Thread: Transfering no-claims history abroad?

My fiancée has received a job offer in Canada that is too good to refuse. It is a two-year posting, then probably back to the UK afterwards.

I am wondering if we will be able to transfer our no-claims history abroad? Do car insurers generally accept no-claims from foreign countries as legitimate or not? Otherwise it would seem like a waste of time and money doing all this safe driving, building up a no-claims and then having it mean nothing when we're abroad.

Canada is a Commonwealth country with, in my experience, mainly similar rules and a similar standard of driving to the UK, so I'm crossing my fingers we might be OK.

Also, if we are unable to transfer the NCB abroad, will we be allowed to "resume" it when we get back, i.e. the same amount of years as we had before we left the UK? Or will we have to start all over again? Or does that depend on how long we are away? I have heard of cases where people have stopped driving for 10 years then decided to start again and have not be allowed to use their old NCB, but 2 years isn't that long I don't think.

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I dont know about travelling abroad, but the experience I have had is that NCD will be honoured for upto 2 years after the policy you had it on expired.
Having said that, one of the questions asked in many propaosals these days ask if you have lived abroad so I suspect that would affect your premium also.

It's down to the insurer really. NCD is little more than a marketing ploy. There is no right to it being transferred unless already agreed in a contract.

It may be worth asking your insurer to send you a letter confirming your NCD so that you can take it with you. Some insurers may not be wanting to go to the hassle of international correspondence, from my experience anyway.

There are a number of insurers who will accept a No Claims bonus accrued abroad anv vice versa. Speak to some of the majors, not the direct or .com writers such as NU, RSA and Zurich.
It is worth getting a letter from your current insurers stating that when you joined them you had "X" number of years NCB and that there have been no claims whilst with them.
Do the same thing on your return to the UK from the Canadian insurer.
However, UK NCD is generally valid for a period of 2 years after expiry with some accepting up to 3 years anyway.
trust this helps.