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CAR INSURANCE

We'll price match* and more

  • Found the same deal for less? We'll not only price match*, we'll also give you a choice of a £20 gift card

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Compare cheap car insurance quotes from 139 providers1

We compare deals from the biggest brands in the UK so you can get the right car insurance cover for you

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1Accurate as of February 2023.

*Restrictions and T&Cs apply

What do I need to get a quote?

It's quick and easy to compare car insurance quotes. We just need a few details from you:

  • Tick

    Details of the car

    The car’s registration number if you know it. If not, the make and model is fine. We’ll also need the car’s age and any modifications you’ve made

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    What you'll use the car for

    Social, commuting or business, and how many miles you’ll do in a year. You’ll also need to say where you’ll keep the car at night for security

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    Your details and your licence

    Including your job, age and your address - the same for any additional drivers you may have.  We'll also need to know what type of licence you have, how long you've had it, your claims and driving history

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    No-claims discount (NCD) history

    Details of your no-claims discount will help lower the prices you get. Use our no-claims discount tool to find out how many years’ no-claims discount your insurer will honour

What type of cover do I need?

No two drivers are the same, so you can choose the best car insurance policy for your needs based on three basic levels of cover:

  • 1

    Fully comprehensive

    Fully comprehensive insurance is the highest level of cover and usually the cheapest for most drivers. You’ll be protected against damage, repairs, medical expenses, fire damage, and theft. As well as damage to someone else, their car or property.

    £560 on average3

  • 2

    Third-party, fire and theft

    Third-party, fire and theft policies offer cover for other people, their vehicles, and their property, as well as protection for your own car if it were to get stolen, or if it’s damaged by fire.

    £753 on average3

  • 3

    Third-party

    Third-party cover is the minimum legal requirement you need, and it’s also usually more expensive than fully-comp cover. It covers injuries to other people, and damage to their vehicles and property.

    £620 on average3

We'll price match* and more

Found the same deal for less? We'll not only price match*, we'll also give you a choice of a £20 gift card.

Just purchase your car or home insurance through us and if you find a cheaper like-for-like quote from the same provider, on the same day, we'll refund the difference.

*Restrictions and T&Cs apply, click here for details

Price Promise logo

Refund up to £100 for the difference in annual premiums. Proof of purchase and like-for-like quote must be submitted within 30 days of purchase. Price difference and reward paid within 30 days of successful claim. Offer not available if you have claimed already, or received any other voucher or promotional benefit from us,on the same product more than once in any 12 months. Offer ends 14 November 2023.

Sara Newell

Our expert says

"

Car insurance is a necessity, but paying over the odds for cover isn’t – comparing quotes is always a quick and easy way to see what your options are. This way you’ll be able to find the right policy that offers all the cover you need, for the best price available.

"
- Sara Newell, Motor and Van Insurance Lead

We're 100% independent, working only for our customers

Unlike some of our competitors, MoneySuperMarket is not owned by an insurance company. So we can offer the best value, with savings delivered straight to you.

By combining independence with our excellent technology, we can negotiate the best prices and the best value on products and services.
4.7/5

of our customers would buy again
based on 82,542 reviews

Pros: Quick and easy. Straightforward simple enough for me to use not being technically minded. Cons: Nothing at all.
Pros: easy to compare prices to find a cheaper deal Cons: nothing, all good.
Pros: Ease of use, time saving as you remember our products and settings to easily use the next time .. No Gimmicks .. 10 out of 10

Why compare car insurance quotes with MoneySuperMarket?

Our mission is to make finding cheap car insurance easier – and when you take out cover with MoneySuperMarket you can benefit from:

  • Super Save with us

    Everyone deserves to save money – in fact, you could save up to £390 by comparing your car insurance with MoneySuperMarket*

  • Renewal reminders

    Our car monitor gives you reminders on your road tax and MOT, as well as showing your MOT history and car valuation – helping you stay up to date, so you never miss a renewal

  • Support from our team

    Our live chat tool is there so our experts can guide you through the car insurance question set, offering tailored support during business hours to help you get the right policy for the right price

*24.43% of customers completing a quote through MoneySuperMarket received a price cut quote in their top 10 results. Based on MoneySuperMarket quotes between May 2021 and May 2022

Do I need car insurance?

Car insurance is a legal requirement. If you own or drive a car in the UK, the law says you must have at least third-party only insurance. You must have insurance, even if you don’t drive your car, and you keep it parked on a road, driveway or in a garage. This applies to all drivers, and you can find car insurance for:

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What types of cars can I insure?

