Unless your insurance provider specifically requests it, you are not required by law to inform them that you have completed a speed awareness course.
Because it isn’t considered a driving conviction, you won’t be asked when you start a quote with us. Because the DVLA does not keep track of course data, it will not appear on your driving record and will not be examined by insurance companies.
You must, however, declare any pending driving offenses and license points. It’s possible that your auto insurance will be invalidated if you don’t tell your insurance provider about any convictions you’ve had in the last five years.
Do you have to declare speeding on insurance?
Insurance companies require drivers to disclose any motoring convictions they have incurred in the previous five years. As a result, if you don’t declare yours when applying for insurance, your policy will be void.
How long does a speed awareness course stay on your record?
How long will the course be kept on file? The National Driver Offender Retraining Scheme stores your information in a database. If you are caught speeding again within three years of taking a speed awareness course, you will almost certainly face a fine and penalty points.
Do I have to declare speed awareness course to Admiral?
1. Points de penalité
You must notify your insurer using the DVLA conviction code if you or any specified drivers get a fixed penalty, a motoring conviction, or are disqualified during the policy term. You must also declare any driving education classes you have taken. Parking fines aren’t necessary to mention.
2. Any assertions
You’ll need to tell us about any accidents or incidents that you or your specified drivers had in the past year, whether they were your fault or not. You must notify us even if the claim was not made via us or occurred in a vehicle that is not covered with us.
3. Anything that doesn’t appear to be correct
Let us know if any of the information on your Motor Renewal Confirmation Form is incorrect or has changed since last year so we can make sure everything is correct.
Does speed awareness course count as an endorsement?
Drivers who are found speeding between 10% and 10% plus 9 of the legal limit are usually offered a course by most police departments. To put it another way, if you’re caught driving between 35 and 42 mph in a 30 mph zone or between 79 and 86 mph in a 70 mph zone, you’ll be fined.
The course, which is taught in a classroom rather than in a car, was created by psychologists with the goal of educating rather than prosecuting drivers in order to enhance road safety. The lessons last four hours and aren’t much less expensive than a fine, costing around £85 on average. You can only go once every three years, which means you’ll have to take the points if you offend again during that time frame.
A popular option is to take a speed awareness course. According to the National Driver Offender Retraining Scheme, approximately 1.2 million drivers completed the course in 2014. However, while doing it means that the police will not record your speeding offense as a conviction, few motorists realize that taking a speeding course will still raise your vehicle insurance rates. Furthermore, younger drivers, who normally have considerably higher insurance premiums, will see a greater hike.
According to Julie Robertson, the head of Simpson Millar’s driving offences team: “There is no doubt that participating in a speeding course may and often does increase a person’s insurance rate – sometimes significantly.
“After taking a speeding course and informing their insurer, several of my clients have experienced big increases in their insurance premiums. Clearly, it is viewed as an aspect of increased risk, even if it could be the exact reverse.”
Premiums can climb by 10% to 30%, according to experts, although it depends on your insurer because not all need drivers to declare a course.
“Drivers who have committed a speeding offense are at a larger risk than drivers who do not commit speeding offenses in the first place, according to our claims statistics.”
An AA representative, Ian Crowder, rejects this. “Those who have committed a speeding offense are statistically more likely to file a blame claim,” he argues. “Those who take a speed awareness course, on the other hand, learn something, don’t get points, and, in our opinion, become better drivers and hence are less likely to file a fault claim.”
Robertson concurs. “It is completely unfair to raise a motorist’s premium simply because they have completed a speed awareness course,” she says. “A speed awareness course, unlike a fixed penalty or a court-approved speeding offense, does not constitute a conviction.”
According to Robertson, taking a speed awareness course makes drivers aware of the consequences of speeding. “It should be viewed as a positive step rather than something for which a higher insurance premium should be imposed.”
The Department of Transportation is conducting research to see if this is the case. Motorists should search around for the best rate in the meantime.
Unlike penalty points, insurance companies can’t tell if a driver has completed a speed awareness course unless they acknowledge it, because this information is kept by local police departments rather than the DVLA. However, if you fail to disclose that you have and then file a claim, your policy may be voided.
If you choose points on your license over a speeding course, your insurance rate will almost certainly rise much more. The awarding of points is regarded as an acknowledgment of guilt and a judicial conviction. According to AA statistics, drivers with a single speeding ticket are 10-12 percent more likely than those with a clean license to file a claim. As a result, it should come as no surprise that the more penalty points a motorist has on their license, the more likely their insurance prices will climb.
