Getting a quote - explanation of online application procedures

Before we begin, there are four important facts that you should always bear in mind when applying for car insurance online:

1. No insurer will ask you for your credit card number, bank details or other financial information to get a quote - if you're taking out a policy, and paying for it online, you may be asked for this information, but no one needs financial information from you to provide a quote.

3. Be honest - details about your car, where it's stored overnight, your driving history and age are the key factors insurers use to determine your premium. There's little point lying about them to obtain a cheap quote and purchasing the insurance policy based on false details - that's fraud, and the minute you try to make a claim or any sort of investigation is carried out by the insurer, they're likely to find out about it. This means your claim is rejected, your coverage is cancelled and you may find it difficult to obtain motor insurance again.

Aside from those main rules, the following information should help you get through the online applications process as efficiently as possible.

Details required:

All insurance sites will ask for some generic details, your name, address, a contact phone number, what type of car you drive (make and model), the engine size of your vehicle, what sort of alarm/immobiliser/tracker is fitted to your car, and whether you have any no claims discount or other driving endorsements.

So, before you begin, make a note of your car registration number, exact make and model, engine size and any modifications you'll need to declare, any driving endorsements you have and information on any additional drivers (partners, children) who you intend to add to the policy.

You can move between fields using the tab key, which will save some wear and tear on your mouse finger. Also, the majority of web browsers will allow you to store form data under particular profiles (which can save you shed loads of time if you plan to fill in many forms, but has its own security risks if you're using a computer other people have access to).

It's recommended you fill in one form first, to get a feeling for how they work. Once you've filled in a single form, you'll feel more comfortable about entering the information required - then you can work on filling in many applications at once using your stored form data and a tabulated browser.

Another fantastic time-saver is built right in to a good number of insurance sites - the ability to save and recall your quote. This means that once you've filled in the details and compared your quotes at a variety of sites, you'll be able to return to the one or two sites that made you the best offers to review the details and approach them for potentially greater savings.

Help is at hand:

Most of the major insurers have help available for people applying for their insurance online. This help is provided by insurers to potential customers as a courtesy, and ranges in form from insurer to insurer. Most commonly, the help is either a phone number you can ring with questions, an online list of frequently asked questions (FAQ) or an online assistant/chat facility.

Details of how to get help with your application are usually posted on each page of the online car insurance application itself.