Overhaulin'

Do car insurance companies keep a record of insurance enquiries?

I am a new buyer, and was enquiring around car insurance companies, both online and over the phone with an address. I realised that it would be silly to use this current address if I'm moving out in 2 weeks, so have put down the new address instead. Would car insurance companies have records of the previous enquiries with the old address?

Public Comments

1. Yes - they will generally keep an address and e-mail address on file for at least 12 months. This enables them to send you an enquiry when your insurance is next due to be renewed. It's a standard sales and marketing tactic.
2. Yes, of course they do! However, under the data protection act they are not allowed to disclose your enquiries to anyone (except the police if you are under investigation for offences relating to those enquiries. They will retain any information that you previously provided for a minimum of 6 yrs and even though they shouldnt they will share that info with other insurance companies. The whole industry is a load of contradictory nonsense but if you have a problem with an insurance company, you can always complain to the insurance ombudsman!
3. As Twisted_Ace says, they'll have a note somewhere which they'll probably use for marketing purposes but that's about all. There'll be no problem when you come to enquire from your new address, if that concerns you.
4. They will keep them for at least the time the quote is valid for which is usually 28 days but can be less