Everything you need to know about comprehensive motor insurance
If you’re looking at how to get cheap car insurance, it can be tempting to settle for the minimum level of cover you need. But in some cases, that’s not always the cheapest or best value option. Here, comparison site mustard.co.uk takes a look at comprehensive car insurance so you can decide if it’s right for you.
What does comprehensive cover include?
Comprehensive car insurance is the highest level of cover available in the UK. Policies compensate other people for injuries and damage you cause either to them or their property in an accident. It’s also sometimes called ‘fully comp’ or ‘comp cover’.
One of the main benefits of comprehensive insurance, is that it also covers the cost of repairing or replacing your car if it’s damaged in an accident you cause. Policies can also pay out if your car’s damaged but you don’t know who by, for example if someone breaks your wing mirror and drives off.
There are also two other levels of car insurance that sit below comprehensive cover. At the opposite end of the scale is third party only (TPO) which is the lowest level of cover available, and the minimum you can have by law. TPO policies only cover the cost of injuries and damage done to other people and their property.
In between TPO and comp cover, is third party, fire and theft (TPFT). This includes TPO cover and will also provide you with compensation if your car is stolen or damaged by fire.
What extras can you add to comprehensive car insurance?
Whichever level of cover you choose, you’ll usually be able to add on extra features for a small price increase, for example:
- Breakdown cover
- Courtesy car
- Legal expenses
- Personal injury
- Replacement key cover
- Misfuelling cover
It’s worth knowing that some comprehensive policies will automatically include some or all of these features. In contrast, the vast majority of third party policies won’t, so you’ll have to pay to include them which can increase your premium considerably.
Can I drive any car if I have fully comp insurance?
Whether or not you can drive someone else’s car using your own policy depends on the terms and conditions set out by your insurer.
Some comprehensive insurance policies provide something called DOC (driving other cars). If your policy includes DOC, then yes, you can drive someone else’s car (with their permission). But you must bear in mind that the cover you have while driving someone else’s car will typically only extend to third party only (even if you have comp cover). It means that if you’re driving someone else’s car and you have an accident, your insurance may not pay to repair it.
How much does comprehensive cover cost?
As the highest level of cover, it’s often assumed that comprehensive insurance is also the most expensive. While that might have been true in the past, it’s not necessarily the case now. This is because insurers found that third party policyholders made more claims than those with comp cover so premiums were adjusted to reflect this.
That said, it’s not just the type of policy that determines your premium, insurers consider a whole host of other factors. For some drivers, that could mean third party policies are still cheaper which is why it’s important to compare all types of policy.
Some of the factors insurers will consider:
- The type of car you have — expensive and powerful cars in high insurance groups cost more to insure.
- Your age — drivers under 25 are statistically more likely to be involved in an accident so pay higher than average premiums.
- Where you live — living in an area with high crime rates can increase premiums.
- Number of miles you drive — covering a lot of miles each year increases the chances of an accident, which will be reflected in your premium.
- What you use your car for — using your car for work or business increases premiums, because it’s assumed you’ll cover a considerable number of miles.
- Your car’s security — you can shave a little off your premium if you keep your car on a private driveway or in a locked garage overnight.
Compare all types of car insurance for the best deals
One of the quickest and easiest ways to ensure you get the best value for money is to shop around for quotes from a range of different insurers. At mustard.co.uk, you can do just that and compare features and prices from dozens of leading UK providers.
You can start a quote online right now or speak to an expert member of the team on 0330 022 8791.
