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Car insurance confusion???

ManateeMarie

ManateeMarie

Member
o_O I'm a T1 diabetic, I'm taking my practical car test at the beginning of Sep, I'm looking forward/nervous to it, my boyfriend is letting me have his car, (so he can buy himself a nice new one!!!). I've been pre-emptively shopping around for insurance cover, but I've not been asked on a couple of sites to declare any medical background information. I was just wondering if anyone knows of any car insurers that won't take me for every penny because I'm diabetic, I've found a quote for £973, but that was without being able to disclose my diabetes. Thank you for any replies and help Xx
 
ManateeMarie said:
I hope not, he's letting me have his car for free, so I'm trying to get the cheapest quote for my insurance to save myself some more pennies ☺️
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I use the price comparison websites to find the best deals on things like insurance, but you have to be aware that not all company's pay commission to these websites for selling their services so they don't come up in the search results.
 
Early days but if you can do advanced driver test this reduces insurance and some companies have a "black box" that records how you are driving that can reduce your premiums. Good luck with the test
 
noblehead said:
I use the price comparison websites to find the best deals on things like insurance, but you have to be aware that not all company's pay commission to these websites for selling their services so they don't come up in the search results.
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I'll keep that in mind, thank you for helping, it was getting a little frustrating, but now I've got more info, it'll be easier to shop around ☺️
 
Shar67 said:
Early days but if you can do advanced driver test this reduces insurance and some companies have a "black box" that records how you are driving that can reduce your premiums. Good luck with the test
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Thank you, I do want to take an advanced course, not just for the lower premiums but so I don't panic when I first go onto a motorway, lol, the premiums are a bonus though ☺️
 
You must declare it even if they don't ask. It shouldn't affect your price. It also doest affect the price of hire cars (I you ever need one). The comparison websites are a good start.

They will give you a 'three year restricted licence'. This means that every 3 years you will get paperwork from the DVLA asking you if you have had any changes to your diabetes control (eyes, hypo awareness etc)

Please be aware that if on this paper work you tick 'yes you have had assistance to treat a hypo' then they will cancel your licence.

Good luck with your test!!
 
You should declare that you have diabetes. For car insurance the insurers are not allowed to discriminate due to medical conditions therefore cannot increase your premium due to diabetes.
 
ManateeMarie said:
I hope I'm a first time passer ☺️ I've not told many people, just incase I fluff up I'm not normally this much of a doubter, but I've got all fingers and toes crossed (not when I'm behind the wheel though )
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If you pass first time then great, I passed second time for my car licence but first time for my motorbike licence.
 
Dustydazzler said:
You must declare it even if they don't ask. It shouldn't affect your price. It also doest affect the price of hire cars (I you ever need one). The comparison websites are a good start.

They will give you a 'three year restricted licence'. This means that every 3 years you will get paperwork from the DVLA asking you if you have had any changes to your diabetes control (eyes, hypo awareness etc)

Please be aware that if on this paper work you tick 'yes you have had assistance to treat a hypo' then they will cancel your licence.

Good luck with your test!!
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This might sound daft, but if they don't have an option to declare it, how would I go about doing it??? Would I have to email the company or ring them, I remember seeing on one sight something about a restricted licence, but it asked if I had one, and I wasn't too sure what it meant so didn't tick anythin, and thank you, I'm hoping I pass first time round ☺️
 
ManateeMarie said:
I bet it felt great passing ☺️ I can't wait, my only regret was not taking lessons sooner, but all good things ☺️
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It is a nice feeling, although when you first get behind the wheel for the first time without someone in the passenger seat it does feel strange :)

But do be sure to tell the insurance company that you go with that you have type 1 diabetes, if you don't then this will likely invalidate your policy which you don't want were you to be involved in an accident.
 
noblehead said:
It is a nice feeling, although when you first get behind the wheel for the first time without someone in the passenger seat it does feel strange :)

But do be sure to tell the insurance company that you go with that you have type 1 diabetes, if you don't then this will likely invalidate your policy which you don't want were you to be involved in an accident.
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I had to laugh today, for the first couple of minutes my instructor had the radio on trying to listen out for football news, I didnt think he would do something like that, it made for a fun lesson though ☺️ And I will definitely let them know. Thank you for all your help on this, it's my first time on diabetes.co.uk and my first thread, I didn't know how much support I'd be getting, it's been very very helpful ☺️
 
ManateeMarie said:
This might sound daft, but if they don't have an option to declare it, how would I go about doing it??? Would I have to email the company or ring them, I remember seeing on one sight something about a restricted licence, but it asked if I had one, and I wasn't too sure what it meant so didn't tick anythin, and thank you, I'm hoping I pass first time round ☺️
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Yes ring them. At the end of the confused type websites when you pick your best quotes it tells you the company and the phone number. Ring them and say you have an online quote but it didn't have anywhere for you to declare your diabetes. They will discuss the quote and you can choose to save it or buy it.

I got diagnosed after I had been driving for years so I can't comment too much on diabetes with a provisional licence. You don't currently have a restricted as you haven't told them so I would say you have a provisional. I would ring the DVLA up and tell them about your diabetes as soon as you can. You won't loose your licence but they will send you a medical questionnaire for you to fill in and send back. Then when you buy your car insurance you tell them you have or you tick the box that says "three year restricted licence DVLA aware". If you don't tell DVLA or insurance company you can assume that if you were to have an accident they will say your insurance is invalid as you didn't tell them.

Don't worry about your diabetes regarding the insurance or DVLA. You won't have any more hassle than someone without it apart from the medical questionnair. You don't have to pay each time they renew the licence or anything like that either, they just send you a new one with another three years on it.
 
Just in case no one else has mentioned it, if he has a good driving record with no accidents and no convictions, it might be worth adding your boyfriend as an additional driver on your insurance as it could be a lot cheaper. My daughter added me to her insurance and saves around £200 per year. And I've never driven her car or had need to, as I have one of my own.
 
ManateeMarie said:
Thank you, I do want to take an advanced course, not just for the lower premiums but so I don't panic when I first go onto a motorway, lol, the premiums are a bonus though ☺️
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Well I used to close my eyes going round roundabouts whilst screaming out loud, didn't dare go on a motorway until one night my dog took ill and quickest way to emergency vet was by motorway, I screamed most of that journey as well.
PS I passed 1st time despite lots of screaming during lessons.
 
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