In order to drive legally and get your car taxed, you are required to buy car insurance. Several things affect the rates you pay for your motor insurance, and you will be asked to provide extensive information when you buy insurance so that your rate can be calculated as accurately as possible.

Of course, insurers need to know the make, model, and year of the car you wish to insure. An older car will generally cost less to insure, though an extremely old model with safety issues, or a “vintage” restored car will cost more. New cars, cars with bigger engines, and sportier or more desirable models cost more to insure. You can’t game the system by claiming to have a car that is less expensive to insure. Insurers check to make sure you have the car you claim to have.

You will also be required to give the address and postcode of where the car is parked overnight and you will be asked whether the car is garaged, parked in a driveway, or parked on the street overnight. A car that’s garaged in a neighborhood not known for a high crime rate will have lower insurance rates than a car that must be parked on the street in a dodgy neighborhood.

Personal information also goes into figuring your insurance rates. The younger you are, the more you’ll pay. Insurance rates drop steadily until about the age of 70, when they tend to go back up again due to higher accident rates among elderly drivers. Right now, females pay better rates than males due to lower accident and driving offence rates among women, but the gap is closing.

You may also be asked your marital status, whether you own or rent your home, and your occupation and employer. If you have made modifications to your car, you will have to disclose these to potential insurers. It is never worth it to lie when buying car insurance. Chances are you’ll be found out, and if so, you could have motor insurance claims denied, your policy cancelled altogether and even be criminally prosecuted for insurance fraud.