A fault claim is recorded when you caused the loss, or when your insurer cannot recover its costs from someone else.
A fault claim is an insurance claim where your insurer treats the loss as your responsibility, or where it cannot recover its costs from another person or insurer.
This means “fault” does not always mean you personally caused the accident. In motor insurance, the Financial Ombudsman Service explains that a fault claim can be recorded when the driver was at fault, or when the insurer cannot recover its costs from someone else.
For example, if your parked car is hit and the other driver cannot be traced, your insurer may have no one to recover the repair costs from. The claim could then be recorded as fault, even though you did nothing wrong.
The same can apply in cases such as theft, vandalism, hit-and-run accidents, or claims involving an uninsured or untraced driver. The final record will depend on the claim, the policy, and whether the insurer can recover its outlay.
A fault claim can reduce your no-claims bonus if it is not protected. The Financial Ombudsman Service says a fault claim is likely to reduce an unprotected no-claims bonus, often by two years, though the exact step-back should be explained in your policy.
Each insurer can set its own rules. The ABI explains that a no-claims discount is a premium discount for a claim-free period, but insurers are not required to offer one.
Some policies include protected no-claims discount. This may let you make a set number of claims without losing the discount. But it does not mean your premium is fixed. The overall price can still change at renewal, depending on the insurer, the claim, and other rating factors.
A claim may be treated as fault while the insurer is still checking liability or trying to recover costs. If the insurer later recovers the money, the claim may be changed to non-fault.
If you are moving insurer while a claim is open, ask how the claim has been recorded. You may also need proof of your no-claims bonus. The Financial Ombudsman Service says insurers should apply their no-claims bonus rules fairly and explain how any reduction works.
A fault claim can affect future quotes because insurers often ask about claims history, accidents, losses, and no-claims bonus. This may apply to car insurance, van insurance, home insurance, and landlord insurance.
Claims can also appear on insurance databases. The Motor Insurers’ Bureau says the Claims and Underwriting Exchange can hold information about motor, home, personal injury, and industrial illness incidents, whether or not they led to a claim.
For home and landlord insurance, insurers may not always use the term “fault claim”. They may ask about previous claims, losses, damage, escape of water, flood, theft, subsidence, or liability incidents instead.
You should answer the questions you are asked with care. Under the Consumer Insurance (Disclosure and Representations) Act 2012, consumers must take reasonable care not to make a misrepresentation to an insurer.
The Financial Ombudsman Service guidance on misrepresentation and non-disclosure explains how complaints may be assessed when an insurer says incorrect or missing information affected the policy.
MoneyHelper also says that accidents or damage may need to be declared when you renew, even if you did not make a claim.
A fault claim does not always mean you cannot get insurance. It may mean an insurer wants more detail about what happened, when it happened, how much was paid, whether the claim is settled, and whether your no-claims bonus was affected.
At Got You Covered, we arrange insurance for people with previous claims, low or zero no-claims bonus, and motoring convictions. We arrange policies through insurers; we do not underwrite the policies ourselves, and cover will depend on the insurer, the details you give, and the policy terms.
In summary, a fault claim is mainly about responsibility and cost recovery. Check how your insurer has recorded the claim, keep any proof you are given, and take reasonable care to answer the insurer’s questions accurately.
