Protecting Your No Claims Bonus

What is a No Claims Bonus?

A no claims bonus is exactly what it is described as, a bonus which is rewarded to drivers who have not had to make a claim on their insurance for the length of their policy (usually one year). This no claims bonus is then translated into a saving on the following years premium as a reward for not making a claim. Each year that the driver does not make a claim they are rewarded with another years no claims bonus which when added up can relate to substantial savings when taking out yearly insurance premiums. Most companies recognise a maximum of five years no claims bonus, which as stated can relate to a substantial saving. Due to the fact that it has taken the insured five years to accumulate the maximum NCB how can today's driver help to protect that no claims bonus?

Driving Practices

Follow the Highway Code - A good way to help protect your no claims bonus is to drive carefully and observe the rules of the road. The simplest rule to be followed that can greatly reduce risk of accident and therefore protect your no claims is adhere to speed limits. It is a fact that drivers who exceed the speed limits put themselves at a much higher risk of being involved in an accident and therefore loosing their no claims bonus.

Concentration - It might sound stupid when someone tells you that one way to keep your no claims bonus is to concentrate when driving but it's true. Too many road users in today's society are being distracted whilst behind the wheel of their motor vehicle. With technological advances becoming readily available to the average road user such as satellite navigation, mp3 technology, DVD and mobile phones eyes can be drawn away from the road. As long as these machines are used with in safe practice guidelines such as hands free and no DVD screens in the drivers field of vision then concentration stays firmly on the road ahead.

Prepare - Another way in which drivers can keep their no claims bonus protected is to regularly check that their cars are in good working order. This is as simple as making sure that the MOT is kept up to date and regular services are carried out on the car. The tyres can be checked and never drive with tyres that don't meet regulated tread depths or are damaged. Other very simple checks are to make sure that windows are clear of dirt, snow or ice before moving off and check that the windscreen washers are always full to aid in your visual awareness on the roads.

Protecting your No Claims with your Insurance company

There has also developed over the past few years a way to enable a driver to protect their no claims bonus within the cost of the policy. This is done when purchasing your policy from your insurers, for a small extra cost to the premium you can pay to help protect your no claims bonus. This is generally done in one of two ways:

Complete protected No Claims Bonus - this is where, for an extra fee, the customers no claims bonus is protected and any claims made that year will have no effect on the drivers no claims bonus.

Part Protected No Claims Bonus - This is where the insurance company, for an extra fee, will protect your amount of no claims bonus against up to two accidents for the length of that policy.

So as you can see there are many ways to help you protect your no claims bonus and help you keep the cost of your insurance down. For that extra security talking to your insurers and arranging no claim protection can significantly reduce the chance of you losing that well earned no claims discount. Log onto Insure your motor.co.uk or call the sales team on 0800 091 1980 to see how they can save you money on your car insurance and help you protect that no claims bonus.