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If you need to borrow someone’s car, want to share the load on a road trip, or take a test drive, annual car insurance may not be appropriate for you. That’s where temporary car insurance comes in. It can give you the freedom to drive legally in the UK without tying you to an unnecessarily long policy.
Find out what it is, what it covers, and how to get the cheapest temporary car insurance quote you can with our guide below.
Hourly: you can take out short-term car insurance for as little as one hour, which could be perfect if you just need to pick up a large item and bring it home using someone else’s car
Daily: if you’re moving house and need to borrow a car, it’s possible to get one-day car insurance
Weekly: if you want to go on a driving holiday but don’t own a car, you could take out a week’s worth of temporary car insurance to borrow a loved one’s vehicle
Monthly: it’s possible to take out temporary car insurance that lasts for up to a few months, in case you need cover for a bit longer
Temporary car insurance is a short-term policy that can be arranged in a matter of minutes.
It normally comes with fully comprehensive cover as standard, allowing you to claim for:
It may be possible, however, to also find temporary car insurance with third party-only cover or third party, fire and theft.
Since it’s a standalone policy, temporary car insurance won’t affect the no-claims bonus of the car’s owner if you do make a claim.
This means it can be perfect for a range of scenarios, from borrowing a loved one’s car for the weekend to the occasional use of your own vehicle for business purposes.
“The two critical things customers should be aware of when purchasing temporary car insurance is the limited nature of cover levels and high excesses. Temporary insurance often does not provide covers that you would expect from annual insurance. There will be no courtesy car if yours needs a repair, understandably, but the vast majority of policies won’t offer any cover for windscreens or keys so be aware of the limitations of the cover.
“Additionally, before you purchase, note the excess you will have to pay if you claim. These are often incredibly high, with a compulsory excess of £750 being not uncommon. They will usually be between £250-£750 depending on the driver and policy you purchase so be aware a claim will result in a hefty out of pocket expense.”
Although the specifics of what is and isn’t covered by temporary car insurance is dependent on your chosen provider and policy, you can usually expect the following:
As a bit of guidance on the cost of temporary car insurance, here are the prices some specialist providers advertise for their cover. Bear in mind that providers update their rates at different times, and the figures below may not reflect the quote you receive today:
| Provider | One hour | One day | One week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cuvva[1] | £11.07 | £15.44 | £33.70 |
| Dayinsure[2] | – | £19 | £58 |
| GoShorty[3] | £16.98 | £20.44 | £42.02 |
| InsureDaily[4] | £14.55 | £33.57 | £108.26 |
| RAC[5] | £20.78 | £33.87 | £90.93 |
However, as with any other car insurance policy, the cost of temporary car cover will be informed by a range of factors. These include:
The type of car you want to get temporary insurance for plays a part in how much you end up paying. For example, below are some of the most popular vehicles in the UK and what it could cost you for one-hour insurance:
| Car make and model | Average one-hour car insurance quote[6] |
|---|---|
| Renault Clio | £12.46 |
| Ford Fiesta | £12.58 |
| Volkswagen Polo | £12.63 |
| Toyota Yaris | £12.78 |
| Vauxhall Corsa | £12.92 |
| SEAT Ibiza | £13.00 |
| Ford Focus | £13.03 |
| Vauxhall Astra | £13.60 |
| Audi A3 | £14.57 |
| Volkswagen Golf | £14.78 |
There are certain things you can do to try and bring down the cost of your temporary car insurance, including:
“All the normal advice around keeping car insurance low is applicable to temporary cover but customers should ensure they shop around for quotes which, while being more difficult than for annual cover, is very worthwhile. There are more providers of short term car insurance than you realise. Veygo (part of the Admiral group) and Aviva both provide cover alongside half a dozen more brands that specialise in short term cover so get a few quotes before making the purchase.”
You have two main options when comparing temporary car insurance. You can either use a price comparison website to compare the cost and coverage of a large number of policies at once, or you can go to a provider’s website and get a quote directly. That could be a larger mainstream provider, or an insurer that specialises in short-term cover.
