How to check your auto insurance claims history?
Having a thorough grasp of your vehicle insurance claims history is vital. It gives insight into how prior occurrences might affect your future rates and no-claims bonus.
Insurers communicate facts on all claims using an industry database called the Claims and Underwriting Exchange (CUE). This implies they may check your whole history regardless of provider, not simply instances you explicitly revealed. Checking the CUE yourself offers a comprehensive picture of what impacts your quoted rates.
We’ll explore how to access your information, what affects your claims history, and how insurers utilize it when setting rates.
How can I examine my vehicle insurance claims history?
Your two major ways to examine vehicle insurance claims made in your name are as follows:
Contact your insurer
Your current provider maintains your insurance records, including claims information, therefore you may make a subject access request for your entire claims data. This is free but might take up to 30 days to obtain.
Use the CUE
The CUE is the major UK database recording information on all car insurance claims. You may file a topic access request on the Motor Insurers’ Bureau website and access records dating back six years for free, as long as your request is fair. Reports come within 10 to 30 working days
Using the CUE enables total visibility independent of changing insurers. Claims remain on file for six years even if policies have been terminated.
Do insurers demand claims history?
Insurers want a thorough account of your prior claims for determining new rates. The CUE always refers to your whole record covering every provider over the previous six years.
You must state your claims history honestly when applying for new coverage. Attempting to obscure prior occurrences by omission is deceitful. It also damages any claim validity and leaves you defenseless.
Even if an accident didn’t lead to a claim, insurers want facts to help determine reasonable prices indicative of your risk. Always report events and enable providers to view your CUE data.
What affects my vehicle insurance claims history?
If a claim has been lodged, whether it is an at-fault or non-fault occurrence, this will normally raise car insurance prices. Too many events also escalate the perceived risk and at-fault accidents will score against your more than successful non-fault claims. All claims are registered to the CUE by insurers, thus if not claiming is a realistic financial alternative, it could be the best choice long-term, taking into account premium loadings and no-claims bonus losses.
Check your CUE data to discover the mix of accidents and claims harming your rates.
Nick Jones is a highly experienced consumer writer and editor, who has been writing and creating material for print and internet media for over 25 years.
He has worked for some of the UK’s major publishers including Future Publishing, Highbury Entertainment, and Imagine Publishing, with magazines as varied as Homebuilding & Renovating, TechRadar, and Creative Bloq, writing and editing content for audiences whose interests include history, computing, gaming, films, and science. He’s also created a variety of podcasts in the technology, science, gaming, and true crime categories.
Nick has also experienced a very successful career in content marketing, working in a range of themes such as health, technology, and finance, with market-leading global organizations like Cisco, Pfizer, Santander, and Virgin Media.
Now the Editor-in-Chief of the Independent Advisor, Nick is active in all elements of the site’s content, where his knowledge of finance, technology, and home goods inspires every item that’s published on-site. He takes a hands-on approach with our VPN material, producing a lot of the pieces personally, and checking that everything we post in this field is authentic.
Whatever the area of interest he’s worked in, Nick has always been a consumer advocate, helping consumers discover the greatest bargains and providing them the knowledge they need to make an educated purchase choice.