Finding van insurance in Northern Ireland can be a very difficult process. Because of the country’s history it has been lagging behind a lot of the developed world in being overrun by large multi-national insurance giants who want to undercut the market and bring insurance prices down.
Van insurance is affected by many of the same factors as car insurance premiums. This includes age and history of the driver, the area the van is kept at night time or when unattended and the level of accidents in the area. In Northern Ireland however, also taken into consideration are the risks that are considered due to the violence in the past.
While these violent episodes don’t really occur in the modern Northern Ireland insurers have used them as a way to increase premiums for years. Because larger companies from overseas were scared off the market, the local insurance companies have been able to take monopoly over the market and avoid any serious competition or threats to their prices.
This is slowly starting to change, however when it comes to van insurance there are a few things to keep in mind to keep that premium as low as possible. First of all if the driver has a criminal history or poor driving record then chances are you’ll pay a higher fee. If you lock away your van at night then you can shave some off the price.
Size is also an issue when it comes to van insurance and so you really should only ever get the van size that is necessary. Anything bigger may be transporting air around town while you pay extra insurance for the privilege. It is always worth keeping this in mind, while bigger may seem better it won’t be for your wallet.
Making sure you have or install alarms and immobilizers as well as other security devices when available will make you seem like a better risk against someone without these added measures. It’s a fairly simple way to not only reduce your premium but also the real risk that someone could steal your van.
Overall, use any price comparisons you can find whether they be achieved online or over the phone. Aim for high security in use and storage and keep your driving record clean. Without any of these things fulfilled, van insurance in Northern Ireland will become very expensive and very difficult to afford.