Car insurance from Clements [drivers with foreign licences]

rajatparihar

lcwill wrote: »

I also have Clements, fully comprehensive. Many of my colleagues do too. Seem good so far, very cheap, but I haven't had to claim yet.

I don't understand how they work to be honest but they only insure people working outside their own country. Can be anywhere in the world. Perhaps foreign/expat workers are a very low risk group.

Price Forbes is another similar company but they normally do not offer third party liability insurance. Clements somehow manage to provide the whole package.

They do not offer any no claims bonus so you cannot expect your premiums to decrease, but they will give you a risk certificate proving X years of no claims if you want to leave and get normal insurance.

Unfortunately clements has stopped providing auto insurance in Ireland. I got to know this as my car insurance provider is Clements and I sent them a mail to renew it and have received this reply.
I really dont know the reason behind it. Do you know any other company similar to Clements who gives auto insurance on international DL?

gnote2

rajatparihar wrote: »

Unfortunately clements has stopped providing auto insurance in Ireland. I got to know this as my car insurance provider is Clements and I sent them a mail to renew it and have received this reply.
I really dont know the reason behind it. Do you know any other company similar to Clements who gives auto insurance on international DL?

they still supply it to ireland. but only for 6 month only. i just renew with them this month. what reply do u get?

rajatparihar

gnote2 wrote: »

they still supply it to ireland. but only for 6 month only. i just renew with them this month. what reply do u get?

They said that my insurance will not get renewed as they stopped providing third party cover in Ireland. Dam !!

gnote2

rajatparihar wrote: »

They said that my insurance will not get renewed as they stopped providing third party cover in Ireland. Dam !!

not sure. it will probably depend on the account handler, i got difference price by different account handler. they seem to not sync..

rajatparihar

gnote2 wrote: »

not sure. it will probably depend on the account handler, i got difference price by different account handler. they seem to not sync..

When did you get your insurance? I mean in which month? Yea you are correct about their out of sync issues as when I was buying the insurance for my car, I got different quotes with different users. lol

Hoping to get some solution as now I am getting a dodgy feeling that I'm gonna loose my no claim bonus certificate as well

gnote2

rajatparihar wrote: »

When did you get your insurance? I mean in which month? Yea you are correct about their out of sync issues as when I was buying the insurance for my car, I got different quotes with different users. lol

Hoping to get some solution as now I am getting a dodgy feeling that I'm gonna loose my no claim bonus certificate as well

this month. 01/04. they cover it only for 6 month only. not sure whether i can get renew on the next term.. you probably can try with different handler and see your luck.

you not gonna lose you no claim bonus, it is trans-fable right?

rajatparihar

gnote2 wrote: »

this month. 01/04. they cover it only for 6 month only. not sure whether i can get renew on the next term.. you probably can try with different handler and see your luck.

you not gonna lose you no claim bonus, it is trans-fable right?

Yes it suppose to be transferable but I am not sure about Clements whether they'll issue it or not :x

Anyway, do you know any other similar kinda insurance provider?

gnote2

rajatparihar wrote: »

Yes it suppose to be transferable but I am not sure about Clements whether they'll issue it or not :x

Anyway, do you know any other similar kinda insurance provider?

they only issue it if you request it earlier..

i know a few, but i forgot the name, will let you know as i need to read back on my log book as i keep a few alternative there

rajatparihar

gnote2 wrote: »

they only issue it if you request it earlier..

i know a few, but i forgot the name, will let you know as i need to read back on my log book as i keep a few alternative there

Yea pls do let me know. Thanks a mil !!

TeaBagMania

*Additional Terms & Conditions: 1. A deductible applies. 2. A standard war exclusion applies. 3. Coverage is excluded while the automobile is in Canada, Iran, and North Korea.

Damn, there goes my plans to drive across North Korea this summer

pabloazazel

Anyone has tried after 1st of April???

pabloazazel

gnote2 wrote: »

they only issue it if you request it earlier..

i know a few, but i forgot the name, will let you know as i need to read back on my log book as i keep a few alternative there

Do not forget to let us know about other alternatives please.


