemini_man]

[quote user="TheVicar"]As in the UK, you will probably get a better deal on the internet. Try

www.direct-assurance.fr for example. They are the French equivalent of

Direct Line.

[/quote]

Thanks Vic - I think that link could be very useful  [:)]

[Grecian]

Whilst we are on the subject of French car insurance, could anyone tell me if French insurance companies accept your no-claims bonus accrued in the UK.

 

[Bugsy]

[quote user="Grecian"]

Whilst we are on the subject of French car insurance, could anyone tell me if French insurance companies accept your no-claims bonus accrued in the UK.

 

[/quote]

Yes but will usually require written proof.

Maude, shop around. We have nearly everything insured through one agent (house, contents, health, vehicles) and our premium on my Jeep, as an example for fully comp is only 260euros pa.

[Grecian]

Many thanks Bugbear, another question crossed off my list.

 

[TheVicar]

Be careful here! I was warned by my first insurer in France to ask for

written confirmation of No Claims Bonus mentioning the percentage ONLY,

as the French system is different. I leave myself open to be corrected

but I believe the French have to go 13 years to get the full NCB. If

your UK insurer quotes the years as well as the percentage a French

insurer will take the years so that they get more money. My UK insurer

at the time was fully understanding of this at the time.

[La Roche]

i am surprised at those costs , most insurance companys look at post codes etc .. as your in the vendee ( good area ) you should be fine unless you you have used one of these brit line insurance groups . i have a range rover 2003 and costs me just over 600 pounds in the UK but have had a quote for 450 euros with breakdown cover in france  ..please shop around a few hours could save you $$$$$$ i used this company and i am soon to be  in 86330 area ......... hope this helps you

 

Bruno Sellier
Cabinet Bruno Sellier
GENERALI assurances
9 place Jean Monnet / 10 rue du XIV juillet
16100 Cognac
Tel: 05.45.82.03.20
Fax: 05.45.82.34.40
E-mail: [email protected]

[AnOther]

[quote user="TheVicar"]Try www.direct-assurance.fr for example. They are the French equivalent of
Direct Line[/quote]Hmm, both myself and 'er indoors have max UK NCB and are in our 50's and best price from here is €468.

Thats a fair bit more than we pay in UK at present and also more than the €430 quoted by our local GAN office. Clearly some shopping around to do.

Interestingly there was no question about annual mileage, is this normal. I would have thought that this would have a substantial bearing on risk and therfore cost ? 

[Will]

Car insurance being 'cheaper in France' seems to be another of those myths. It did seem quite reasonable five years or so ago when we first took out French insurance, though Mrs Will's policy, needed for her estate agency work, including full passenger liability, was always very expensive.

However, I was amazed when getting quotes recently for a British-registered car. Even allowing for the fact that British insurers were not interested in good claims records outside Britain, I got some amazingly cheap quotes. We ended up with Saga, not the cheapest by some way but on account of its good European cover, and which very generously (!) gave me a one-year NCB as an introductory bonus. Even taking into account the fact that breakdown insurance is extra in Britain, I still end up paying less for a quite wizzy Megane than I did for a prosaic Peugeot in France.

There is considerable variation in Britain - quotes I received varied from about £160 to well over £600. French premiums seem to be much closer in cost between companies. Strangely, the cheapest British quote was from Groupama (a French company), but the cover offered, particularly for European use, was crap.

[cruddler]

On a slightly different note, I am about to move to France at the beginning of September and we will be taking our UK registered car with us. This is insured with a UK company until the end of the year, is it ok to see this through or will I need to cancel it and take out insurance with French based company?

Thanks

Andy

[AnOther]

There are any number of threads dealing with this plus the sticky in the Driving section describes the process.

In a nutshell though if you become resident, as it sounds you will if you are moving to France, then you have one month in which to re-register your car and you will also need French insurance for it.

Apart from one or two notable exceptions most UK insurers will only provide European cover for 30, 60 or sometimes 90 days but even Saga, who will cover you without time limits, still require you to be a UK resident to qualify.

Forget all the half truths and nonsense you will doubless be offered by Brits who have been here for years and are still tooling around on English plates.

Just think of the potential consequences of having a serious car crash in France and finding yourself uninsured and make sure you do it right [:D]

  

[cruddler]

Thanks Ernie, sorry hadnt actually got as far as the Driving section yet

[Bob T]

If you ask the UK company if they will cover you when you move here they will say no. The cover is open to UK residents only and you will become a French resident the day after you get here, sorry if that is not what you want to hear, but life is not easy.

[Frederick]

Makes you think this .......wonder what the position would be if you get clobbered by one of the many cars with Polish plates we have on the UK roads at the moment ......wonder how long they are covered for out of Poland ?  30.60 90 days .....forever ?