According to the AA, a first speeding conviction will normally increase premiums by 12.2 percent. A 35-year-old Ford Mondeo driver in Gloucester, for example, may see his annual premium rise from £569 to £639.
A second offense would result in rates increasing by 34.1 percent on average, adding £218 to an annual payment.
Although the courts only consider convictions to be relevant for three years from the date of the offense, some insurers consider penalty points for a five-year term.
Do you have to tell insurance about points straight away?
Insurance firms charge for automobile insurance based on a series of risk calculations that anticipate how likely a driver will file a claim.
Insurers will view you as a higher risk if you have a driving conviction, and your insurance costs will rise.
A driving conviction may have an impact on your auto insurance in the following ways:
- Each insurer will have its own risk assessment standards, but the more serious your driving convictions are, the higher your premiums will be, and in some situations, companies will refuse to insure you.
- Disclosing convictions: It is a legal requirement that you notify your insurer if you obtain points on your license; failing to do so is a violation of the Road Traffic Act 1998.
- Immediately or at renewal: Most insurers only need you to reveal any points you’ve received while under their coverage at renewal time, but others include in their conditions that you must notify them as soon as you receive the conviction, so make sure you read the fine print.
- Convictions that aren’t declared: If you don’t declare your conviction before filing a claim, your insurer may refuse to pay your claim.
What happens if I don’t tell my insurance about my points?
It only takes one blunder to earn points on your driver’s license. There are a variety of reasons why you could incur penalty points, ranging from driving with a damaged tyre to exceeding the speed limit.
Penalty points might stay on your license for four to eleven years, depending on the offense. Do you have to tell your insurer about the penalty points? And, if so, what are the ramifications? We investigate.
Owning up
Withholding vital information when applying for vehicle insurance is illegal under the Road Traffic Act of 1998. This implies that any penalty points you obtain must be reported to a potential (or current) insurer.
However, according to RAC insurance research, roughly a fifth of drivers would not notify their insurer if they received penalty points while driving. According to the data, a fifth of car owners who have previously received penalty points did not alert anyone.
Employees who drive as part of their job may be required to have a current, valid driver’s license in order to continue working. However, only one out of every ten motorists polled said they would notify their employer if they received any points in the future.
The consequences
If you don’t tell your insurer about any penalty points, your insurance coverage may be canceled. Driving an uninsured car can result in a prosecution and the accumulation of six to eight penalty points on top of any existing penalties.
Not only that, but if you get into an accident and your insurance company refuses to pay because you didn’t tell them about the penalty points, it might be a costly mistake. If you tell your insurer about your crime, the cost of your insurance will almost certainly rise, but not as much as if you try to hide it.
There are several unusual scenarios in which you can lawfully avoid receiving penalty points on your license. If you’re caught speeding, for example, you’ll usually be asked to pay a £60 fine and have three penalty points added to your license.
However, you may be offered the opportunity to take a half-day Speed Awareness course. If you haven’t been convicted of any speeding offenses in the last three years and haven’t exceeded the legal limit by a certain amount, you’ll be invited.
You won’t get any penalty points on your license or be fined if you finish the course. Keep in mind that the price of the course often ranges from £60 to £100.
Reducing your insurance premiums
Are you concerned about the ramifications of notifying your insurance about penalty points? There are a few things you can do to lower your rates and ensure you’re getting the best bargain possible.
You can see the range of deals available by shopping around and using price comparison sites. You might also increase your auto insurance excess willingly or try redefining your employment title.
Do points affect insurance?
Receiving points on your driver’s license or being charged with a traffic violation might increase the cost of your vehicle insurance and perhaps limit the number of car insurance products available to you.
Why have I not been offered a speed awareness course?
Why haven’t I been given the opportunity to take a speed awareness course? Your local police department has complete choice over whether or not to offer you one of these courses. You won’t be offered one if you’ve already had one within the last three years or if you were above the speed restrictions set by the police.
Can I take a speed awareness course instead of points?
For persons caught speeding, speed awareness courses are four to five-hour lengthy educational programs. They’re offered as a substitute for points on your driver’s license. It’s like taking another rigorous, theoretical driving lesson where you’re taught all over again about the consequences of speeding or reckless driving.
Most regional police departments provide them to either first-time offenders or drivers who have committed minor offenses.
You don’t have to take the course if you’re offered it; you can pay the fine and accept the points instead.
Does your insurance go up after a speed awareness course?
Speeding convictions linger on your record for at least four years, and having points on your license raises your car insurance prices. The speed awareness training, however, is not free. If you don’t need to make a claim on your insurance from one year to the next, keeping your no claim discount may be advantageous.