Car Insurance Jargon Buster

Car insurance, just like any other financial product, has its fair share of arbitrary terms and oblique jargon that means nothing to people who don't work in the industry every day.

Fortunately, that's just what we at moneysupermarket.com do. As a result, we've written a jargon buster in order to help you wade through the technical speak that you might come across when searching for a quote or making a claim.

ABI group - this is the risk group, set by the Association of British Insurers, that you car has been placed to. All cars fall into a group, with smaller and cheaper to repair cars belonging to the lower ranked groups, up to high powered sports cars in group 50.

Approved repairer - insurers will often prefer for any repair work to be done by a garage they know and trust: - these are known as approved repairers.

Comprehensive - this is the most complete type of cover you can currently purchase. This is often known as "fully comprehensive", but that is a slight misnomer - each company has a different idea of what "comprehensive" actually means.

DOC cover - this stands for Driving Other Cars, and does exactly what it says on the tin. This covers you to drive cars other than the one mentioned in the policy.

Fault/no-fault claim - a no fault claim refers to a case where you are not at fault, and as such your insurer can claim costs back from a third party. A fault claim is slightly different however, as a fault claim refers to any case where the company cannot claim expenses back - in the case of someone driving without insurance, for example.

Indemnity - refers to a payment made to the policyholder that ensures they are in the same financial situation after an incident as they were directly beforehand.

IPT - Insurance Premium Tax is a tax paid on all insurance premiums. This is charged at a base rate of 5% for most types of insurance, and a higher rate of 17.5% for certain forms of vehicle insurance

Loss adjuster - a loss adjuster is a person who investigates claims, ensuring that they are legitimate and that the company they work for are not paying over the odds on claims.

Material fact - failure to disclose material that could invalidate a policy, such as driving convictions.

S,D&P - Social Domestic & Pleasure. If you only plan on driving your car for non-work purposes, SD&P is the sort of cover you need. If you drive a car to work and back, you will need to add commuting to that, and if your job involves driving you will have to include that as well.

Settlement - a settlement refers to a claim being paid and completed; quite often, the payment from your insurer is referred to as a settlement.

TPFT - Third party, fire and theft. This type of cover insures you against fire and theft to your own vehicle, and damage to third parties.

TPO - Third Party Only. This is the absolute minimum cover you should legally have while on the road. This covers you for damage to other people's property as well as personal injury claims, and nothing else.

Underwriter - an underwriter works within an insurance company, and decides whether or not the insurer is willing to accept the risk a policy presents. If this is the case, the underwriter then decides how much to charge the policyholder for accepting this risk.

Under-insurance - insuring your car for less than it is worth is known as under-insuring. This is particularly important when it comes to making a claim, as even if your claim does not cover the total value of the car, insurers can refuse to pay the percentage difference between the insured amount and the actual value. For example, if your car was worth £10,000 and insured it for £8,000, your insurer may refuse to pay 20% of any claim.

ULR cover - uninsured loss recovery, more commonly known as legal expenses cover. Basically, this means that you can recover any money spent on legal expenses should your incident lead to court.

Uninsured losses - items not covered by your car insurance. These include things like hire charges and legal costs.