Before heading out on the road to enjoy a trip in Europe you may want to double check you have the right breakdown and insurance in place.
Have a look at your current insurance cover and see whether it covers you for taking your vehicle overseas. Your insurance company may offer some form of basic cover, but you may want to upgrade this to be on the safe side if anything should happen during your trip.
There is no legal obligation to have European breakdown in place, in fact many people travel overseas without it. However, this could mean if you have mechanical problems or are involved in a crash, then it could be very complicated and stressful to sort it out without the right cover – especially if you don’t speak the local language.
If you do have a comprehensive motor insurance you can often reclaim the costs following a crash abroad, but if you only have a third-party policy then you will have to pay the bill for your vehicle being towed and repaired.
Equally if you have a breakdown and do not have any cover in place then you will need to liaise with a local garage to figure out what is wrong and oversee any ordering of spare parts. This can be a lengthy process and you will not have access to another vehicle.
Therefore, it is worth considering signing up to a breakdown cover policy before you leave the UK. There are plenty of companies that provide European cover and they will offer different levels of service.
The majority will be able to arrange collection of your sick vehicle car and pay for it to be fixed. If the problem is serious, some policies will have cover for replacement vehicle and emergency accommodation.
Cost varies depending on where you are heading in Europe, with destinations in France and Spain cheaper than if you plan to travel to Eastern Europe.
It can also cost more depending on the age of your car and if you have made any modifications – it always pays to be honest upfront and then search around for the best deal.
If you are planning on taking more than one trip to Europe this year it may work out more cost effective to take out annual cover rather than just a policy that will be valid for one holiday.
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