Cover from one hour upwards

Hourly Car Insurance

A full comprehensive policy that runs for exactly the hours you need, for a test drive, a quick errand or a borrowed car.

1 to 24 hours, by the hour
Fully comprehensive
Owner’s no claims untouched

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

Starting prices

What temporary cover starts from, by length

1 hour From £11.72
4 hours From £17.73
1 day From £21.87
3 days From £30.93
1 week From £46.59
2 weeks From £54.11

Starting prices are the lowest sold by GoShorty, the broker that arranges the policy, between December 2025 and May 2026, as published on its website. Correct at 8 October 2026. They are not a typical price, and every quote is individual.

What Is Hourly Car Insurance?

Hourly car insurance is a full motor policy that runs for a fixed number of hours instead of a year, with cover starting at the time you choose and ending automatically.

It is sold in whole hours, from one hour up to 24 on a single policy. One hour covers a short errand or a private test drive; three or four hours covers an airport run, a furniture collection or an afternoon in a borrowed car. Once you need most of a day, one day car insurance is priced for exactly that.

The policy is comprehensive, it has its own certificate and policy number, and it sits alongside whatever annual insurance the car already carries rather than changing it. That last point is why most people buy it: a claim on an hourly policy does not touch the owner’s no claims discount.

Hourly cover is the shortest form of temporary car insurance, and everything that applies to the 28-day policy applies here too. It is simply priced for the hours you use.

How Do You Get Hourly Car Insurance?

Enter the registration, say who is driving and when, choose the number of hours, then check the quote and the policy wording before you pay.

1
Enter the registration

The number plate is enough to start. 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, or you can set it for later in the day if you are collecting the car at a fixed time.
3
Choose the hours

Anything from one hour to 23 on a single policy. Allow for the journey back and for traffic, because the policy ends at the minute you set, not when you arrive.
4
Check it, then buy

Read what is covered, what the excess is and what the optional extras add. The certificate is emailed as soon as you pay, and that certificate is the proof of cover, not the quote.

When Is Hourly Cover the Right Length?

Hourly cover suits a journey with a clear start and end inside the same day, where a full day would be paying for hours you will not use.

A private test drive

Buying privately means driving a stranger’s car on their insurance, which rarely covers you. An hour of your own cover means you can drive it properly, and the seller is not relying on their policy. See test drive insurance for the full picture.

A quick errand in someone else’s car

Picking a parent up from the station, moving a car off a driveway, running a friend’s car to the garage. Being added as a named driver for one trip is slow and can change their premium; an hourly policy does neither.

Driving a car home after buying it

The gap between paying for a car and the annual policy starting is where a lot of people drive uninsured. An hour or two of drive away insurance covers the journey home while you shop for an annual policy without pressure.

Sharing a long drive

If you are taking the wheel for a couple of hours on a long trip, hourly cover is the honest way to do it. If you will be swapping all day, a day policy is simpler.

Ready when you are

See what your hours would cost.

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

Get Quotes

What Does Hourly Car Insurance Cover?

It normally covers damage you cause to other people and their property, damage to the car you are driving, fire and theft, with business class 1 use included.

Third party liability

The cover every UK motor policy must carry: injury to other people and damage to their vehicles or property. On a short-term policy this is written to the same limits as an annual one.

Damage to the car you are driving

Accidental and malicious damage to the car itself, subject to the excess shown on the schedule. This is what makes the policy comprehensive rather than third party only, and it matters most when the car is not yours.

Fire and theft

Fire damage however it starts, theft of the vehicle, and damage caused during an attempted theft.

Business class 1

Driving to a meeting or a site visit is included as standard, so an hourly policy covers a work errand as well as a social one. It does not cover deliveries or carrying passengers for payment, which need courier or taxi cover. The detail is in the policy wording and the insurance product information document rather than on this page. Read both before you buy.

How Much Does Hourly Car Insurance Cost?

From £11.72 for one hour and from £17.73 for four hours. Your own quote depends on the driver, the car and the start time.

What moves the price is the same as on any motor policy, and the four things that matter most are below. A policy cannot be extended once it has started, so a second one is needed if the hours run out.

