From Honset John / Telegraph Motoring, 11th June 2011.

[renault12ts]

My problem is this, is it not the law to have car insurance? As in the kind of insurance that I know?


I'm not necessarily knocking this practice, on the contrary, I find it intriguing...

Yes it is the law. And the MIG has it.

Take someone wealthy, say Bill Gates,, in the event of a nasty accident, he could argue (successfully) that he could meet any cost...he isn't insured as such, but the victims would be paid. It would not be legal without the formal process being in place, ie the bond. Insurance is there to take care of third parties...which is all the law requires.

 

[Deleted member 37751]

It is the law, and a surety is necessary. Most people get their surety from their insurer (note the terms are very closely related) and a few, for whatever reason, post the surety directly, as the law allows.

You've made that clearer now Charles, thank you.

 

[MOCAŠ]

Yes it is the law. And the MIG has it.

So how much does it cost to insure a MiG for road use these days?

Surely Honest John's correspondent was referring to a MEG?

 

[renault12ts]

So how much does it cost to insure a MiG for road use these days?

Surely Honest John's correspondent was referring to a MEG?

LOL...yes he is, I was being sloppy by restating from the OP.

 

[corned]

I think this is quite prevalent. There must be thousands and thousands of drivers out there who driver under these arrangements.

In a previous career I used to regularly drive about with no insurance (or VED for that matter), quite legitimately.

 

[IanA2]

From Wiki:

In 1930, the UK government introduced a law that required every person who used a vehicle on the road to have at least third party personal injury insurance. Today, UK law is defined by the Road Traffic Act 1988, which was last modified in 1991. The Act requires that motorists either be insured, have a security or have made a specified deposit (£500,000 as of 1991) with the Accountant General of the Supreme Court, against their liability for injuries to others (including passengers) and for damage to other persons' property, resulting from use of a vehicle on a public road or in other public places.

The devil as always is in the detail. See my bold italics.

 

[markjay]

So if you have mortgage-free house or flat valued in excess of £500,000 you can put it up as security and avoid paying car insurance altogether? That might come as great news to anyone currently paying £3,000+ a year to cover their 20-years old son...

 

[renault12ts]

...until said son has an accident and the house has to be sold to cover damages.

 

[Dichtung]

500k may not be enough if someone gets killed?

 

[John]

Lloyds of London last time I looked was a major underwriter of car insurance.

I thought Lloyds of London was the only major (final) underwriter of car insurance?

 

[Charles Morgan]

No - those days are long past. Most underwriting is non-Lloyds, typically only specialist policies tend to be done there.

 

[markjay]

500k may not be enough if someone gets killed?

In comparison, compensation for death is quite meagre actually. Long-term disability for a young professional is probably the most expensive claim - involving future loss of earning as well as 24-hours care etc.

 

[Dryce]

500k may not be enough if someone gets killed?

They're still liable to cough up over and above.

If your insurance isn't sufficient then you'd be required to cough up personally.

Lots of rich people still get insurance - but the whole point is about covering potential liability - whether you chose to do it out of your own pocket after the event or pay somebody else to carry the risk before any event.

Most of us don't have the means to make the choice.

 

[Harrythedog]

Good system, when I get £25m that's what I'll do

 

[PXW]

Presumably anyone who has made the 500k deposit has therefore satisfied RTA requirements for any vehicle they drive; effectively they are covering themselves personally rather than covering the vehicle. Anyone know how this works with MID? wouldn't they be forever getting pulled over as their vehicles would show up to police as uninsured?

 

[Mactech]

I only come across the 'self insured' once when some big 'Pants and Corsett' double decker took the side out of my fully legitimatly parked E220 in Shoreham back in 2006. Some kind passers by left a note on my windscreen to tell me what happened and the reg number of the bus.
I was suprised to find there was no insurance company involved, but it was all paid up and resolved quickly.

 

[snoop51]

No Military vehicle is insured as IIRC it is covered by the crown.

 

[Rory]

I only come across the 'self insured' once when some big 'Pants and Corsett' double decker took the side out of my fully legitimatly parked E220 in Shoreham back in 2006. Some kind passers by left a note on my windscreen to tell me what happened and the reg number of the bus.
I was suprised to find there was no insurance company involved, but it was all paid up and resolved quickly.

I suppose these organanisations may well still have insurance for personal injury - in the above case imagine the potential cost of wiping out a bus-load of people - but all property damage could be own liability.

A lot of companies run their cars 3rd party only, and my last job we had a big own damage excess such that it was only really worth claiming for significant accidents. I was gobsmacked how low our company premium was.

 

[tim.100]

A lot of companies run their cars 3rd party only, and my last job we had a big own damage excess such that it was only really worth claiming for significant accidents. I was gobsmacked how low our company premium was.

Same here. If you damage or write off a car the replacement goes on an expense claim...Quite an incentive to drive carefully!

 

[E CLASS]

I wonder how they'd afford protracted legal fees, situations where death by careless driving they are then sued for millions...

Self insurance for rich individuals is a nonsense.

Why is it then that popstars / film and TV stars always complain about how expensive their insurance is??