UK car insurance for new American & car purchasing questions

I know there have been other posts about this but most of them are really old so I just wanted to see if anyone has current experience.

When we move over, we are planning to buy a car. I know that despite driving for decades here in the states and having a clean driving record, that means nothing over there. I'm a 44 yr old male, my partner is a 40 yr old male.

I am curious:

1.) What insurance companies people have signed up with over there and what their yearly payment was? (Just so I can budget it out)

2.) Are there any insurance companies that target/cater to new residents?

3.) Am I correct that even if my insurance company provided a record or letter of clean driving history that it wont matter?


Car Purchasing Questions:

The first 3-4 weeks we are there we are going to rent a car while we look for a house to rent but we want to also buy a car within that time. I would look to buy a used car from some place like Arnold Clark Car Sales (Rented from them before and was really impressed by them but I may just be naive).

Before everyone starts in on buying vs. renting, while I will be taking the train into London for work, my partner and I love going out driving and exploring on the weekends, plus we have 2 dogs that we'll use the car to transport them around AND we'll be going up to Newcastle often to visit family. So we'll be buying.

1.) If I have an address and bank account set up, are there any hurdles to buying a car over there if I still only have my US drivers license and being a new resident? Or will they pretty much sell to you as long as you have an address and money?

2.) As a new resident, I would really like to start building credit. If I put a good chunk down (like £5000) on a used car, any issues about getting financing for the rest? (I would only look to be financing a maximum of £5000. Less is better. Just want to start building credit and financing a car payment for a couple years would be good.

3.) If I should avoid Arnold Clark like the plague, are there any other good chain used car companies you can recommend? We would be interested in any companies between London and Newcastle since we'll be temporarily staying around Stevenage while we house hunt but his entire family lives up in Newcastle so we could go up there as well.

I've purchased two cars at Car Giant.  They are like Carmax where the price stated is the price.  You are just a number and no special treatment but you get a good car at a fair price.

Cargiant.co.uk

For insurance, get the letter.  Some companies will accept it.  Some won't.  Better to have the letter and not need it, than the alternative.  I've heard Aviva is good for accepting USA driving history.

Insurance rate will 100% depend on the type of car you are buying.  There are comparison sites where you can enter in the registration number (license plate) and see what the rate will be.  Money Supermarket is one.

Anyone will sell a car to you if you have money.  I don't think they'll even care about an address!

You will NOT be able to get any type of financing from anyone for a good year or two at best.  Plan to pay cash for the car.  Hopefully after a year or so you'll be able to get a "credit builder" credit car but that will be down the road.

Do not underestimate how difficult it will be to open a bank account after you arrive.  You won't be able to open one until you have a permanent address and only THEN will you be able to move forward in life.  And I won't tell you how you won't be able to get a lease without a bank account... it's a fun little intro to the UK! 

Anyone will sell a car to you if you have money.  I don't think they'll even care about an address!

You will NOT be able to get any type of financing from anyone for a good year or two at best.  Plan to pay cash for the car.  Hopefully after a year or so you'll be able to get a "credit builder" credit car but that will be down the road.

To note though, that used cars are much cheaper in the UK than in the US - I guess because they depreciate more quickly here than in the US. Most cars doing 10,000 miles a year will lose about 60% of their value in the first 3 years (some cars lose 50% in the first year).

My family have been buying used cars in the UK for over 30 years... and we've never spent more than £3,000 to buy one outright (Nissans mostly, but also more recently a Honda and a Mazda).

I'm hoping to buy a 'new' (used) car in the next few weeks and I'm not planning to spend more than £3,000-4,000 to buy it outright .

Ksand is correct, £5000 will buy you a lot of used car here, I'm not sure it's necessary to borrow more unless you have pretty refined tastes.
The autotrader website is a good place to get an idea of how much various models cost.

It does depend on taste.  I usually spend about £20k on a used car but I tend to buy cars that would be have £60k+ new.     I like cars.   

It does depend on taste.  I usually spend about £20k on a used car but I tend to buy cars that would be have £60k+ new.     I like cars.   

Yeah, I'm the opposite... my first used car was £800, my second was £3,000 . My parents bought their Honda for £3,000 and my brother got his Mazda for £1,600.

I was planning on spending £5,000 on my next car, but I don't have much more than that in my savings right now, and I want to keep a cushion in case I need to pay for things around the house (like boiler breakdowns!).

It does depend on taste.  I usually spend about £20k on a used car but I tend to buy cars that would be have £60k+ new.     I like cars.   

Spotted KFDANCER on the road :

Nice Car!

Sorry for the hijack OP

Spotted KFDANCER on the road :

Nice Car!

Sorry for the hijack OP

BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

I'm currently trying to figure out how we are going to pay for our next car.  My husband's vehicle cannot be more than 6 years old (don't get me started) which will be up in December 2019.  Our childcare bill is soooooooooooooo high now that we've got two.  Not sure where the money will come from (I refuse to purchase cars on finance - just my own individual issue).  I think my hubby could be getting a crap car to keep within the 6 year rule.  He'll have a hard time wrapping his head around that though!

My husband's vehicle cannot be more than 6 years old (don't get me started) which will be up in December 2019. 

Huh?

Huh?

He gets a company car allowance and they mandate that his vehicle cannot be more than 6 years old.  Don't get me started.

I've never had that mandate...      Guess who will *always* have the old car in our house now?

I used to work for a car finance company, there's nothing wrong with not going into debt to buy a car. 
On my recent insurance renewal I was surprised to see the replacement value for my car is like £1600.  It's got Apple Car Play!  And less than 60k on the clock.

I'm with Ksand, buy cheapish and use them up.

He gets a company car allowance and they mandate that his vehicle cannot be more than 6 years old.  Don't get me started.

I've never had that mandate...      Guess who will *always* have the old car in our house now?

Ah, I see!

I know all about having the older car though... husband decided he needed a new one as he was too embarrassed to be seen driving the old one any more... of course he didn't want to sell it as it would be perfect for me to drive!  .

I used to work for a car finance company, there's nothing wrong with not going into debt to buy a car. 

On my recent insurance renewal I was surprised to see the replacement value for my car is like £1600.  It's got Apple Car Play!  And less than 60k on the clock.

Most people have no issue with financing a car.  It's just one thing I won't do.  It's not you, it's me.   

Most people have no issue with financing a car.  It's just one thing I won't do.  It's not you, it's me.   

Me too... I won't buy a car unless I can pay for it in full .

Same for credit cards - I don't put anything on my card unless I know I will be able to pay it off in full at the end of the month.

Me too... I won't buy a car unless I can pay for it in full .

Same for credit cards - I don't put anything on my card unless I know I will be able to pay it off in full at the end of the month.

It's like we are the same person!!

I'm okay with mortgage debt as that's a brick and mortar asset.  But in an ideal world, I wouldn't have a mortgage either.