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Temp Insurance UK

Cost and eligibility

Why can’t I get temporary car insurance?

A refused quote is almost always one of nine checks: age, licence, the car, a SORN, a hire car, a modification or a past cancellation. Which, and what to do.

By TIUK Editorial Team Reviewed by Chris Richards

  • 6 min read
  • Reviewed 22 October 2026
  • 5 sources
In this guide 8 sections
  1. 1 Why can’t I get temporary car insurance?
  2. 2 Am I too young or too old?
  3. 3 Is my licence the problem?
  4. 4 Does a past cancellation or refusal count against me?
  5. 5 Is it the car?
  6. 6 Will points or a conviction stop me?
  7. 7 Did I type the registration wrong?
  8. 8 If the car product will not quote me, what will?

The quote screen says no, or it says nothing at all, and there is no line underneath explaining why. That is deliberate on most quote systems, which are built to avoid telling someone how to change an answer. It is also unhelpful, because the great majority of refusals come down to one of a short list of checks, and most of them have a fix that is not “try another site”.

Why can’t I get temporary car insurance?

Because one eligibility check failed. For the car product, that is one of nine: your age, your licence, a past refusal or cancellation, the car’s value, its MOT or SORN status, whether it is hired, whether it is modified or imported, whether it is held by the police, or the registration itself.

Check The rule on the car product
Age 17 to 75, minimum age by insurer
Licence Full UK, or EU or EEA with 12 months of UK residence with some insurers
Your record Never had insurance refused, cancelled or voided
The car’s value £500 to £65,000
MOT and SORN Valid MOT; not on a SORN, except to a pre-booked MOT
Hire Not a hire or rental vehicle
Modified or imported Factory options and mobility adaptations only; not imported or left-hand drive
Seized Not held by the police
The reg Must match a DVLA record

Each has its own section below, with what to do about it.

Am I too young or too old?

The car product covers drivers from 17 to 75, with the minimum age varying by insurer. Provisional licence holders have learner cover from 17; over 75 there is no temporary product on this site.

The age floor is the most common refusal, because the people who most want to borrow a car are the ones under it. A young driver is quoted with the age priced in. On a provisional licence, the product is learner driver insurance, for practising in someone else’s car, from 17. An 18 to 20 year old with a full licence is quoted by some insurers and not others, and the quote shows which.

Over 75, the quote stops. That is the broker’s limit on this product, and this site has no other to offer.

Is my licence the problem?

A full UK licence is quoted, and an EU or EEA licence with 12 months of UK residence is quoted by some insurers. A provisional licence, an international licence or a licence from outside the EEA is not.

Three licence refusals come up:

  • Provisional. The car product needs a full licence. Learner cover is the product for a provisional holder.
  • International or non-EEA. The product does not accept licences from outside the UK, EU and EEA, even where GOV.UK allows the holder to drive here for a period. Non-UK licence insurance sets out exactly which licences are accepted, and which are not.
  • Recently exchanged. A licence exchanged for a UK one in the last few months is a UK licence; what the insurer may look at is how long a licence of any kind has been held. The insurer behind the additional driver product may require 6 months, or 3 months if over 25.

A licence that is suspended or revoked is no licence, and no product covers it.

Does a past cancellation or refusal count against me?

Yes. The standard product asks whether you have ever had insurance refused, cancelled or voided, and a yes ends the quote.

This is the refusal people find hardest, because the cancellation may be years old and may have been for a missed direct debit rather than anything worse. The question does not distinguish. A policy cancelled by the insurer for non-payment, one voided for an answer on the application that turned out to be untrue, and one refused at proposal all count.

The one thing not to do is answer the question wrongly. A policy bought on an untrue declaration is voided at the first claim, which adds another cancellation to the record and leaves the driver uninsured at the moment it matters. Some annual insurers specialise in drivers with a cancellation and will price it; a short policy on the standard temporary product is not available.

Think you pass the checks? Enter the reg and find out.

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Is it the car?

The car must be worth between £500 and £65,000, with each insurer setting its own band, have a valid MOT, not be on a SORN, not be a hire car, not be imported or modified, and not be held by the police.

  • Value. Under £500 and the insurer’s view is that the car is not worth comprehensive cover; over £65,000 and it is outside the product. Vans go to £65,000 on their own product; motorhomes to £40,000.
  • MOT. The car needs a valid MOT, or a pre-booked test that the policy is bought to drive to.
  • SORN. A car declared off the road is excluded except for the journey to a pre-booked MOT. If the car has been laid up, tax it first, which ends the SORN, then quote.
  • Hire. A rental car has the rental company’s cover; the product excludes hired vehicles. A car lent by a garage or a friend is not hired, and courtesy car insurance covers it.
  • Modified or imported. Factory options and mobility adaptations are fine. Aftermarket wheels, a remap, a body kit, a non-standard exhaust, a left-hand-drive car and a car imported from outside the UK are not.
  • Seized. A car in a police pound is excluded from the standard product and needs impound release insurance.

