You should be able to find some useful information below. If not, go to our Contact page for details on how to get in touch so we can help you with your query.
FAQ Topics
- COVID-19
- General Information About Us
- What cover do we provide?
- Are there certain things we can’t cover?
- Need guidance obtaining a quote?
- Got a question about no claims bonuses, excesses, or payments?
- Had an accident or need to make a claim?
- Want to make changes to your policy?
- Want to travel abroad?
- Want to leave us?
- Windscreen cover
- The MID
- The Legal Stuff
- Green Card
Updated COVID-19 FAQs
Our opening hours are:
Monday – Friday 9.00am to 7.00pm
Saturday 9.00am to 6.00pm
If you do need to make a change to your policy you can do this online:
- If you have a car policy, you can make changes online by visiting My Portal.
If we haven’t covered your Coronavirus-related change in these FAQs or you can’t find help by calling us.
We’ll do everything we can to support you if you’ve been affected by the Coronavirus – either financially or otherwise, so please contact us as soon as possible if you’re worried. All conversations are confidential and, if it’s easier, we can talk to a relative, friend o about your account – we’ll just need your authorisation to do this.
Please don’t cancel any payments or direct debits without speaking to us first. Missing payments means you run the risk of your policy being cancelled and we don’t want you to be left uninsured.
We have a number of options to help you. We can look at things like:
- Your level of cover – changing your mileage, occupation, how you use your vehicle or the level of cover you have for your home can sometimes bring your price down. You can do this online by visiting My Portal.
- Changing payment dates – if it will help, we can change the date your direct debit comes out.
To help you further, you won’t be charged a fee to make certain changes to your policy, amend your payment dates or if you decide you need to cancel.
You can find lots more impartial advice online with Money Advice Service, National Debtline, StepChange Debt Charity and the Citizens Advice Bureau.
Remember, it’s a legal requirement to have insurance (unless you declare your vehicle as SORN). Even if you aren’t driving your car it is important to protect against other events such as fire and theft, and some mortgage companies stipulate you must have your home insured. If you keep your policy you’ll also be able to earn this year’s no claims discount.
If your annual mileage is going to be lower than usual, you can easily reduce it by visiting My Portal by selecting ‘Manage my vehicle’ and then ‘Edit my current vehicle’.
The size of any decrease will depend on many factors and will vary from policy to policy.
Don’t worry if you’re not sure how much to reduce your mileage by. You can change it now and change it again once the situation is clearer.
Make sure you remember to review your mileage once you go back to driving normally, otherwise you may not be fully covered.
If you’re struggling to send this into us, please email us at talk2us@vavista.com with your policy number and the best number for us to contact you on, so we can help.
Yes, the Association of British insurers states that the cover of anyone using their private car as an NHS volunteer responder will not be affected and you are not required to contact us to notify us.
You can but we would encourage you to send any documentation or correspondence by email to talk2us@vavista.com. In the event you can only send things by post please note our post is only dealt with on a Tuesday and Thursday due to our agents working from home. We can also confirm any letters we send to you via post are always sent to you via email too, and in the current situation you may be experiencing delays with receiving post. So, please ensure you check our emails regularly, and also check your junk folder too.
We will continue to keep you updated by email, our social media accounts and website, and for more information on steps you can take to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, please visit the Department of Health & Social Care website.
Thank you for all your support in keeping one another safe.
The Vavista Team
General info about us
The value of your vehicle can also affect your premium, although a high vehicle value does not necessarily mean high premiums.
Tip: Differing prices might also reflect what’s included in your insurance cover. Check what your policy includes carefully before agreeing to the terms.
What cover do we provide?
Third party – the minimum legal requirement. It covers others (third party) but not you. If you injure someone or damage their property, they’re covered but if your own car is damaged or stolen, you have to pay for the loss yourself.
Third party, fire and theft cover – is as above but additionally covers you for repairs or replacement if your car is stolen or damaged by fire.
Fully comprehensive – the highest level of cover. On top of the basics of third party, fire and theft, it’s the only type that covers you if you damage your own car, even if the accident was your fault.
