Why do I need to declare my convictions?
By law, customers must fully and accurately complete all of the questions on the insurance form. It used to be that the law instructed customers to declare all 'material facts', regardless of what questions were on the form. However, a recent change to the law states that it is now the responsibility of the insurer to ask the right questions. When seeking drink drivers insurance it will be vital to provide completely accurate information.
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 states that all criminals must have a rehabilitation period that’s based on the offence and the sentence that was applied.
Once your rehabilitation period is over, your conviction becomes spent. It is worth noting that any criminal offence, regarding driving or otherwise, that incurred a prison sentence of over four years, is never spent and will always need to be declared on your insurance forms.
How long is it before my drink driving offence is spent?
How long it is before your drink driving offence is legally spent depends on the offence itself. There is a wealth of information out there on the different types of drink driving offences and how long they stay on your licence.
What if I don’t get asked about my convictions?
If you’re not specifically asked about any previous drink driving convictions, you don’t legally have to declare them. However, the vast majority of insurers will ask clear and concise questions, and it would be very unusual for there to be no questions regarding unspent driving convictions.
If there are no questions regarding unspent convictions on your insurance application form, double check the paperwork that you end up receiving through the post from the insurer.
What could happen when I declare my conviction?
A variety of occurrences could happen after you declare your drink driving conviction to an insurer. Worst case scenario is that the insurer is unable to offer you a quote. Many of the larger insurance companies will not offer drink drivers insurance.
For more information on the drink drivers insurance that we offer, click here.
Many insurance companies will offer drink drivers insurance. However, they will raise the insurance premiums significantly, due to the drink driver being seen as a ‘high risk’ category. To reduce the risk of having to pay sky-high insurance premiums, it’s best for drink drivers to go through a specialist insurance broker, like us here at Insurance Revolution.
...and if I don’t declare my conviction?
If you don’t declare your drink driving convictions when asked by an insurer, any of the following could happen:
- Your insurance could be voided immediately.
- Your insurance could be voided, but you could be offered a few days’ ‘grace period’ to give you a chance to sort out alternative insurance.
- An increase your insurance premium.
- Allow you to remain on the same insurance policy, but impose new terms such as a higher excess.
It’s always best to be honest about your drink driver convictions. Failure to do so could even result in another conviction, especially if you drive after your insurance has been deemed void.
