Buying a classic car?

To qualify as a classic car the vehicle must have been registered between the first day of 1950 and the last day of 1985. It must currently be registered in the UK with a value not exceeding £25,000. The driver would be expected to drive it in a reasonable manner, which would mean avoiding dangerous locations, and no hazardous goods such as highly inflammable or potentially explosive materials can be carried, and the vehicle cannot be used for hire or reward purposes.

The driver should normally be aged at least 25, and have held a UK full driving licence for a minimum of one year. A reasonable driving record would be expected; serious motoring offences such as driving with excess alcohol, dangerous or reckless driving, driving without insurance, taking a vehicle without consent etc would normally be a bar to cover.

Personal imports usually cannot be covered, but there are a large number of vehicles which can be insured, and since the list is too long to be printed here we suggest that you go online and start an application for a quotation; if your vehicle can be insured it will appear in a drop-down box during the application process. It is very important that you only proceed if the exact make and model is listed; choosing another vehicle which you feel is 'close enough' could leave you with an in valid insurance policy.

All this sounds very legal and formal but apart from that it is a very simple process to take out a policy online, and should only take you a few minutes to get a quotation and, if it is acceptable, you can either book the insurance to commence at a date and time of your choice in the near future, or it can start immediately the formalities have been completed. All documentation can then be downloaded and printed off on your own printer; we do recommend that you do this and carry the policy documents with you at all times, since, although the insurer will forward details to the MID database at the latest by the next working day, it still may not show updated records until several days after the transaction. If for any reason whatsoever you had to prove that you were insured during this period the downloaded documents can provide that evidence.