You can claim for:
• Repairs after an accident
• Accidental damage
• Vandalism
Tip: Fully comprehensive insurance often covers you to drive other people’s cars if you have their permission. You will only be insured under a basic third party cover for this. Check your particular cover policy terms.
Social, Domestic and Pleasure
This is the most common class of use applicable to virtually all policies. Cover includes any social use of the vehicle, i.e. shopping, the school run or visiting relatives.
Social, Domestic and Pleasure including Commuting
In addition to the above, cover includes commuting to one fixed place of work (or educational establishment in the case of persons in full time education).
Business Class 1
This permits the policyholder (and/or spouse) to use the car for travel between multiple fixed places of work in addition to use for social domestic and pleasure use. Common occupations that might require such class of use would include a supply teacher, a care worker who drives to see various patients, or any person who might have to work at more than one location.
Tip: This cover excludes use of the vehicle as a tool of trade.
Business Class 2
This class normally extends the cover under Class 1 (above) to any named drivers on the policy. Most insurance companies will require both the policyholder and the named driver to use the car for the same business (i.e. the insured and the named driver cannot use the vehicle in connection with different businesses) Tip: As above, this covers excludes commercial usage including delivering goods or selling products.
A modification is anything that has been added to your car that is nonstandard – this could be tinted windows, alloy wheels, spoilers etc. You should inform your insurer if you think your vehicle has any modifications in order to ensure you have adequate cover.
Tip: We have a modifications list to select from when doing an online quote and you can select a maximum of 5. if you have more than 5 modifications or are not sure it’s best to call us to discuss.
Yes, but we will only accept long–term hire agreements of one year or more.
Are there certain things we can’t cover?
Tip: If in doubt, please check with the DVLA and/or equivalent organisation from the country of origin.
Need guidance obtaining a quote?
Tip: It’s important that the address listed on your policy is the one at which your vehicle is kept most of the time.
•epilepsy
•strokes
•other neurological and mental health conditions
•physical disabilities
•visual impairments
Tip: If you’re unsure, it’s best to get in touch
Tip: If you have held your licence for 3 years 10 months, you’ll need to put this down as 3 years, even though it’s closer to 4. Only full years count.
Tip: The impact that a conviction has on your premium will depend on the type of conviction
This applies even if the claim was made by a named driver who is not on your new policy. It also works the other way, so if you had an accident when you were a named driver on someone else’s policy you would also need to disclose this on your new policy.
Tip: Insurers have access to online databases that have information on all UK claims and when a new insurance policy is taken every driver’s details are checked against this database so any incorrect claims information will be picked up.
Tip: Failure to do so might result in the cancellation of your policy or problems if you do claim.
Tip: Check your junk folders just in case your email has filtered them wrongly.
Tip: These must be in full working order to be applicable.
Got a question about no claims bonuses, excesses, or payments?
So if you claim for damage to your car, and the insurer had set your compulsory excess as £200 and your voluntary excess is £100, you would have to pay an excess of £300. This could be paid directly to the garage the car is being repaired or deducted from settlement if the car is a total loss.
Tip: You can choose a voluntary excess £0, but generally choosing a higher voluntary excess is likely to make your premium cheaper.
Call us on 0344 7768382
Contact Creation directly on 02890 267617
Had an accident or need to make a claim?
• Remain calm
• Don’t accept liability
• Exchange details with the other party (including names, phone numbers and address, make, model and registration number of the vehicle, and details of their insurance company).
• Take down details of any witnesses or police officers that attended the scene
• Take photos if you can
• Send us any documentation you receive to do with the accident
Tip: Our expert insurance claims team will guide you through the claims process so you’re in safe hands
Then contact our Claims Team on 03448 409537. It will speed up the process if you have your policy details and incident details to hand.
The Approved Repairer will provide you with a free courtesy car for the duration of repairs,
each repair is carried out in accordance with recognised industry standards, and guaranteed for 3 years.
