Most insurance packages presently in use base the insurance premium on the type of car, the age of the driver, the location in which the vehicle is parked and on various other factors not relating to the mileage covered by the vehicle.

However, motorists who cover very low mileage, such as elderly people and weekend drivers, have significantly fewer accidents than the average motorist.

Such drivers often also avoid driving at the most dangerous times, such as the rush hour, and on the more dangerous roads. Low mileage drivers also often drive at relatively low speeds.

In view of the above, various schemes have been proposed to enable motorists to pay insurance premiums based upon the mileage that they cover.

One proposal involves fitting an electronic box to a car, the box being capable of measuring the mileage covered, the times. of journeys and the types of road on which the vehicle travels. Each month, the box transmits the relevant information to the vehicle's insurer. Thus, motorists who drive only a few thousand miles a year, avoid roads with high accident rates and drive outside peak hours are entitled to pay lower premiums.

A disadvantage of the above is that the electronic box at present costs several hundred pounds per car. Motorists are likely to be asked to pay this amount themselves, which is likely to deter significant numbers of motorists.

In addition, some motorists may feel unhappy about the electronic box monitoring exactly where they are and how they drive.

According to the invention there is provided a computer configured for the calculation of vehicle insurance premiums, the computer including: a database for storing information relating to the vehicle and one or more drivers; means for receiving an input indicative of the mileage travelled by the vehicle within a predetermined time, the mileage being recorded on certification relating to the vehicle's roadworthiness; a processor for utilising the vehicle, driver and mileage information to calculate an insurance premium; and output means for indicating the calculated premium.

According to the invention there is further provided apparatus for calculating a premium for vehicle insurance, the value of the premium depending at least partly on the mileage travelled by the vehicle, wherein the apparatus includes means for receiving an input indicative of the mileage 'j travelled by the vehicle within a predetermined period of time, as recorded on certification relating to the vehicle's roadworthiness.

The apparatus may include a microprocessor.

Preferably the time period is approximately one year, plus or minus one month.

The apparatus may include means for receiving a mileage input obtained by inspecting one or more certificates of roadworthiness. Alternatively the apparatus may include means for obtaining information as to the mileage recorded on the roadworthiness certification directly from the relevant authority. These means may include a direct computer link with the relevant authority, or means for connecting to an authority's computer system via a computer network.

The apparatus may include means for calculating an insurance premium for a new customer by determining the mileage as recorded on two certificates of vehicle roadworthiness approximately one year apart, to determine the annual mileage.

Preferably the certificate of roadworthiness used includes the vehicle chassis number. The certificate may comprise a U. K. Ministry of Transport Certificate.

The apparatus may include means for calculating the insurance premium such that it varies depending on which of a plurality of mileage bands the annual mileage falls within. The lowest band may be 0-4,000 miles, with subsequent bands of 4,000-5, 000 miles, 5, 000-6, 000 miles, 6, 000-7,000 miles and 7, 000-8, 000 miles also being included.

The apparatus may further include means for receiving an input relating to a driver's age and may include means for providing an indication that insurance should be refused if a main driver is not over 25 years old.

The apparatus may further include means for receiving an input relating to vehicle characteristics such as engine size, value, etc.

Preferably the apparatus includes means for calculating the insurance premium for a forthcoming year by determining the mileage travelled in the preceding year. The apparatus may include means for requesting a balancing payment paid in arrears at the end of a year if the premium paid for that year subsequently turns out to be based on a lower mileage than was indeed travelled. The apparatus may also include means for requesting a balancing payment in the event of an accident if the mileage noted at the time of the accident is higher than anticipated.

According to the invention, there is further provided a method of operating a computer configured for the calculation of vehicle insurance premiums, the computer including a database for storing information relating to the vehicle and one or more drivers and a processor for calculating the insurance premium, the method including the steps of: receiving an input indicative of the mileage travelled by the vehicle within a predetermined time, the mileage being recorded on certification relating to the vehicle's roadworthiness; and using the processor to process vehicle, driver and mileage information.

According to the invention there is further provided a method of calculating a premium for vehicle insurance, the value of the premium depending at least partly on the mileage travelled by the vehicle, wherein the method includes the step of determining the mileage travelled by the vehicle within a predetermined period of time, as recorded on certification relating to the vehicle's roadworthiness.

Preferably the time period is approximately one year, plus or minus one month.

The method may include the step of inspecting one or more certificates of roadworthiness. Alternatively the method may include the step of obtaining information as to the mileage recorded on the roadworthiness certification directly from the relevant authority.

The method may include the step. of calculating an insurance premium for a new customer by determining the mileage as recorded on two certificates of vehicle roadworthiness approximately one year apart, to determine the annual mileage.

Preferably the certificate of roadworthiness used includes the vehicle chassis number. The certificate may comprise a U. K. Ministry of Transport Certificate.

