A must in Germany: motor vehicle liability insurance. Without insurance, driving a car on public roads is prohibited by law. However, many policyholders have to dig deep into their pockets for insurance. Switching car insurance often promises a financial advantage. Here we show you what you should bear in mind when switching and why it is worth comparing car insurance policies.
Why it pays to change insurance
Changing insurance can make sense for both liability insurance and comprehensive insurance. The principle here is: it pays to compare.
There are many car insurance companies and the premiums vary greatly. If you switch from an insurance company with high premiums to one with low premiums, your financial advantage can amount to several hundred euros. But switching insurance is not only worthwhile to save money. You can also switch to an insurance company that offers you a higher level of benefits.
A comparison is particularly worthwhile for older drivers. Insurance companies often stipulate an age surcharge for senior citizens. The surcharges vary greatly from insurer to insurer. When comparing insurers, you may therefore come across insurers whose age surcharge is lower.
The right time for the change
You can terminate your car insurance contract at the end of each insurance year - i.e. usually on 31 December. You must observe your notice period of 4 weeks, i.e. your cancellation must be received by your insurance company by 30 November at the latest.
Please note that you must first take out a new insurance policy before you cancel the old one. You must ensure that your insurance cover is complete. If you have not yet taken out new insurance, you are not allowed to drive your car. Using the vehicle without insurance cover is prohibited by law. This rule applies to third-party liability insurance. Partial or fully comprehensive insurance is an additional voluntary insurance.
Here you will find what we consider to be helpful material for differentiating between Liability, Partial and fully comprehensive insurance.
How to proceed when changing car insurance
Firstly, compare the benefits and prices of the various car insurance companies. This is now possible without much effort. There are internet portals where you can compare insurance policies directly online.
You should have the following data and information ready:
- Make and model of the vehicle
- First registration
- Use (private/commercial)
- Annual mileage in kilometres
- Financing (cash purchase, credit, leasing)
- Parking space at night
- Start of insurance
- Policyholder data such as address, driving licence acquired, current no-claims class
If you decide to switch after the insurance comparison, you must cancel your current insurance and take out a new one. The comparison portals offer an attractive service for this. You can cancel and take out the new insurance policy directly in the comparison portal with just a few clicks.
Caution: What you should know about the telematics tariff
If you drive with summer tyres in winter, you are not only acting with gross negligence, but also risk a high reduction in benefits from your insurance company. In addition, you are not only endangering yourself but also other road users.
If you were at fault for the accident, you must expect your comprehensive insurance benefits to be severely reduced. If it can be proven that, against your better judgement, you were nevertheless driving on winter roads with unsuitable tyres, the insurer may refuse to pay benefits altogether.
Even if you were not at fault for the accident - i.e. you are the injured party - the other party's liability insurance will attribute joint liability to you in this case.
The struggle for a fair percentage distribution is an exciting challenge with an uncertain outcome, even among regulatory professionals.
So play it safe and only drive with winter tyres in winter.
But even with the right tyres for winter road conditions, the risk of accidents increases. If you have an accident despite taking good precautions, we can help you.
What you need to consider with your insurance after an accident
Even good insurance does not prevent emergencies. If an accident happens to you - whether as the injured party or the person responsible - you should bear in mind that insurance companies prefer to collect premiums rather than pay them out. As the injured party, for example, you are entitled to reimbursement of repair, expert and hire car costs. However, as the insurers themselves want to keep your costs as low as possible, in practice the insurer often reduces the reimbursements to which you are entitled.
You don't know what claims you are entitled to? Then let now Check your claims.
You will find general information on what to do after an accident here.
What we do for you after an accident
How do we help you after an accident? We take care of the complete settlement of your claim. You no longer have to bother with paperwork, because we minimise your workload. Our experts will check your claims after an accident and communicate with all parties involved in claims management, such as the insurance company, lawyer, garage, surveyor, etc.
Simple and cutting-edge: When using our HIS (customer information system), you can see the current processing status of your case. The best thing about it is that you don't have to install the KIS. It simply works via the Internet browser. You can view important files such as expert reports or invoices directly and they are stored in compliance with data protection regulations. Your documents are therefore always up to date and at your fingertips - without having to search for them.
This is how quickly you can report your accident to us: Online at https://www.fairforce.one/lp/anspruchsrechner/ or call us on the free phone number 0800 - 30 111 60 to tell us about your road accident. This will take just 2 minutes. A specialist from our network will then call you back and explain the next steps. Now it's time for you to sit back and relax! We will check your claims following your road accident and take care of the entire claims settlement process.