By the way for those with this insurance, what coverage do you guys have? physical damage only or physical damage with excess liablity and what is the difference?

dennyk

pabloazazel wrote: »

Do not forget to let us know about other alternatives please.


By the way for those with this insurance, what coverage do you guys have? physical damage only or physical damage with excess liablity and what is the difference?

Physical damage covers damage to your own vehicle in an at-fault accident (and probably fire/theft/etc. as well, haven't read the details in a while). Excess liability would provide additional coverage on top of a separate primary liability (called "third party" here) insurance policy, so that it would cover damages that exceed the coverage limit of the primary policy. As the statutory limit for third party insurance is something like thirty million euros here, it's basically not useful in Ireland. The "excess liability" option didn't used to be available for Ireland; Clements used to offer primary third-party liability policies here, but since they no longer do, they now offer that excess option instead.

I don't know of any other alternative international expat motor insurance companies. Geico used to offer similar coverage for US expats in Ireland, but they stopped offering it here around the same time as Clements. Your only option is probably going to be an Irish insurance company, unfortunately, and it's going to cost a lot. I was able to get an insurance policy with Liberty on my US license, and it turned out to be pretty cheap, as they accept no-claims histories from insurers in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, or any EU country (though you will have to do the legwork to get the required documentation from your foreign insurance company). My coworker came here from Panama, though, and had a very hard time getting a quote; he was being quoted upwards of 5k a year with his Panama license from the one or two insurers who would offer him one at all. He just got his Irish learner's permit, though, and was able to get a quote from AXA (I believe) for around 3k after that. It will get cheaper once he gets his full license, too, and of course once he's built up a no-claims history.

pabloazazel

dennyk wrote: »

Physical damage covers damage to your own vehicle in an at-fault accident (and probably fire/theft/etc. as well, haven't read the details in a while). Excess liability would provide additional coverage on top of a separate primary liability (called "third party" here) insurance policy, so that it would cover damages that exceed the coverage limit of the primary policy. As the statutory limit for third party insurance is something like thirty million euros here, it's basically not useful in Ireland. The "excess liability" option didn't used to be available for Ireland; Clements used to offer primary third-party liability policies here, but since they no longer do, they now offer that excess option instead.

I don't know of any other alternative international expat motor insurance companies. Geico used to offer similar coverage for US expats in Ireland, but they stopped offering it here around the same time as Clements. Your only option is probably going to be an Irish insurance company, unfortunately, and it's going to cost a lot. I was able to get an insurance policy with Liberty on my US license, and it turned out to be pretty cheap, as they accept no-claims histories from insurers in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, or any EU country (though you will have to do the legwork to get the required documentation from your foreign insurance company). My coworker came here from Panama, though, and had a very hard time getting a quote; he was being quoted upwards of 5k a year with his Panama license from the one or two insurers who would offer him one at all. He just got his Irish learner's permit, though, and was able to get a quote from AXA (I believe) for around 3k after that. It will get cheaper once he gets his full license, too, and of course once he's built up a no-claims history.

so I understand that I have to go for the coverage physical damage only right? I guess this cover other cars in case of an accidental because of my fault right?

dennyk

pabloazazel wrote: »

so I understand that I have to go for the coverage physical damage only right? I guess this cover other cars in case of an accidental because of my fault right?

No, physical damage only covers *your* car. You need third party liability insurance (which Clements no longer offers) to cover damage to other cars and injury to other drivers. It is illegal to drive without third party insurance in Ireland.

javiercarrillo

It'd be awesome if someone finds about similar insurance companies. I was checking Irish insurance companies and they want to charge me around 2K? (for the same car I paid 420 EUR in insurance last year)

T.w.a.T.

I just did an online quote, it come back to me at $416.00, don't know how much is in euros, but guess around €350-360 mark.
Thats a big step down from €850, what Im paying at the moment.

javiercarrillo

T.w.a.T. wrote: »

I just did an online quote, it come back to me at $416.00, don't know how much is in euros, but guess around €350-360 mark.
Thats a big step down from €850, what Im paying at the moment.

For 3rd party liability? (Which is a legal requirement).

T.w.a.T.

I presume so.
Will check with them anyway.

javiercarrillo

T.w.a.T. wrote: »

I presume so.
Will check with them anyway.

