So here's how to get evidence of your no statements lower price...
What is no statements lower price (NCD)?
For annually you drive without creating security declare on your auto insurance plan your insurance plan organization will give you one seasons no statements lower price (NCD) that will give you a decrease on the price of your plan.
Also known as no statements bonus (NCB), these discounts are accumulated annually - the more decades you drive without creating security declare, the greater the decrease in the price of your auto insurance plan.
A word of warning though, both the lower price offered and the most of years' price of NCD you can accrue varies from insurance plan organization to insurance plan organization, so be aware of this when changing.
How long is evidence of no statements valid for?
Proof of no statements is usually only valid for two decades, which means if you're off the road for any reason or don't have your own plan for more than two decades, you'll be back to zero NCD the next time you take out cover.
How to get evidence of no statements lower price (NCD)
At MoneySuperMarket, we recommend drivers not to renew instantly annually with the same firm but to check whether it’s value changing provider. This is usually the case, as insurance plan providers tend to reserve their best prices for new customers rather than existing ones.
As and when you do create the switch your new insurance plan organization to ask for evidence of no statements lower price. The problem is, you’ll most likely have to get that evidence from your last insurance plan organization, and each organization handles this process differently.
One organization might include your evidence of no statements in your restoration or termination correspondence, another might deliver a specific evidence of no statements lower price correspondence, while a third organization might only deliver evidence if you request it.
We rang around several insurance plan providers to get find out how you're meant to get hold of your evidence of NCD and whether any of them deliver the evidence out instantly. Here’s what they had to say...
What to do when you have your evidence of NCD
Once you’ve got your evidence of no statements lower price in hand - whether that’s a correspondence, in an email or a PDF - there are stringent rules about getting it to your new insurance plan organization which, if broken, can leave you out of pocket or worse, without insurance.
To create sure you’re not caught out, here’s a look at some of the things to watch out for when you change auto insurance plan companies and have to give evidence of no statements lower price.
Your yearly restoration correspondence may serve as evidence of no statements lower price, so hang on to it. Saga, Santander and HSBC, to name but a few, say their restoration letters should suffice as evidence.
Not all insurance plan providers will instantly deliver you evidence of no statements lower price. Check our table to see if yours does, and what you need to do if they don’t.
There is usually a time period limit on getting your evidence of no statements lower price to the new insurance plan organization. This tends to range from around 7 to 21 days.
If you don’t provide evidence of no statements within the time period limit, your new plan could be terminated, leaving you without insurance, or your rates could be increased as if you didn’t have a no statements lower price.
Some insurance plan providers will not accept a copy of your evidence of no statements lower price correspondence, and will ask that you deliver the original. If this is the case, be sure to create a copy for yourself.
Most insurance plan providers only recognise no statements lower price up to a certain point. For example, the greatest lower price HSBC and M&S will recognise is nine decades. Insurers also have different maximum percentages, usually 70% or 75%.
Your new insurance plan organization may speak to your old insurance plan organization to get the evidence of no statements lower price itself, but it will tell you if it intends to do so.
It’s also value a follow-up contact if you’ve not heard anything a week after you’ve sent the evidence of no statements lower price. The organization should deliver you some kind of correspondence or email to confirm receipt, but don’t assume they’ve obtained it because you could be driving around without insurance.
How an NCD mishap can leave you without insurance
As a real-life example of how easy it is to get tripped up by all of this, MoneySuperMarket employee Hannah Jones found herself unwittingly driving around without any auto insurance plan after sending off evidence of her no statements lower price.
Hannah switched to Sheila’s Tires and was told to deliver evidence of no statements lower price within 14 days, which she did.
To Hannah’s surprise, she obtained a correspondence from Sheila’s Tires saying the plan had been terminated because they hadn’t obtained the evidence. This was two weeks after it was sent, and the correspondence was backdated by a week.
Making matters worse, when Hannah called Sheila’s Tires to explain it had already been sent, she was told that they would get in touch with her previous insurance plan organization and that they didn’t really need the paperwork!
Though Hannah was able to explains matters and correct the situation, at first she faced a termination fee and higher rates if she still wanted insurance plan with the organization.
Clearly, even if you receive and deliver your evidence of no statements lower price, things could still go wrong, so it’s value checking if you’ve heard nothing back.
And if you've built up several years' price of no statements lower price it's value taking into consideration protecting it so you can still take advantage of the yearly decrease even if you've made security declare.
What is no statements lower price (NCD) protection?
NCD security allows you to have a set variety of 'at fault' accidents annually without affecting the lower price. This means your NCD remains intact even if your insurance plan organization can’t declare their costs back.
And while this won’t necessarily stop the price of cover increasing after security declare - insurance plan providers use your statements history to calculate rates, with the lower price factored in at the end - it should still mean the yearly price is lower than if you'd not secured your NCD.
You can take your auto insurance plan no statements lower price with you when you switch insurance plan providers. The lower price might not be the same, but the new firm should honour your statements history. You can also transfer your NCD to another vehicle, perhaps if you buy a new car.
Using this MoneySuperMarket tool, you can find out how the leading auto insurance plan companies approach the subject.
How much does no statements lower price (NCD) security cost?
NCD security adds an average of £33 a season on to the price of auto insurance plan and creating security declare on a secured plan will see your yearly premium increase by around £10.
If, on the other hand, you had five years’ unprotected NCD and made security declare, you could expect to see your auto insurance plan jump by £130.
It's not quite as simple as it seems though - the research also found the longer you have NCD security without creating security declare, the less cost-effective it becomes.
If, for instance, you have five years’ secured NCD and declare within a season, you will be better off by an average of £54.
Making security declare in the second season will see your saving drop to £21, and then plummet to just £12 if you don't declare for three decades.
And if you don't declare until the fourth season, you'll have paid so much in unused security you'll actually be £45 out of pocket.
How to create a auto insurance plan complaint
If you have a grievance with security organization, you need to create a issue, so get in touch as ask for details of their official complaints procedure.
Always keep a note of the date and time of your contact, and ask for the name of the person to whom you speak. Store any emails you deliver and any replies you get.
The insurance plan organization will then have eight weeks to look into your issue and respond fully.
If you wish, the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) – which is free to use – will get in touch with the insurer organization and tell them about your issue. Detailed information of this service here.
If you’ve complained to security organization and don’t feel you’ve been treated fairly, give the FOS a call: 0300 123 9 123 or 0800 023 4567.
They will review the case and, if appropriate, take up the matter on your behalf.
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