Do I need car insurance if my car is not used?

Question

I am in the process of buying a new car. When I get round to it, I intend to sell my old car, but in the meantime it will be garaged and not used. When I get my new car, can I just swap my car insurance over from my old car to my new one or am I legally obliged to keep on the policy for the old car until I sell it, even though I will not use it?

Answer 1

if it is safely tucked away where no one can bump into it or vandalise it then yeah it is quite legal

Answer 2

I take it you're in the UK. Legally you do NOT have to have the old dear insured as long as it's not on the highway (which includes being parked at the side of the road).

However, as someone has already said, you ought to keep it insured against fire & theft, just in case some scrote tries to pinch it or your garage catches fire.

Just ring your insurers, explain what you're doing and I'm sure they will hold it on tpf&t for you until you get the new one. Don't forget to get the cover sorted out before you go and collect the new one, will you?

PS Tell DVLA the old one's off the road (SORN).

Answer 3

I don't think ur car HAS to be insured, but if anything happened to it and it wasn't insured u wouldn't be able to claim anything for it, say u had a fire in the garage, there would be nothing you could do to get anything for the car if it weren't insured. Ur best not to have a gap in ur insurance, swich from car to car as u won't lose ur no claims bonus. But i think it's entirely up to u if ur car is off the road whether u insure it or not, just make sure u have declared it off the road by filling in a SORN form and don't drive with no insurance. This could end up costing u more than the insurance itself.

Answer 4

If you're not using it on the road there's no need to insure it. Just get it swapped to your new car.

Some insurance companies might offer to keep the old garaged car on with a basic fire and theft cover.

Answer 5

Let me help you out with this one. I work in insurance. No, you do not have to have insurance on your old car as long as it's not driven and it's not financed. If you do take it off your insurance policy before you sell it, make sure you suspend the registration and tag on it, or switch the tag to your new vehicle( This is way cheaper than getting a new tag). Just make sure you don't take the old car off the insurance before you put the new one on there. Hope this helps.

Answer 6

Yes, you must have insurance if you live in the USA.

If the garage burns down, you will be out of luck if you haven't purchased insurance.

Yes, you must keep insurance on the old car until you sell it. If you buy a new car and still have the old car, you have to keep insurance on both cars. You can only get rid of the old car insurance AFTER you have signed the title over to the new owner.

Answer 7

You can let your present insurance lapse but if someone runs into or breaks the garage and damage ensues, you have a bill coming up mate. you are the only one who can decide which way to jump here. Have you SORNed it?

Answer 8

Legally, if the vehicle is not driven, it doesn't have to be insured BUT if it's financed, the bank or leasing company will require insurance regardless - they are protecting their investment at your expense. It's in the contract. If you don't buy insurance, they will sell you one, and it will be about twice the price of your own.

Answer 9

You can transfer your old policy onto your new car, which means your old car will be uninsured. That means if anything happens your old car, it will not be covered, ie if it's stolen etc.
It also will be not covered for test drives etc.

Answer 10

If it isn't being used and OFF the public highway,you don't need to insure it..