Swiftlydoesit Life & Insurance

What does your car insurance cover?

May 21st, 2008

We all resent having to buy car insurance and spend our time hunting around for the best deals, but what do we look for when choosing which car insurer to use and exactly what are we covered for?

I think that a lot of people take into account the reputation of the insurance company but the vast majority of people make a decision based on price first and foremost. But do we really know what the price actually gives us.

Recent research carried out on behalf of swiftcover.com found that we are all very confused about what is and isn’t covered. Here are some common misunderstandings when it comes to car insurance:
Some people think that their insurance policy automatically covers them for driving other people’s cars but in reality you are not always covered and if you are it is normally for third party cover only;
Have you ever put petrol in a diesel car? I know a friend who did this, twice. Luckily the car was fine but they may not have been covered under their car insurance policy. 10% of people from the research wrongly assumed it would be covered;
Apparently 36% of drivers smoke whilst driving and a staggering 65% of us eat. If you ever have an accident whilst smoking, drinking or eating you could be caught for negligence even if you weren’t to blame.

I found quite a funny article called The 10 most dangerous foods to eat while driving. It’s number one offender was ‘coffee’. Not technically a food but a real distraction due to its dripability. People tend to be more prone to accidents when trying to clear up coffee that has dripped on to clothes, especially on the way to work. Foods that made the top 10 included Tacos and chilli (why would you?), hamburgers, fried chicken and chocolate (don’t even try eating a flake when driving).

So make sure that you read the policy details before you buy to make sure that everything you need for your car insurance is included and when you have bought your insurance, don’t eat and drive.

Entry Filed under: advice, insurance, cars