No-claims kit · updated 2026

French no-claims bonus: coefficient, claims record, foreign history

Work out your French bonus-malus coefficient exactly, get and check your relevé d’information, and make your foreign no-claims years count, with ready-to-send letters.

Who it is for

• You are moving to France, or back to France, and want your years of claim-free driving abroad taken into account
• You are insuring a car, motorbike, motorhome or campervan in France and want to check the coefficient you are quoted
• Your French claims record (relevé d’information) shows a wrong coefficient or a claim wrongly put down to you
• You want to understand the new-driver surcharge, named drivers and what one accident really costs

What this kit does not do: Advice on your personal file or someone to negotiate for you: the kit explains the general rules · Insuring a vehicle that stays registered and based abroad: see our guide on foreign-plated cars · Comparing insurers’ prices: the kit does not recommend any insurer

Contents of the complete kit

1. Work out your French coefficient in 5 minutes (free extract below)
2. The exact rules: what moves the coefficient and what does not
3. Your foreign no-claims history: what French law guarantees
4. The relevé d’information: getting, reading and checking your French record
5. Proof of insurance and the cost of driving uninsured
6. New-driver surcharge, named drivers, lending your vehicle
7. Disputing an error: complaint, mediation, refusal of cover
8. Letter templates, in French with English translations
9. Checklists and common mistakes

Included : 11 letter templates, 9 checklist items, 1 table.

Introduction

France prices motor insurance with a regulated coefficient, the coefficient de réduction-majoration (CRM), known as the bonus-malus. Unlike a no-claims discount designed by each insurer, it is written into a standard clause annexed to article A121-1 of the French Insurance Code (code des assurances) and is the same at every French insurer. The document that carries it from one insurer to the next is the relevé d’information, your French claims record.

This kit is for people arriving in France, or coming home after years abroad, with a car, motorbike, motorhome or campervan to insure: the exact rule and a grid to recalculate your coefficient, what French law does and does not guarantee about foreign driving history, and how to read and correct a French claims record. The letter templates are in French, because they go to French insurers, with an English translation under each one so you know what you are signing.

Work out your French coefficient in 5 minutes

Your premium is base premium × coefficient. The base premium (prime de référence) is the insurer’s rate for your vehicle, area and use. The coefficient follows one common rule. A driver with no French history starts at 1.00. Then, at each annual renewal:

• Year with no at-fault claim: last year’s coefficient × 0.95 (5% reduction).
• Fully at-fault claim: × 1.25 (25% increase), and × 1.25 again for each further claim in the same year.
• Shared liability: the increase is halved, so × 1.125.
• Rounding: the result is “arrêté à la deuxième décimale et arrondi par défaut”, which means cut off after two decimals, never rounded up. 0.9025 becomes 0.90 and 0.8075 becomes 0.80, never 0.81.
• Floor and ceiling: never below 0.50, never above 3.50.
• Fast track down: after two consecutive years without a claim, the coefficient cannot be above 1.00.

These rules come from articles 4 and 5 of the standard clause (version in force since 24 July 2025). Vehicles insured for “Tournées” or “Tous déplacements” business use follow other rates: 7% down and 20% up.

Year by year without a claim

Calculated with the exact rule: previous coefficient × 0.95, then cut off at two decimals.

Thirteen claim-free years take you to the 0.50 floor, the famous “bonus 50”. On the malus side, one at-fault claim a year from 1.00 gives 1.25, 1.56, 1.95, 2.43, 3.03, then 3.50.

Your own grid

Fill one line per renewal, starting from your latest French claims record (chapter 4). “F” = fully at-fault claims in the period, “S” = shared-liability claims.

Fictional examples to check your method. Emma, at 0.68, causes a fully at-fault accident: 0.68 × 1.25 = 0.85. Tom, at 0.80, shares liability: 0.90. Priya, at 1.00, has two at-fault claims: 1.56; one clean year later, 1.482, so 1.48; after a second clean year, the fast track brings her back to 1.00.

Article 14 of the clause requires the insurer to show on the renewal notice (avis d’échéance) the base premium, the coefficient and the premium after the coefficient. Those three lines are all you need to check your bill.

Frequently asked questions

How do I receive the kit?

Right after payment you are redirected to the complete kit page. Bookmark it or print it to PDF (Ctrl+P or Cmd+P, “Save as PDF”). Stripe also emails you the receipt.

Do I get an invoice?

Yes: Stripe generates the invoice and emails it to you.

Is the kit kept up to date?

Yes. The kit page is updated when the rules change; your access stays valid and you always read the latest version.

Is this personal advice?

No. Claude Assur is not an insurer, a broker or a lawyer: the kit explains the general rules and gives you the method and templates; only the official texts and your policy are authoritative.

Other kits

By purchasing, you request immediate access to the digital content and acknowledge that you lose your right of withdrawal (French consumer code, article L221-28, 13°). VAT not applicable (art. 293 B of the French tax code). See the terms of sale (in French). Claude Assur is not an insurer, a broker, a registered insurance intermediary (ORIAS) or a lawyer: the kits explain the general rules and are not personal advice; only the official texts and your own policy are authoritative.