You can use a repairer of your choice but this will mean we can’t guarantee the work and you will need an estimate for us to approve before work can commence. You also lose your right to a courtesy car.
We consider your cars condition including bodywork, mileage, interior and service history. Once the engineer has completed their report we will carry out a series of industry database checks designed to safeguard our policyholders against fraud.
Once these are complete, payment will be sent to you, subject to the deductions i.e. outstanding finance, outstanding premiums, and excess as per the conditions of your policy.
If you have Third Party Fire and Theft cover this means we cover damage to any third party in the event of an accident with your vehicle, i.e. another driver, but are unable to deal with any damage caused to your vehicle including a total loss.
Our priority is to get your car repaired and back on the road, or a settlement to you if it is a total loss (write-off).
After this, we will try to recover our outlay from the person responsible for the accident. If we are successful, then making the claim will not affect your No Claims Bonus*
*No claims discount protection can be added if you have a minimum of 4 years no claims discount (NCD). This can be added before you buy the policy, and cannot then be added until the next renewal.
If you have Comprehensive cover, we will arrange for an inspection of your vehicle, any repairs (or agreement if it’s a total loss), and handle the other driver’s claim.
If you have Third Party Fire and Theft cover this means we cover damage to any third party in the event of an accident with your vehicle, i.e. another driver, but are unable to deal with any damage caused to your vehicle in a road traffic collision.
In both cases, if you receive any correspondence from the other driver, or their insurers, it’s important you contact us as soon as possible so that we can respond on your behalf.
Independent witness statements and police reports can also be used as evidence and can assist us in receiving an admission of liability from the other driver’s insurer. Also, if you have any dash-cam footage of the incident, please forward a copy to us as a matter of urgency. Similarly, if you aware of any CCTV cameras at the accident location please make us aware of this A.S.A.P, as quite often there is a time limit on obtaining copies before is the footage is deleted, this can often be as little as 14 days.
It is important to note that the more evidence we have available the greater our chances of successfully holding the Third Party at fault.
If the incident is your fault, your no claims discount will be reduced*.
In the event of a theft claim your no claims discount will be reduced, as it is unlikely we will locate the persons who stole your vehicle and recover the costs*.
*No claims discount protection can be added if you have a minimum of 4 years no claims discount (NCD). This can be added before you buy the policy, and cannot then be added until the next renewal.
Want to make changes to your policy?
Tip: With a Vavista insurance your documents will automatically be stored in your personal online portal which allows you to check your details 24/7. Please contact us if your require more information or check your insurance confirmation email which will outline the portal details.
Tip: This will not necessarily have an impact on your premium but it is essential that it is logged.
Want to travel abroad?
Tip: This is subject to your usual place of residence being in the United Kingdom.
Tip: Please remember, there will be no cover for countries outside the territorial limits of your policy with Vavista.
Tip: You can find a list of these countries in your policy documents.
Want to leave us?
If cover has commenced i.e. mid-term, your refund will be subject to a deduction for the time you have been covered and for any costs incurred in issuing the Policy. Any payments for additional add ons are non refundable.
The MID
The police use Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) technology with information from the Motor Insurance Database (MID) to identify and catch people driving uninsured vehicles. More than 500 are seized every day and one person every three minutes is convicted for uninsured driving.
The MID is also systematically compared with the DVLA’s registered keeper records to identify uninsured vehicles from the record.
Tip: Just like the DVLA, you can check your vehicle is appearing on the MID for FREE.
Windscreen cover
Your documents also set out your windscreen excess. Your excess is payable directly to the windscreen company.
You can find out more about our add-ons here vavista.com/policy-documents/car.
Legal stuff
Green Card
We will issue you your card electronically via email, which you will need to print on paper.
On request, we can post you a hard copy.
Under current international rules, Green Cards are physical paper documents printed on paper.
You may be required to show the physical document at the border when entering the EU, but this will be a decision for the border authorities to take.
You may also be subject to police checks while driving abroad and you will also need to be able to present the document at the scene if you are involved in an accident.