The insurance premium may vary depending on which of a plurality of mileage bands the annual mileage falls within. The lowest band may be 0- 4,000 miles, with subsequent bands of 4,000-5, 000 miles, 5,000-6, 000 miles, 6, 000-7, 000 miles and 7,000-8, 000 miles also being included.

The method may further include the step of requesting confirmation of the driver's age and only insuring the car when a main driver is over 25 years old. The method may also include the step of providing insurance for the car to be driven by any driver, providing that the owner gives their permission and the driver is over 2 5 years old.

The method may further include the step of taking into account vehicle characteristics such as engine size, value, etc.

Preferably the insurance premium is calculated for a forthcoming year by determining the mileage travelled in the preceding year. The method may include the step of requesting a balancing payment paid in arrears at the end of a year if the premium paid for that year subsequently turns out to be based on a lower mileage than was indeed travelled. The method may also include the step of requesting a balancing payment in the event of an accident if the mileage noted at the time of the accident is higher than anticipated.

An embodiment of the invention will be described for the purpose of illustration only with reference to the accompanying drawing, which is a schematic diagram illustrating the concept of processing automobile insurance according to the method of the invention.

Referring to the drawing, an apparatus 10 for determining an insurance premium includes a processor 12. The processor 12 is capable of receiving various inputs in order to allow it to calculate an insurance premium.

The processor 12 can receive vehicle data, represented by box 14. The vehicle data will relate to the value, age, engine size, etc. of the vehicle. The processor may also receive owner data, represented by box 16. Owner data may include the age and sex of the owner together with any relevant health information. The processor may also receive an input represented by box 18 relating to the location in which the vehicle is parked, for example whether the owner lives in a high or low crime area. The processor 12 may further receive an input represented by box 20 relating to whether the car/driver has a no claims bonus.

The above inputs are all conventional. However, the apparatus 10 according to the invention also receives an input relating to the mileage covered by the vehicle in the preceding year. The mileage is taken from the vehicle's Ministry of Transport (MOT) certificate of roadworthiness. All cars over three years old are required by law in the U. K. to possess such a certificate, which confirms that the vehicle is roadworthy. The certificate is valid for one year.

Thus, the apparatus according to the invention requires that vehicles be at least four years old in order that at least two MOT certificates are available. The MOT certificate for a car includes its chassis number and thus uniquely identifies that particular car.

Box 22 represents the previous MOT value for the car which would be taken from an old MOT certificate for a new customer or from the system's memory for an existing customer. The current MOT mileage value is represented by box 24. The previous MOT value is subtracted from the current MOT mileage value to provide an annual mileage value which is passed to the processor on a line 26.

Instead of being read from a certificate, the mileage could be obtained directly from the authority which provides the vehicle certification, if the authority has the provision for releasing this information. For example, the insurer could have a direct computerised link to the relevant authority.

The processor first takes into account the vehicle data 14, owner data 16, location data 18 and any no claims bonus 20 and calculates a basic premium value. The premium value is then adjusted according to the annual mileage value 26. For example, if the basic premium value is X, the premium for a vehicle travelling between 0 and 4,000 miles may be X, the premium for a vehicle travelling between 4,000 and 5,000 miles may be 1.2X, the premium for a vehicle travelling between 5,000 and 6, 000 miles 1.3X, etc.

The invention is not limited to any precise manner of calculation of the premiums. As the insurer builds up knowledge over time of the relationship between miles travelled and accidents occurring, the insurance premiums may be adjusted to reflect more accurately the risk involved for any particular mileage.

The premium will normally be calculated for a forthcoming year, using the previous year's mileage as a guide. If, at the end of a year, it turns out that the mileage covered in the previous year was more than that on which the premium was based, a balancing payment may be requested from the insurer.

In the event of an accident, the owner of the vehicle may be requested to provide the mileage value before making a claim. If it turns out that the mileage covered by the vehicle is more than has been paid for, a balancing payment may again be requested. Individual insurers could decide how to deal with situations where, for example, a motorist had covered less than their annual limit, but in a short space of time. For example, vehicles could be allocated a maximum monthly mileage above which an additional premium would be payable, in addition to an annual limit.

There is thus provided a method of calculating insurance premiums which allows the vehicle's mileage to be taken into account without requiring the fitting of any additional equipment to the car. The method is likely-to be popular with drivers because it does not require them to be monitored in any way. Although the method is only applicable to cars over four years old, it has been found that most low mileage drivers possess older cars. Thus, this is unlikely to rule out many potential customers.

Various modifications may be made to the above described embodiment without departing from the scope of the invention. For example, the form of the vehicle roadworthiness certification may vary from country to country.

Provided the certification uniquely identifies the vehicle, and includes details of the mileage covered by the vehicle, it may be used with the method and apparatus of the invention.

Whilst endeavouring in the foregoing specification to draw attention to those features of the invention believed to be of particular importance it should be understood that the Applicant claims protection in respect of any patentable feature or combination of features hereinbefore referred to and/or shown in the drawings whether or not particular emphasis has been placed thereon.