Insuring your motor vehicle online

Yes. An insurance contract concluded at a distance is an ordinary insurance contract with the same rights and obligations. You receive the policy schedule and the conditions digitally, and for distance contracts a fourteen-day cooling-off period normally applies. The difference lies not in validity but in who completes and assesses the acceptance questions.

On the start date stated on the policy schedule, and only once the insurer has accepted the application. Retrospective cover does not exist: if you drive before then, you drive uninsured. Arrange the insurance before the registration is transferred, therefore, particularly if you want to use the vehicle straight away.

As long as the registration is in your name, the insurance requirement under the WAM applies, even when the vehicle is in the garage. If you want to end that obligation temporarily, you suspend the registration with the RDW. A suspended vehicle may not be parked or driven on the public road; own-damage cover during suspension is also often limited.

No. Standard forms are designed for common vehicles with ordinary registration. Imports, conversions, classic cars, adapted commercial vehicles and vehicles with a valuation report require manual acceptance. A claims history also often leads to the system declining, whereas an adviser can find a suitable company.