Yeah, because I got an online quote with them a couple of weeks ago and it was like 400 USD but then noticed that it was only for physical damage (to my own car) and did not include Third Party Liability (which is what I think most people refer to when they talk about "car insurance" as this is the legal requirement in Ireland and many countries).

fmcato

javiercarrillo wrote: »

It'd be awesome if someone finds about similar insurance companies. I was checking Irish insurance companies and they want to charge me around 2K? (for the same car I paid 420 EUR in insurance last year)

I got a much lower quote than that for my first insurance in Ireland. Still expensive, 1K. Contact your previous insurers in your home country and get from them a document which explains:
1- How long have you been insured with them (or registered as a named driver).
2- The claims (and date of) presented in your name, if any.

With that you can contact an Irish insurance broker (google for some, I used coverme.ie) and ask them to get the cheapest 3rd party insurance.

If you can prove 5+ years of driving with no claims the quote should go down a lot.

TeaBagMania

Sorry for the ignorant question but how do you prove NCB over the years, is it printed on your insurance renewal paperwork?

fmcato

TeaBagMania wrote: »

Sorry for the ignorant question but how do you prove NCB over the years, is it printed on your insurance renewal paperwork?

Not sure. In my case I contacted my previous insurer directly and asked them to send me the no claims document that I described above.

dennyk

T.w.a.T. wrote: »

I just did an online quote, it come back to me at $416.00, don't know how much is in euros, but guess around €350-360 mark.
Thats a big step down from €850, what Im paying at the moment.

It's so cheap because Clements does *not* offer primary third party liability in Ireland anymore, only physical damage (to your own vehicle) and supplementary liability that only takes effect after your primary liability coverage (which you *must* purchase from another insurer to drive legally) is exhausted (and given the statutory €30 million limits for Irish third party insurance policies, it would be very unlikely to ever pay out).

€850 isn't bad for a driver with a foreign license. That's about what I'm paying for coverage with Liberty now with a US license. Once you have your full Irish license, it should go down some (or at least maybe stay about the same instead of getting jacked through the roof come renewal time, the way things are going these days...).

rajatparihar

I am still struggling to find an alternative of clements to provide third party insurance. My case is I have a full Irish license which I have got at the start of this month and have 10+ years of full Indian driving license (29 M). Still no Irish company is willing to insure me under 1.5k Euros
These companies are charging hell lot if you are driving 2 litres +

PS: I have Audi A5 2.7 tdi (2008 registered) and currently insured with Clements and have paid 1200 Euros in Aug 2015.

T.w.a.T.

dennyk wrote: »

€850 isn't bad for a driver with a foreign license. That's about what I'm paying for coverage with Liberty now with a US license. Once you have your full Irish license, it should go down some (or at least maybe stay about the same instead of getting jacked through the roof come renewal time, the way things are going these days...).

I'm on full Irish licence with 4years NCB, and it was going up every year instead of down. Thats since 2013.
And is only for TP fire & thief.

rajatparihar

T.w.a.T. wrote: »

I'm on full Irish licence with 4years NCB, and it was going up every year instead of down. Thats since 2013.
And is only for TP fire & thief.

Which car you have and what is your age? Did you ask them as in on what factors they are increasing your premium?

T.w.a.T.

An Audi A4 1.8t '04. I'm 41 this year.
The factor is, they have too many claims, and have to cover all the expences. No exponation given, just some ****e excuse, thats all.
And thats for all companies in this country, full with absourts.

rajatparihar

T.w.a.T. wrote: »

An Audi A4 1.8t '04. I'm 41 this year.
The factor is, they have too many claims, and have to cover all the expences. No exponation given, just some ****e excuse, thats all.
And thats for all companies in this country, full with absourts.

This is insane I think I have to sell my car and use public transport now.. Damn I never thought that I have to kill my passion for cars just because of the greed of these Insurance Companies.

TeaBagMania

It seems the insurance companies have a monopoly, is there no government insurance regulation department in Ireland monitoring this?

Flat out refusing to insure cars that are 10 or 15 years old should be criminal. I thought the NCT was there to ensure cars of any age are roadworthy?