Why Getting Short-Term Car Insurance Makes Sense
Getting car insurance for three days could cover you over a weekend away or it could be used if you’re borrowing a friend’s van to move home. It’s also a good idea for businesses as travelling by car could be cheaper than train travel, so temporary car insurance has a few real world applications that make the idea of being insured for anything from 1 to 28 days make sense.
Why you need it
You have to be insured for every journey on British roads. The Road Traffic Act section S143 (Driving without insurance) doesn’t leave a lot of room for interpretation, so even if you’re only going to borrow your mate’s van for a day, you’ll need some form of cover. Breaking this law brings with it a possible £5,000 fine and a 6 point penalty, as well as your car being impounded, and although you might think that the punishment doesn’t fit the crime, driving without insurance puts the vehicle you’re driving and other cars on the road at risk, so the act makes sure that drivers fulfil their responsibility to all road users.
Why Business users need it
The Road Traffic Act also has to be taken seriously by businesses, as the employer can be jointly liable with the employee in the event of an accident. There have been cases when the employee has successfully argued that they believed that the firm has insured them while they were in a company vehicle on company business, so a short term policy would give a business owner peace of mind if an employee has to travel for business.
What’s covered?
As with other forms of car insurance, a short term policy will cover damage to the vehicle and any other vehicles if you’re liable for the claim. Fire and malicious damage are also part of most policies, as is accidental damage to property. Cover for your legal obligations following an accident is also a pretty standard element of temp car insurance, then there are other things to consider like medical treatment costs in the case of an emergency, and you could also get cover for electrical items like the car’s telephone and sound system.
Online quotes
It’s not difficult to get a competitive quote nowadays thanks to the web, and you’re normally not under any obligation to take the cover quoted. Compared to annual car insurance, there are far fewer questions, but you might find that there are some restrictions, for example if you’re looking to borrow your friend’s Ferrari for the weekend, you might find that very few insurers offer this type of insurance for Group 50 cars.
Final word
You really shouldn’t take the risk of getting caught without car insurance, particularly as temporary insurance cover is pretty cheap nowadays and can be easily taken out with only a few minutes of your time.
