can my wife drive in uk

[ceebee]

You are right! I've checked with a couple of well known companies and their fully comp is a good £200 cheaper than 3rd party. Still high at about £800 though. I think I will have to wait until the present policy expires and try again, maybe benefit from a bit of no claims. In the meantime I have to take her to and from work. Not a big problem since I'm retired anyway.

[colin244]

Traditionally TPF&TH was about 50% of fully comp policies but things have changed in recent years due to partly "crash for cash" and the recovery of outlay by Insurer's with uninsured drivers so we now have MID (motor insurance database) to initially trace uninsured drivers from Europe but it now extends to all as well as CIE (continuous Insurannce enforcement) which relates to a vehicle having to be insured even if not on the road unless it is delared SORN.

Anyway in answer, the the trick of being on a monthly Direct Debit is that you are in control if you change Insurer as they don't have your cash up front so the refund can't have penalties but you may lose a few days if you pay on the 1st of the month and cancel on the 15th for example.

As for adding the wife it will vary from Insurer to Insurer so the answer is shop about and find the best price/terms i.e. excess and when you get the deal that suits you cancel your DDM and move.

On the No Claims Discount aspect any earned bonus automatically expires after 2 years of the last "live" policy but if you have driven only company cars in the interim for an employer there are some Insurer's who will accept a letter from the Employer stating your driving under their fleet policy.

Hope this helps

colin 244

[dobbo78]

an international driving licence will allow her to drive for 12months, i'm thinking of just renewing the int. licence for a couple of years until she gets familiar with uk driving, my mrs is a pretty good driver, and doesn't follow the 'thai' style of driving, maybe i'm just lucky.

[maokaang]

Dobbo

Assuming your wife is settled here, sorry, you can't do that. Before the 12 month grace period expires, counted from the day she first arrived to settle in the UK, she MUST obtain a UK driving license in order to drive in the UK.

For UK residents, international and Thai licenses are invalid for driving in the UK.

[dobbo78]

mmmmmm, i guess my brain is still thinking the thai way.

[Flip]

You could drive on your Thai licence for up to 12 months of returning to the UK to settle. You may also drive on it when visiting the UK.

If you are relying on your Thai licence then you cannot accept fixed penalties and will therefor be required to attend court in relation to any driving offence.

Am I right in saying Tobias, that should such a person be banned from driving in the UK and therefore lost their UK licence, they could not use a Thai licence as a way around this?

[Tobias]

That's right Phil. If you are disqualified from driving in the UK you may not drive any vehicle for any reason, under any circumstances - even using a foreign driving licence. Driving whilst disqualified is a criminal offence and can lead to a prison sentence.