Compulsory Insurance Required - Except....

[MarinaCoupe]

I was reading the paper this morning and read that insurance will be compulsory shortly. The papers seem only to be reporting part of the story. If your car is on SORN it does not need to be insured. See below link to DVLA page

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/Ow ... tayinsured

[jiversteve]

Whilst this is good news for those who SORN their cars during the winter months. I kept my Marlin insured even when it was off road for several years.
My thinking was that though it was in my garage it was still at risk and not covered by my domestic insurance as it was not considered as garage contents, like a lawnmower, even though it is what a garage was designed to contain!

I wonder if insurance companies will offer discounted policies for SORN vehicles? I somehow doubt it.

I dont think this will change much in the Classic car community who I like to think are generally responsible law abiding car owners.

There are stranger limitations. If I understand it correctly, a vehicle under tow on its own wheels, must also be taxed and insured and cannot be SORN.
I presume that this applies equally to tow rope, spectacle lift and A frame towing.

[MarinaCoupe]

That depends on the definition of what constitutes a trailer i.e. Unable to move under it's own power. If the car is drivable but just being towed then it is not a trailer, if however it has broken down, then it is unable to move under it's own power.

Going back to my days as an insurance broker in the early 1980s it was possible to insure fire and theft only for a vehicle off the road, i.e. No third party road liability, so much cheaper.

The clever thing was that you could keep the car off the road and still build up no claims bonus. I doubt if such a thing is possible now but might be worth asking.

[locost_bryan]

It pays to keep fire and theft insurance when the car is off the road. Too many cases of classic cars and street rods being stolen from garages for their parts. :-(

[Marinanut]

That depends on the definition of what constitutes a trailer i.e. Unable to move under it's own power. If the car is drivable but just being towed then it is not a trailer, if however it has broken down, then it is unable to move under it's own power.

Going back to my days as an insurance broker in the early 1980s it was possible to insure fire and theft only for a vehicle off the road, i.e. No third party road liability, so much cheaper.

The clever thing was that you could keep the car off the road and still build up no claims bonus. I doubt if such a thing is possible now but might be worth asking.

I'd be careful on that, there is a case of some guys moving a Datsun with no drivetrain or interior/glass/wiring on a tow frame and they were done for having an untaxed/uninsured/unMOT'd car on the road. I looked into modding an old Marina van into a four-wheeled trailer years ago and eventually asked at the local Plodshop. It took a couple of hours but eventually they came back with a 'no', but if I cut it in half and used just the rear it was a 'yes'. Also make sure your numberplate is covered, ANPR doesn't care if the car is on the road or a trailer, just if it is legal or not and if it isn't its am uphill struggle to prove your innocence.