Ancillaries - more protection for you and your car
Legal assistance provides assistance to recover uninsured losses (such the as excess
on your policy), medical losses or loss of earnings from a third party. If you are
involved in a road traffic accident that was at least partly the fault of the third
party, with legal assistance a third party will arrange for a solicitor to pursue a
claim for compensation if you are injured (the third party being the providers of the
legal assistance). Many drivers who are only insured for third party fire and theft do
not bother with legal assistance. However, if someone else hits their car, their
insurance company will not pay for the repairs – uninsured loss recovery insurance can
therefore be particularly useful to them.
Also, following an accident the guilty party may not always acknowledge they are at
fault. Negotiations to prove negligence can be complex, time consuming and potentially
very costly. In this instance, legal assistance can be most useful.
There will be varying differences in the level of legal assistance each insurance company
offers. It is therefore advisable to check the details so you are aware of exactly what
cover is being offered.
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The one time you really need to get somewhere will be the one time your trusted car
decides to stop, and not start again. Now, if you are mechanically minded you may be
able to fix the problem. However, dependant on the problem, you may need assistance.
That's where breakdown cover comes in.
Breakdown cover can offer help if you can't start your car at your home. Or if you
breakdown and your vehicle cannot be fixed where it stopped and you need to continue
your journey. Although some companies have different levels of cover for their motor
breakdown cover, generally what you'll find in each section is…
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Recovery/Relay - If your vehicle can't be fixed locally, you'll get recovery
for up to a set number of people to any mainland destination.
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Home Start - Breakdown assistance at your home and near to your home.
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Onward Travel - If you breakdown away from your home and a prompt repair is not possible,
you will generally be provided with either a replacement hire car, or overnight accommodation,
or reasonable onward travel expenses.
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European Cover - Protection when driving in Europe, generally covered for up to 31 days
per trip and 90 days per year in total (Please check each companies terms for the European
countries covered).
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Most insurers offer the opportunity to pay a little more to protect your no claims bonus.
This means that should you be deemed to be at fault for the claim, then the number of
years NCB will remain the same. However, this may not prevent your premium from rising
as most companies rate on claims history as a separate factor.
Be aware that some insurers won't guarantee an unlimited amount of fault claims but will
still allow you to protect your no claims bonus during your time with them as a customer.
Some for instance, will only allow 2 fault claims in a year long policy; others may allow
2 fault claims in three years before they remove the protection from your no claims bonus.
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A Green Card is documented proof that the minimum legal requirements for third party
liability insurance in any country for which the Green Card is valid, are covered by
the insured's own motor policy. A Green Card is currently recognised in more than 40
countries including all the countries of Europe with the current exception of Russia.
Also Iraq isn't currently a member of the green card system.
While the vast majority of the time you'll use your green card crossing country borders,
it is advisable that you carry it with you at all times in case you are involved in an
accident. Thus avoiding any inconvenience whilst your UK insurance is translated.
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