You should be able to find car insurance for most types of cars, but if your wheels are a little out of the ordinary, you might need to get more specialised cover.

HMRC defines a classic car as over 15 years old and valued over £15,000. Premiums are typically cheaper than standard policies because older vehicles have lower speed limits and classic car owners tend to keep their car well looked after, as well as being on the road less often.

Cars built low and designed for performance and high speeds. Premiums tend to be more expensive than standard car insurance because sports cars have more powerful engines and can reach higher speeds, increasing the statistical likelihood of an accident.

An imported car is a model you've bought and had delivered from abroad. They're often more difficult and expensive to insure because they usually cost more to repair, and are often higher-spec, with more powerful engines. They're sometimes modified to fit with UK regulations - all this leads to extra hassle and risk for insurers.

Cars that have had modifications such as custom bodywork or paint jobs, engine upgrades or new wheels. Upgrading your car's appearance, performance, handling or function means that insurers classify it as a greater risk and charge more for your cover.

Cars that run purely on battery power. Electric cars are fairly new to the market, and they use technology that isn’t as wide-spread as standard petrol cars – as such they can be more expensive to repair, and therefore also insure.

Cars that are fuel efficient, built with hybrid engines, or rely on alternative fuels. Premiums will depend on your policy, your car and how you drive. Some insurers do offer lower premiums and deals for green car insurance, so do your research before choosing a policy

What other types of cover can I get?

We use our cars in different ways, so insurance companies provide specialist cover for some specific circumstances:

How much does car insurance cost?

Lots of different things can affect the price of your car insurance, but in general your premiums usually tend to get cheaper as you get older. 20 – 24-year-olds, for example, pay £1,232 a year for fully comp cover, 30 – 39-year-olds pay £575, and 50 – 64-year-olds pay around £3354.

That’s because insurance companies think younger drivers are more likely to make a claim, because they have less driving experience and a higher chance of being involved in an accident.

Fully comprehensive cover is usually the cheapest option, even though it offers the most cover out of the three options. It used to be the other way around, until insurers noticed they were getting more claims on third-party only policies, because younger or newer drivers would choose this as the cheapest option.

This pushed the price of third-party only policies up, so the trend reversed – and now, fully comprehensive cover is cheapest.

A graph showing the average cost of car insurance by age. The cost is highest for 17-19 year old drivers.

4Based on car insurance policies with one driver holding a full UK driving licence. MoneySuperMarket data, collected between July and September 2022, accurate as of November 2022

What else affects your car insurance premiums?

Insurers consider lots of things when they work out how risky you might be – and the more of a risk you pose, the higher the price of your car insurance will be. Considerations include:

  • Your location: Some postcodes may have higher rates of theft or vandalism than others. Those living in London, for example, pay on average £780 for their yearly premium, whilst those in Scotland pay only £5015 

  • Your job: Insurers might see some jobs as higher risks, especially if they involve driving a lot of miles or being around heavy machinery 

  • Your mileage: The longer you spend on the road, the more likely you are to be involved in an accident. If you drive infrequently, you could save money with low-mileage cover

  • Your car make and model: Cars in higher insurance groups usually cost more to cover. Find out which car insurance group your car is in with our car insurance group tool checker

  • Your car storage and security: Garages, driveways and car ports generally reduce the risk of theft or vandalism

  • Your driving history: This includes any driving convictions you may have as well as any claims you’ve made on car insurance policies in the past 

  • Your voluntary excess: Volunteering a higher excess fee tells insurers you’re less likely to make frivolous claims for low amounts 

  • Any other drivers on your policy: If you’re younger than 25, you might find adding a more experienced driver to your policy brings your premiums down

A map showing the impact of where you live on the cost of car insurance. Greater London is the highest.

5Based on car insurance policies with one driver holding a full UK driving licence. MoneySuperMarket data, collected between July and September 2022, accurate as of November 2022

How can I get cheaper car insurance?

