Vero: the traps in its car policy wording.

The first-dollar amount you pay on any claim. It's the number people forget until claim time — and it's often higher than they think.

Know your standard excess; a higher voluntary excess can cut your premium.

If a driver under 25 (or an inexperienced/unlisted driver) is at the wheel, a big EXTRA excess stacks on top of your standard one.

If anyone under 25 drives your car, find out this excess — it can be $1,000+.

A separate (often reduced) excess for windscreen/glass claims — but still a cost, and some policies don't reduce it.

Check your windscreen excess and whether glass-only claims affect your no-claims bonus.

Re-keying and lock replacement after lost or stolen keys — capped, and modern smart keys are expensive.

Know the cap if your car has proximity/smart keys.

You have a legal duty to disclose everything a 'prudent insurer' would want to know. Breach it — even innocently — and insurers can treat the policy as if it never existed and refuse all claims.

Over-disclose: tell the insurer about every driver, modification, conviction and change of circumstances, and keep a written record of what you told them and when.

Unless you have an agreed value policy, a write-off is settled at the depreciated 'market value' of your car just before the crash — often far less than you'd need to buy a comparable replacement, and capped at your sum insured if that's lower.

Ask whether your policy is market value or agreed value, and consider paying for agreed value so the payout figure is fixed in advance. Check the sum insured is high enough to actually replace the car.

Automatic cover for a replacement or additional vehicle depends on notifying the insurer within a set window (usually 30 days) and staying under a price cap.

Notify your insurer immediately when you buy or replace a vehicle and confirm the new car is on cover in writing.

If a claim contains incorrect information or is fraudulent 'in any respect', insurers can decline it and cancel the whole policy — not just the disputed part.

Only submit facts you can prove, keep receipts and photos, and never guess or inflate figures on a claim form.

There is no cover if the driver isn't properly licensed for the vehicle, is over the alcohol limit or drug-affected, or if the car is unsafe, unroadworthy or wouldn't pass a warrant of fitness.

Make sure every driver holds the correct licence and complies with its conditions, never drive impaired, and keep the car maintained to WoF standard.

Excesses are charged per event and can be cumulative, and additional excesses apply for young, inexperienced or international-licence drivers — so what you actually pay can be several excesses added together.

Ask for the full list of excesses that could apply to each driver before a claim, and check who is driving before lending your car.

Cover for damage to your own car caused by an uninsured driver, or under third-party policies, is capped at low fixed amounts — often $3,000–$5,000 or market value, whichever is less.

Understand the difference between comprehensive and third-party cover, and check the dollar cap on any 'uninsured motorist' or third-party benefit before relying on it.

Vero excludes damage to a caravan that has been unoccupied or unattended for more than 30 days unless it is kept in a supervised caravan park.

If you own a caravan, check the unoccupied limit and either store it in a supervised park or confirm cover in writing for long idle periods.

Damage from depreciation, wear and tear, rust, corrosion, gradual deterioration and mechanical, electrical or electronic breakdown is excluded — even when it stops the car working.

Keep the car serviced and understand car insurance covers accidents, not mechanical failure; consider a separate mechanical breakdown warranty if you want that protection.