How do insurers know about my past claims?
Through shared industry databases that record claims across insurers, so a claim made with one company is visible to all of them.
The main UK databases:
CUE — Claims and Underwriting Exchange. The central one. It records motor, home, personal injury and travel claims, and crucially it records incidents reported even where no claim was paid and where no money changed hands. Records are typically held for six years.
This is why insurers ask about incidents rather than claims, and why answering "no claims" when you reported a minor bump that you settled privately can constitute misrepresentation — the incident is on CUE regardless.
MIAFTR — the Motor Insurance Anti-Fraud and Theft Register, recording stolen vehicles and total losses, which is how write-off history is traced.
The Motor Insurance Database (MID), recording who is insured, used by police for roadside checks and by the Motor Insurers' Bureau.
The Insurance Fraud Register, listing people found to have committed insurance fraud.
No Claims Discount databases, letting insurers verify claimed discounts without paperwork.
What this means practically:
Declare everything you are asked about, including incidents where you did not claim, where you were not at fault, and where the other party paid. The insurer already has the record, and discrepancies are checked automatically at quotation.
Non-disclosure discovered at claim stage is far worse than a slightly higher premium at inception.
Check your own record. You can make a subject access request to the database operators, free under data protection law, to see what is held about you. This is worth doing if quotes seem inexplicably high or a claim was refused.
Errors happen, including claims recorded against the wrong person, incorrect fault attribution and duplicates. They can be disputed and corrected, but only if you know they are there.
Access is restricted to authorised insurers and is regulated.