Does a County Court Judgement CCJ or being bankrupt affect my insurance?
When taking out or renewing an insurance policy an insurer will have questions about your history including details of an adverse credit record. This will affect your home insurance and the insurer will very likely want to know about it
An insurance company has a set of underwriting criteria which they regard as ‘standard’ and will ask you to confirm if you can agree to them. One of these criteria will usually include the statement that you have had no CCJ’s, are not bankrupt and no prosecutions pending for the same.
Do I have to volunteer the information?
For many years the insurance industry relied on an antiquated law dating back to the Marine Insurance Act 1906 which put the onus of disclosure on the policyholder to disclose any material fact that they thought would affect the judgement of the insurer to offer cover. With effect from 6th April 2013 The Consumer Insurance (Disclosure & Representation) Act 2012 came into force. This Act removes the duty on consumers to volunteer information if not asked the question. So, you don’t have to volunteer the information but it does mean that you have to be very careful indeed when taking out a new policy or renewing an existing one.
Buying Online
Many consumers buy insurance on the internet as it is fast and convenient, allowing you to buy at a time that suits you. The problem is that you are often dealing direct with the insurer and there is nobody to give you advice.
A word of caution – when an insurer trades online they have their set of standard underwriting criteria that you must meet when taking out a policy with them. Many people take little notice of it and tick the box to accept in the same way as they will do so when reading the ‘terms and conditions’ of an ecommerce website.
With insurance it is very important that you read, and answer every question very carefully. All insurers are different but you need to look out for questions about County Court Judgements (CCJ’s), Insolvency Voluntary Agreements (IVA’s) Bankruptcies. Even when they are spent or have been discharged you need to ensure you answer the question accurately, as disclosure is still required for varying periods.
The consequences of non-disclosure
If your insurer asks the questions about a CCJ or Bankruptcy and you fail to disclose it to them it will likely have serious consequences. In the event of a claim they could investigate your financial affairs and if you have not disclosed information they have asked the insurer could void your insurance and return your premiums leaving you with no insurance.