Weight is a separate matter. The car product covers vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes; a van goes on the van product.

Will points or a conviction stop me?

Sometimes. Points, convictions and ended bans are declared and priced within each insurer’s limits. A high points total, a refused code, a recent ban, a ban still running or an undeclared conviction is what stops a quote.

Every DVLA conviction code is asked for on the form, and each insurer sets its own limits: from 3 to 9 points, some codes refused outright, and a ban that must have ended two to five years ago. The convicted driver page sets them out. Beyond those limits, two things stop every quote:

  • A ban that has not ended. No licence, no cover, on any product.
  • A conviction left off the form. The quote may go through and the policy be issued, and it is void from the start. The DVLA record is checked at a claim.

A pending prosecution must be declared, and the insurer decides. The learner product is the stricter one: it asks for no points at all.

Did I type the registration wrong?

Often. A transposed letter looks up a different car, or no car, and the quote fails before any rule is applied.

Check the plate against the V5C, not from memory. O and 0, I and 1, S and 5 are the usual swaps. A car registered in the last few days, a private plate transferred this week, or a car the DVLA has no record of will also return nothing, and the fix is to wait for the record rather than to try again.

If the car product will not quote me, what will?

The site has products for most of the refusals: learner cover from 17, convicted driver cover within each insurer’s limits, impound cover for a seized car, van cover for anything over a car. The two it has nothing for are a running ban and a past cancellation.

Refused because Try instead
Under 21, provisional licence Learner driver insurance
Under 21, full licence The car product, with the insurers that quote from 17
Licence from outside the EEA Nothing here; check non-UK licence insurance for what is accepted
Points or a conviction Convicted driver insurance
Car seized by the police Impound release insurance
It is a van Temporary van insurance
It is a motorhome Temporary motorhome insurance
Past cancellation or void A specialist annual insurer
Ban still running Nothing, until it ends

A refusal is a fact about one product on one day, not a verdict on the driver. The quote that comes back on the right product is usually just as quick.

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Questions

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Why was my temporary car insurance quote refused?

Most refusals are one of the standard eligibility checks: the driver outside the insurer’s age limits, a provisional or international licence, a car worth under £500 or over £65,000, a car on a SORN or without an MOT, a hire car, an imported or modified car, a seized car, or a past refusal, cancellation or void. The quote screen rarely says which. Work through the list in this guide and the cause is usually obvious.

Can a 17 or 18 year old get temporary car insurance?

With some insurers. The minimum age varies by insurer, from 17 upwards, so an 18 to 20 year old with a full licence may be quoted by some and not others. A 17 year old on a provisional licence can get temporary learner driver insurance, which sits alongside the car owner’s annual policy.

Can I get temporary insurance with points or a conviction?

Sometimes. Points, convictions and ended bans are declared on the form, and each insurer applies its own limits: the most points any accepts is 9, some refuse whole code families, and a ban must have ended at least two years ago. A ban that is still running means no licence, so no cover, and a pending prosecution must be declared, with the insurer deciding. The learner product is stricter and asks for no points.

Why does a past cancelled policy stop me getting a quote?

Because the standard product asks whether you have ever had insurance refused, cancelled or voided, and answers yes to the question by ending the quote. A policy cancelled for a missed payment counts, as does one voided for an answer that was not true. There is no way round the question on the standard product; answering it wrongly voids the new policy too.

Can I get temporary insurance on a car with no MOT or on a SORN?

Not for ordinary use. A car on a SORN or without a valid MOT is excluded, with one exception: driving to a pre-booked MOT test. If the car has been off the road, tax it first, which ends the SORN, and get the MOT booked before you quote.

Can I get temporary insurance on a hire car or a courtesy car?

A hire or rental car, no: the rental company’s own insurance applies and the product excludes hired vehicles. A courtesy car lent by a garage, dealer or friend, yes, on the standard car product, because it is lent rather than hired.

Why is my modified car refused?

The product excludes modified cars, with factory-fitted options and mobility adaptations allowed. Aftermarket wheels, a remap, a body kit or a non-standard exhaust count as modifications. A car imported from outside the UK and a left-hand-drive car are excluded for the same reason: they sit outside what the insurer has priced.

I entered the registration and nothing came back. What now?

Check the registration against the V5C, because a transposed letter looks up a different vehicle, or no vehicle. A car registered very recently, a cherished plate just transferred, or a car with no record at the DVLA will also return nothing. Enter it again carefully, and if it still fails, the broker’s own help pages explain what to do.