Find out about French

Find out about French Insurance… fabulously easy. Insurance services for English speakers in France Speak to a dedicated English-speaking Broker who’s also a French native speaker so to avoid the pitfalls and headaches of the French system. Medical Insurance Home Insurance Car Insurance Visa Insurance and more We work with more than 30 insurers and many more providers so we are always able to find the best and most affordable solution for your situation. We’ve got you covered. 33 (0)5 35 65 50 50 hello@fabfrenchinsurance.com www.fabfrenchinsurance.com Two questions come up time and again when it comes to insurance in France: medical insurance for visa applications – and car insurance for foreign registered vehicles. Fabien Pelissier of FAB French Insurance whose team specialise in helping English speakers in France with all their insurance requirements, explains the process of insuring a non-France registered car, and why you should make medical insurance a critical part of your visa application process… Car Insurance for foreign registered vehicles Most people believe that you can’t have a foreign registered car insured in France, but this isn’t true. If you’re planning to move to France and register your foreign car – which is a legal requirement – then this can take time. And while you’re waiting – you will need insurance. We can insure foreign registered vehicles in the same way as we can for a French registered vehicles with a “standard” policy. This is based upon the assumption that you will register the car or bike in France. Failure to do so may open you up to consequences which can have long term effects in France where there is a central insurer’s database. Do not consider insuring the vehicle in France if the import project isn’t solid or may be reversed. Foreign insurance history, for instance ‘no claims bonus/no claims discount’, can be converted into the French equivalent – called the CRM or the bonus. The conversion may look weird at first as France doesn’t work like the rest of the world (which may not surprise you). The maximum discount in France is 13 years (50% bonus or CRM = 0.50). The “CRM” is like your own index. It starts at 1 and each year without a claim it’s multiplied by 0.95 with a maximum discount reached when your CRM is at 0.50 (e.g. 13 years without a claim). Every claim deemed to be your fault will multiply your CRM by 1.25 (so it takes roughly 5 years to write off a claim in France). Unlike other countries (for instance the UK), it’s not possible to “protect” your discount here, that’s why French insurers will need to see your full history (proof of no claim) and not just the “insurer’s discount” or ‘no claims bonus’, because they know a 9 years no claims bonus doesn’t mean you’ve been claim free for the past 9 years. That said they also don’t care about anything that happened more than 3 years ago as French insurers only look at the past 3 years of insurance. The upside of this is that you may have a 9 years NCD with claims 5 years ago which won’t be considered when you convert your NCD into a French CRM. French insurers 90 | The Good Life France The Good Life France | 91