Here are some of the key players in the temporary car insurance market:
| Temporary car insurance provider | What if offers |
|---|---|
| Cuvva | Short-term cover from one hour to 28 days; you can extend your cover on the Cuvva app if you need to drive the car longer. |
| Dayinsure | Temporary car insurance from one hour to 30 days for a car, van or motorhome and temporary learner insurance for your own or a borrowed car. |
| GoShorty | Hourly, daily, weekly and monthly insurance. It covers private drivers aged 18 to 75 and commercial vehicle drivers aged 19 to 75. |
| InsureDaily | Temporary car insurance from between one and 84 days, including learner drivers between 17 to 30. |
| Jaunt | Temporary car insurance from one hour to 30 days for drivers aged 18 to 75, with cover arranged in minutes. |
| RAC | Temporary car insurance from one hour to 30 days with fully comprehensive cover for leisure or business. |
| Tempcover | Temporary car insurance from one hour to 28 days. Cover options include car, van, courier, impounded vehicles, learners, expats and students. |
| Veygo | Offered through Admiral, Veygo temporary car insurance from one hour to 60 days, with an immediate start if necessary. |
Temporary car insurance has more applications than you might think. The following are just some of the reasons why you might take out short-term cover:
When taking out temporary car insurance, both you and the vehicle you want to drive will need to meet certain eligibility criteria. This will vary from provider to provider, so there may be exceptions to the following:
As the driver, you’ll likely need:
The vehicle you are looking to drive will likely need to:
When you’re looking to get temporary car insurance, you’ll likely need to have the following to hand to compare quotes:
While it will vary from provider-to-provider, and hugely depends on your driving profile, the cost of one-day car insurance can range anywhere from £15 to £33.
You can get temporary car insurance as a 17-year-old, although this isn’t the case for all providers. In fact, you can even get temporary insurance as a learner driver, if you need to have a few top up sessions in a car that isn’t owned by your driving instructor.
Most providers will also have an upper age limit, usually around 75 years old. So you may not be able to get short-term car insurance in your 80s.
It’s possible to get temporary car insurance as a new driver, as long as you meet the other eligibility requirements of the provider in question. It can be useful if you’ve only recently passed, and want to borrow someone else’s car for a short period of time.
The no-claims discounts of both the car owner and driver won’t be affected if a claim is made on a temporary car insurance policy. This is because it is a standalone policy that is separate from any annual policies in place.
It is also why temporary car insurance can be more appealing than adding someone as a named driver. If someone is added as a named driver, and has an accident, the no-claims bonus will be affected, unlike with short-term cover.
However, you should know you won’t usually be able to build up your no-claims bonus using temporary car insurance.
You can use temporary car insurance to tax your vehicle. Both car insurance and Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) are legal requirements when driving in the UK.
When you buy car insurance, including short-term cover, your details will be sent to the Motor Insurance Database (MID). When you go to tax your car in England, Scotland and Wales, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) will check the MID to see if your vehicle is insured. In Northern Ireland, you will need a cover note or certificate of insurance to tax your car.
In theory, you can take out short-term car insurance multiple times a year. However, if you find yourself repeatedly taking out temporary car insurance, you might want to consider whether a different form of cover makes more sense financially. This could be your own annual policy, or being added as a named driver to someone else’s insurance.
Certain temporary car insurance policies may include some business use. However, it’s also possible to take out specific short-term business car insurance. This will likely cover you for:
If you have an accident, you should inform your temporary car insurance provider as soon as possible, even if you don’t intend to make a claim. If driving someone else’s car, you should also inform them of the incident.
If you do make a claim, you’ll need to follow the steps required by your provider. This will normally involve providing evidence related to the claim in question, and paying the excess as outlined in your policy.
It is possible to take out specific temporary car insurance that’ll allow you to drive abroad, typically in Europe.
You must have car insurance whenever you are driving a vehicle, new or otherwise. Temporary car insurance can be used to drive a new car home from the dealership. This means you can take your time comparing annual car insurance policies while still staying on the right side of the law.
Depending on your temporary car insurance provider, you may be able to add the following optional extras to your policy:
If temporary car insurance isn’t right for your needs, but you still want something a bit more flexible than an annual car insurance policy, you could:
