Cover for a car lent to you

Courtesy Car Insurance

Yours is in the garage and someone has lent you a car. Check whose insurance covers you, and if the answer is unclear, a temporary policy in your name can put it beyond doubt, with the insurers that accept a lent car.

Garage, dealer or friend’s car
1 hour to 28 days
Hire cars not covered

In partnership with GoShorty

FCA-regulated cover

Every policy is arranged by an authorised UK insurance broker
1 hour to 28 days

One policy, any length in between, no annual contract
Certificate emailed to you

Your policy number and documents, minutes after paying
MID updated four times a day

So a roadside check shows the vehicle as insured

What Is Courtesy Car Insurance?

Courtesy car insurance is a temporary comprehensive policy for a car lent to you while yours is off the road, bought for the hours or days you have it, with the insurers that accept a lent car.

Your car is at the garage for a repair, an MOT or an accident, and someone has handed you another one to keep you mobile. It might be the garage’s own courtesy car, a dealer’s loan car or a friend’s spare. Either way, you are driving a car you do not own and that your own policy may not cover.

A temporary policy puts the cover in your name. It is the same product as any other temporary car insurance, written for the situation where the car is lent rather than owned.

Why Is a Courtesy Car a Problem?

Nobody can assume the car is insured for you: the owner’s policy is written for named drivers, and your own policy normally covers your own car only.

It is common to hear "it’s insured, you’ll be fine". That is not the same as "you are insured". GOV.UK sets out the rule: you must have motor insurance to drive on UK roads, and even if the vehicle is insured, if you are not correctly insured to drive it you can be penalised. The penalty could be a fixed penalty of £300 and 6 penalty points, and the police can seize the vehicle.

The same rule reaches the person who lends the car. Section 143 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 makes it an offence to cause or permit someone else to use a vehicle on a road without insurance covering that use. A friend who lends you their spare car without checking is exposed as well as you.

Is a Garage’s Courtesy Car Already Covered?

Often the garage arranges insurance for its courtesy cars, but it is not guaranteed, and the terms can be narrow.

The honest position is that it varies. Some garages insure their loan cars for any customer with a full licence. Others cover only named drivers, set an age limit, charge an excess or require a deposit. Some provide cover that applies only while the repair is being carried out.

When the garage’s cover applies

When the garage has insured the car, you are named or eligible as a driver, the use fits the terms and you are inside the agreed dates. Ask four things and write the answers down: who is the insurer, who may drive, what is the excess, and what is the exact end date.

When it does not

If you want a second driver and the garage will not add them. If you want to use the car for something the terms exclude. If the repair overruns and the cover ends on the original date. If you are told the car is covered but cannot see the paperwork.

When your own policy helps

Your annual policy may provide a courtesy car after a claim. That is a separate arrangement with its own terms, and if it applies you may not need anything further. Check the policy wording before you buy a second one.

Ready when you are

Cover the car you have been lent.

Just the registration to begin. Fully comprehensive, one hour to 28 days.

Get Quotes

What About a Car Lent by a Friend or Dealer?

A friend’s spare car is insured for the friend, not for you, and a dealer’s loan car is only as good as the dealer’s paperwork.

For a friend, one route is a standalone policy in your name, with the owner’s permission. Additional driver insurance covers that case in detail: the lender’s no claims discount is untouched, and a claim is made under the temporary policy rather than the lender’s own.

For a dealer, treat a loan car like a garage’s: ask for the cover in writing, and check it before you drive.

Are Hire and Rental Cars Covered?

No. Rental and hire cars are not permitted on this product, so it is only for a car lent to you, not one you rent from a company.

That is the key limit on this page. If the car comes from a rental firm, use the insurance and conditions the firm provides, and read them. If the car is lent by a garage, dealer or individual who is not renting it to you commercially, a temporary policy can cover you in it.

Some other uses are also excluded on the wider car product, including taxi use, learner driving, racing and motor trade, so a courtesy car is for ordinary driving. If you will be using it for work, business car insurance explains what business use is included.

How Do You Get Courtesy Car Insurance?

Enter the registration of the lent car, say who is driving and when, choose the length, then check the quote and buy before you drive.

1
Enter the registration

Ask whoever lent you the car for the number plate. It pulls up the make, model and value of the car, which is most of what the quote is priced on.
2
Say who is driving and when

Your licence details, your address and the start time. Cover can start within minutes of paying, or later if you are collecting the car at a fixed time.
3
Choose the length

Hours, days or weeks, up to 28 days on one policy. If the repair is open-ended, choose a bit longer than the quoted time.
4
Check it, then buy

Read what is covered, what the excess is and what the optional extras add. The certificate is emailed once you pay. Cover exists only once the policy is issued and you hold the certificate, so do not drive on the strength of a quote.