Here are some things you can try to get a better price on your car insurance policy:

  • 1

    Build a no-claims discount

    If you can avoid making claims for smaller things by paying for the repairs or replacements yourself, you can earn a discount on your premiums – the longer you go without claiming, the bigger the discount should be

  • 2

    Avoid modifications

    Modifying your car can often mean more expensive repair costs, or needing spare parts that are harder to get, so you’ll likely pay more to cover these

  • 3

    Consider telematics

    Telematics policies, sometimes known as black box car insurance, give younger and inexperienced drivers a chance to earn lower premiums by showing that they have sensible driving habits

  • 4

    Avoid auto-renewing

    Your car insurance policy will likely be renewed automatically when the term ends, but you may be able to find a cheaper deal when you compare quotes online

  • 5

    Pay annually

    Paying an annual lump sum for your car insurance policy may seem like a big initial outlay, but it would cost less overall than if you were to pay monthly instalments

  • 6

    Switch on your car monitor

    Our car monitor keeps an eye on things for you, so you'll never need to overpay or miss a car insurance renewal - download the app

What add-ons can I get with my car insurance?

When you take out car insurance, you'll be able to find policies with the following optional extras. But these will make your policy more expensive, so consider whether you really need them:

  • Plus

    Breakdown cover

    Pays for the cost of calling out a mechanic if your car breaks down

  • Plus

    Courtesy car cover

    Gives you access to a replacement vehicle while yours is in for repair

  • Plus

    Personal accident cover

    Pays out a lump sum if you’re injured or killed in a road accident

  • Plus

    Motor legal protection

    Covers the legal fees you might face in relation to a road accident

  • Plus

    Windscreen cover

  • Plus

    Car keys cover

    Covers the cost of replacing your keys if they’re lost, damaged or stolen

  • Plus

    Wrong fuel cover

    Pays for the necessary repairs you'd need if you accidentally top your car up with the wrong type of fuel

  • Plus

    Personal belongings cover

    Protects your belongings, which can be handy if you tend to leave them in your car

  • Plus

    No-claims discount cover

    Protects your no-claims discount by letting you make a certain number of claims within a year before it affects your premiums

Car insurance is a legal requirement for drivers in the UK, thanks to the continuous insurance enforcement rules brought in as part of the road safety act of 2006. This means that unless your car is registered as off the road with a SORN, or in the process of being bought or sold, you could be faced with a fine for not insuring your vehicle.

New drivers and young drivers alike generally pay much higher car insurance premiums as insurers see these groups as higher risks of being involved in a road accident – therefore more likely to claim on their insurance policy. 

While driving courses such as Pass Plus or IAM make you a better driver, they won’t always save you money on your car insurance policy. In fact the average person won’t see any difference in premiums whether or not they have Pass Plus on their licence – but that doesn’t mean it can’t benefit anyone at all. Younger or inexperienced drivers might be able to save a few quid, but it’s better to shop around and compare options – this way if insurers do offer discounts you’ll be able to take advantage.

Telematics cover involves your insurer monitoring your driving habits and adjusting your premiums according to how you drive. They do this through one of three types of telematics tech – either a black box (the most common) installed under your dashboard, a plug-in device or an app on your smartphone.

This is particularly useful for sensible new drivers as it offers a way to get lower car insurance premiums as a reward for driving safely.

As a young or new driver, you might be able to knock a few quid off your premiums by adding another more experienced driver to your policy – in most cases this will be your parents. This suggests to insurers that you won’t be the only person driving the car, therefore the assumed risk won’t always quite so high.

While this can be a good way to get cheaper cover, people sometimes take advantage of this by declaring the older or more experienced driver as the ‘main driver’ – when in reality it’ll be the young or new driver using the car more frequently. This is known as ‘fronting’ and is illegal.

You’re likely to get a better deal on your car insurance policy if you pay an annual lump sum rather than in monthly instalments. This is largely because in a way monthly payments are similar to taking out credit – you’ll be covered in full, but without having paid the full amount yet. 

Paying monthly can be useful as you’ll be able to spread the cost out, but you will end up paying a little extra overall.

Excess payments refer to the cost of making a claim – compulsory excess is how much you’ll need to put towards the total claim cost before your insurer pays the rest. Volunteering a higher excess fee on top of the compulsory amount indicates to insurers you won’t bother making small and frivolous claims.

A no-claims bonus is what you earn when you go some time without claiming on your policy. The longer you’ve gone without claiming, the more your insurers will knock off your premiums as they’ll see you as less likely to make further claims in the future.

You might consider not claiming for an accident if the damage done to your car is minor and it would be more sensible to pay for the repairs yourself – let’s say the excess you’d need to pay was more than the overall repair costs. This way you’ll preserve your no-claims bonus as well as being better off financially. 