What sets your price

1 The car Value, insurance group and whether it is a model insurers see claims on.
2 The driver Age, how long the licence has been held, claims and convictions.
3 The hours The number of hours sets the price.
4 The start time Cover starting in the small hours is priced differently from a daytime policy.

Starting prices on this page are GoShorty’s published from-prices, based on quotes from December 2025 to May 2026. A starting price is the lowest sold to anyone, not a typical price, and every quote is individual. Source: GoShorty’s published prices.

Who Can Get Hourly Car Insurance?

Drivers aged 17 to 75 with a full UK licence, on a car worth between £500 and £65,000 with a valid MOT. The minimum age, the licence types accepted and the value band vary by insurer.

The full criteria are listed further down this page. The points that catch people out are the licence, which must be full rather than provisional, and the car, which cannot be SORN unless you are driving to a pre-booked MOT, and cannot be a hire car, an import or a left-hand drive.

Learner drivers need their own product, learner driver insurance, which runs for up to 24 weeks and requires a supervising driver. Vans up to 3.5 tonnes have their own cover too, under temporary van insurance.

What Happens If You Overrun?

Nothing stretches. The policy ends at the minute you set, and driving past it means driving without insurance, which is an offence that carries a fixed penalty, six points and the risk of the car being seized.

A second policy can be bought on your phone before the first one ends. What you cannot do is buy cover after the event: a policy bought at 3pm does not cover a collision at 2.50pm.

If the car is stopped and the police check the Motor Insurance Database, they will see the policy if it was in force at the time. The certificate on your phone is the back-up if the database has not updated.

GOV.UK sets out the rules on vehicle insurance, including what happens if you drive without it. The short version is that it is never worth the saving.

Hourly Cover Compared With a Day Policy

A day policy covers a full 24 hours at one price; hourly cover runs for the hours you set. The table shows how the two compare.

The two products are the same policy at different lengths, so the cover is identical. The only question is how long you will actually have the car. If the answer is "most of the day", go to one day car insurance. If it is a long weekend, weekend car insurance is priced for exactly that.

	Hourly	One day
Length	1 to 24 hours	A full 24 hours
Published from price	£11.72	£21.87
Typical use	A test drive, an errand, a single journey	Swapping drivers all day, a long collection, a car for the day
Risk of overrunning	High, so allow slack	Low

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

Hourly Car Insurance: FAQs

What is the shortest temporary car insurance I can buy?

One hour. Hourly cover is sold in whole hours from one up to 24 on a single policy, and a full day is sold as one day cover. The policy starts at the time you choose and ends automatically.

How much does one hour of car insurance cost?

The published starting price for a one-hour policy here was £11.72, based on the lowest sold between December 2025 and May 2026. Your own quote depends on the driver, the car and the start time, so treat that as a floor rather than a typical price.

Is hourly car insurance fully comprehensive?

Yes. Short-term motor policies are normally written as comprehensive cover, so damage to the car you are driving is included alongside damage you cause to other people and their property. Check the policy wording and the excess before you buy.

Can I start the cover straight away?

You choose the start time, and it can be within minutes of paying. Cover only exists once the policy has been issued and you have the certificate, so do not drive on the strength of a quote.

Will the owner’s no claims discount be affected?

No. An hourly policy is standalone, with its own policy number, so a claim on it is handled under that policy rather than the owner’s annual insurance. Their no claims discount and renewal are untouched.

Can I extend hourly cover if I am late back?

You cannot stretch a policy that has already ended, so buy a second policy before the first runs out if you think you will need longer. Allow for traffic when you choose the end time, because driving one minute past it means driving uninsured.

Will the police see that I am insured on an hourly policy?

Yes. The policy is reported to the Motor Insurance Database, which is what a roadside number plate check reads. Policies are submitted to the database four times a day, so keep the emailed certificate on your phone in case the database has not caught up.

Can I use hourly insurance to drive to an MOT?

Yes, if the MOT is pre-booked. A car without a valid MOT can normally only be driven to and from a booked test, and the same applies if it is declared SORN. Any other journey in an untested car is not covered.

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.

Need cover today?

Get Your Temp Insurance Quote