What If the Repair Drags On?

A weekly policy runs from one to four weeks on a single policy, and a day or hours cover a shorter loan.

Repairs overrun: a part is delayed, a quote is revised, an insurer takes its time. A courtesy car is useful because it fills that time, but cover has to run for as long as you drive the car. Weekly car insurance covers one to four weeks. From £46.59 for one week, £54.11 for two and £64.25 for three, on the broker’s published prices.

For a short loan, a day or hours are available. From £11.72 for one hour and £21.87 for one day, and one day car insurance is the product for a single day. They are floors, not typical prices, and your own quote depends on you, the car and the start time.

Buy a second policy before the first ends if the repair is still unfinished, because a policy that has ended cannot be stretched, and driving past the end is driving uninsured. The policy is reported to the Motor Insurance Database, and the certificate on your phone is the back-up.

What Must the Car Meet?

The car must be worth between £500 and £65,000, with each insurer setting its own band, have a valid MOT, not be SORN and not be a hire or rental vehicle.

The driver must meet the insurer’s age limits, from 17 to 75, hold a full UK licence, with the licence types accepted varying by insurer, have a permanent UK address, and declare any points or convictions on the form. The car must be up to 3.5 tonnes, with no more than seven seats, and cannot be imported, left-hand drive or modified. Optional extras exist, including breakdown cover and excess protection. There is no refund once cover has started.

Before you start

Can you get it?

If you and the car fit these criteria, a quote is likely.

The driver

Aged 17 to 75, minimum age depending on the insurer
A full UK licence from the DVLA or DVA, or an EU or EEA licence with at least 12 months of UK residence
A permanent UK address
Never had insurance refused, cancelled or voided
Points and convictions declared on the form and priced within each insurer's limits

The car

Worth between £500 and £65,000, with each insurer setting its own band
A valid MOT, and not declared SORN, unless you are driving to a pre-booked MOT
Up to 3.5 tonnes and no more than seven seats
Not a hire or rental vehicle, and not held by the police
Not imported, left-hand drive or modified, apart from factory options or mobility adaptations

Criteria are set by each insurer on the broker’s panel and vary between them. Acceptance is always the insurer’s decision.

Questions

Courtesy Car Insurance: FAQs

What is courtesy car insurance?

It is a temporary policy for a car that has been lent to you, by a garage, a dealer or a friend, while your own car is off the road. It is comprehensive, runs from one hour to 28 days and ends automatically. It is not a hire car product. Whether a lent car is accepted depends on the insurer, and the quote shows which.

Can I use it for a hire or rental car?

No. Rental and hire cars are not permitted on this product. If the car comes from a hire company, use the insurance and terms the company supplies. This policy is for a car lent to you, not one you are paying a rental firm to supply.

Does a garage’s courtesy car come insured?

Often the garage arranges cover for it, but not always, and the terms vary. Ask who the insurer is, who is allowed to drive, what the excess is and when the cover ends. Get the answers in writing before you drive off.

When does the garage’s cover stop applying?

It can stop at the end of the period they have agreed, at the end of the repair, or if you are not a named or permitted driver. If your repair runs late, do not assume the cover runs late with it. Ask for a firm end date.

Can I be covered if my own policy has courtesy car cover?

Your own policy may include a courtesy car after a claim. Where it does, that is a separate arrangement with its own terms, and a temporary policy is not needed. Check your policy wording before you buy a second one.

How long can the cover last?

From one hour up to 28 days on one policy. A weekly option runs from one to four weeks if the repair is likely to drag on. Policies do not renew by themselves, so buy a second one before the first ends if you need longer.

How much does it cost?

From £11.72 for one hour, £21.87 for one day and £46.59 for one week, on the broker’s published prices. Your own quote depends on you, the car and the start time.

Will it affect the no claims discount of whoever lent me the car?

No. The policy is standalone, with its own certificate and policy number. A claim is made under it and not under the lender’s annual insurance, so their no claims discount and renewal are untouched.

Does it cost anything to get a quote?

No. Getting a quote is free and you are under no obligation to buy. We may be paid a fee by the broker if someone takes out a policy after being introduced by us. It does not change the price you are quoted.

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