Your vehicle insurance is compulsory by law, as driving your car without insurance is not legal. A car insurance policy is essential to cover the damages caused to your vehicle due to accidents or thefts.
There are several reasons why a car insurance policy can lapse, and you can’t renew it before the expiry date. This may be due to the policyholder forgetting the date of renewal or some unforeseen circumstances that might have caused an unavoidable delay.
Usually, when this happens, the major disadvantage of your policy getting expired is that you risk losing out on your No Claim Bonus. This is one of the significant benefits of insuring your vehicle, where you receive a discount for every claim-free year on the following year’s premium. These discounts increase with every passing claim-free year. When you do not renew your vehicle insurance policy on time, it could result in you missing out on some opportunity to save.
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How do you avoid these consequences and solve the issue of car insurance renewal as stress-free as possible?
Here is a step-by-step guide on what to do when your vehicle insurance expires:
Get In Touch With Your Insurer
Once you find out that your vehicle insurance policy has expired, the first thing to do is to contact your insurer or agent. Your insurer knows better and has the expertise and professionalism to reinstate your vehicle insurance without no stress and risk.
It would help if you got it sorted out as soon as possible because it tends to get more complicated as time passes, and you might eventually pay a higher premium.
Some people ask how long does auto insurance last? Auto insurance coverage should last 6 to 12 months, depending on the company. Some of the world’s biggest insurance companies have a six-month policy.
Avoid Driving Your Car
Driving a car with an expired insurance policy exposes you to many risks. This includes accidents or legal issues since Any accident that might occur around the time your vehicle insurance expires will not be catered for by your insurance company, and you will need to pay out of your pocket for every cost incurred and even any third party involved.
Select Your Policy
The next thing you are to do after your car insurance policy expires is to choose or select a new policy for renewal. There are various options that you can choose based on the insurance company you registered with.
Your car insurance policy is a yearly contract that would require renewal after the stipulated policy time has expired. As mentioned earlier, if you do not renew your policy within the stated time, you risk losing its benefits. Your insurance company will give you a period for renewal, and if it is not renewed within that period, your car insurance company can reject your renewal application.
Here are some consequences of not renewing your vehicle insurance policy on time:
- Your renewal application might be rejected if the days between the expiration and renewal are high. And peradventure, your car insurance company finally accepts the renewal of your vehicle, and they might issue a fine
- You may need to apply for a new policy and begin the application process from scratch.
- Your insurer might charge you a higher premium amount.
- You might lose the No Claim Bonus.
- Legal issues might occur if vehicle regulatory officials catch you driving a vehicle with an expired insurance policy.
Review Your Policy
Your renewal provides an opportunity to review your policy. You can make changes to the coverage or verify discounts.
That’s why it’s crucial to have a reminder because you can easily forget about it, especially when you haven’t needed to use it recently.
This period is ideal to contact your insurance agent or company to review your policy. If your situation changes, you may have to adjust your coverage. And you could even shop for another policy if you’re unhappy with your rates or the service.
Make Your Renewal Documents Available
After you have decided to renew your vehicle insurance and you have decided on the insurance policy you wish to renew. The next step for you is to make available the required documents needed for the renewal process. It’s best to contact your insurer and ensure that you have every necessary document ready for renewal.
Complete Vehicle Survey Process
When your car insurance policy expires, your vehicle must undergo a survey process. A surveyor will examine your car. In case of any damages that have existed previously, the examiner will review your vehicle’s condition before approving your insurance.
Purchase Your Policy
This is one of the most crucial things you must do once your vehicle insurance policy expires. The steps to follow to purchase or renew your car insurance policy online are listed below;
- Visit the insurance website & log in to your account.
- Click on the renew option.
- Renew using a credit/debit card or internet banking for payment.
- Provide a digital copy of the insurance policy.
- Send the hard copy through courier.
Conclusion
Renewing your vehicle insurance car online is easy because you don’t need to depend on anybody to get it done. Insurance companies constantly send renewal reminders; you can acknowledge the reminder and get it done online.
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