If you’re involved in an accident and you decide not to make a claim, you should still inform your insurer. They’ll keep their records up to date, so they know what condition your vehicle is in and whether this will affect your likeliness of claiming some time in the future.

If you don’t keep your insurer updated, it’s possible this will void your insurance policy so you won’t be able to claim when you really need to.

Insurers look at a range of factors when deciding on your insurance premium, including your credit score. But they will also look at your age, your job and the car you drive, as well as where you live before they make a decision. If you have a bad credit score, it is still possible to get car insurance –  you just may need to shop around.

One of the factors used to calculate your car insurance quote is the number of miles you drive on average per year. To calculate your own personal mileage, you can:

  • Look at the number of miles you drove the year before on your annual MOT certificate and estimate mileage for the coming year

  • Check your car's service record - mileage is noted in your logbook every time your car has its annual service

  • Calculate how many miles you drive each week and add them all up

In most cases, the value you declare on your insurance policy documents will be the price you initially paid for the vehicle.

Be mindful though, that if you make a claim and your car has been  your insurance provider will pay out the current market value of your car, not the initial price you declared on your insurance documents. This is because vehicle devaluation is also considered.

How long a quote is valid for is down to the insurance provider. Using our price comparison service you can save your searches, but there's no guarantee the price you saved will be the same as the price you get when you purchase.

Car insurers collect data about previous claims and use it to predict how likely it is that people in different occupations will make a claim in future. If the insurer judges your job to be higher risk than another one, you’ll likely pay more. Find out more about why your job affects your car insurance cost.

Even if you have comprehensive car insurance, you might not be insured to drive someone else’s car. Cover for driving others cars (DOC) used to be included in most comprehensive policies but this is no longer the case. You will often have to request it and pay for it as an extra.

Usually if you cancel your policy within the first 14 days, most insurance companies won’t charge a cancellation fee but check the small print because some will. If your policy has been active for longer than 2 weeks, you’re likely to have to pay a fee for cancelling plus the cost for the time you’ve been insured (pro-rata).

Even if it wasn’t your fault, making a claim will almost always lead to an increase in your car insurance premium. A non-fault claim won't affect it as much as an at-fault claim will though.

To make a car insurance claim, you’ll first need to notify the police. They will give you a crime reference number that you’ll then need to give your insurer.

You usually have to call your insurer to make a claim, though you may also be able to claim online or by filling out a form and sending it by post.

There are a several reasons as to why a claim could be rejected:

  • Incorrect information: For example, about how something got damaged or you were dishonest about key personal information

  • Lack of due care: Leaving valuables on display in your car which are then stolen might mean you’re not covered, for example

  • Not reading or understanding your policy: You may miss certain clauses that specify conditions under which you can or cannot claim

  • Using out-of-date or invalid documentation: For example, if your road tax or MOT documents are out of date or your driving licence isn’t valid

Some car insurance policies will give you cover for driving someone else’s car, however it depends on what cover you've got and how much driving experience you have. Some comprehensive car insurance policies will cover you, however you’re likely to only get third-party insurance. It’s very rare to be covered if you’ve got third-party or third-party, fire and theft cover. And young or unexperienced drivers are often written out of policies.

You don’t need car insurance when your car is off the road, as long as you’ve made a Statutory Off-Road Notification (SORN).

This tells the DVLA your car is not in use and means you don’t need to pay vehicle tax or buy car insurance – as long as it’s kept off the road.

You shouldn’t need to pay any admin fees unless you make any changes to your policy or need replacement documents. You may be charged an adjustment fee if you needed to change something on your policy like your address, car, registration or adding a named driver, for example. 

Charges vary between providers, and some will let you make small charges online for free. Keep an eye out for admin fees when comparing policies.

You can check whether you car is insured by visiting the Motor Insurance Database (MID). The MID holds information of all cars insured in the UK. 

It's free to use and it identifies the make and model of your car as well as whether your car is insured. 

Any-driver insurance allows anyone to drive your car (with your permission). This is handy if you have lots of family and friends that want to borrow your car. The downside is that it can be expensive, as your insurance provider can't be sure who's driving the car at any given time. 

You work hard to earn your money, and we don’t think you should waste a penny of it paying over the odds on your household bills. That’s why at MoneySuperMarket, we’re on a mission to save Britain money.

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You might be wondering if we work with all the companies in the market, or if our commercial relationships with our partners might make us feature one company above another. We’ve got nothing to hide, and we want to give you clear answers when it comes to questions like these, so we’ve pulled together everything you need to know on this page.