Admiral vs AXA: Compare Car Insurance

Is Admiral or AXA the better solution for you? This in-depth, feature-by-feature breakdown will help you select the best car insurance for you and your wallet.

The guidance on this site is based on our own analysis and is meant to help you identify options and narrow down your choices. We do not advise or tell you which product to buy; undertake your own due diligence before entering into any agreement. Read our full disclosure here.

Admiral and Aviva are two of the largest car insurance companies in the UK. Both come with many 'must-have' features, but both policies thrive in different areas. The team at NimbleFins has compared each company's car insurance offering to help readers trying to decide which might be the superior product for their needs.

Quick Overview: Admiral vs. AXA insurance

Each company offers a different set of features, which can make it difficult to decide which is best for you. We will recap some of the best features of each, as well as what's missing. For us, where they differ the most is on their key, stereo and courtesy car cover. Read below for more details comparing the basic level of comprehensive car insurance from Admiral and AXA. (Note, both companies offer higher tiers of cover with more features—in this article we are comparing their cheapest, most basic level of comprehensive cover available.)

What we like about Admiral

Admiral, rated 4 out of 5 stars by our editors, is superior to AXA for the following notable reasons:

  • Includes courtesy car for repairs as standard
  • Higher stereo and satnav cover (unlimited for original manufacturer equipment or £1,250 for aftermarket)
  • Key cover (up to £300)

What we like about AXA

AXA, rated 4.5 stars by our editors, provides superior coverage for the following features:

  • We didn't identify any significant features that are better with AXA.

Here's a quick, high level comparison of how Admiral and AXA compare on cost, features, customer service access and customer ratings.

Car Insurance ComparisonAdmiralAXA

Cost
Cheaper for our sample driverMore expensive for our sample driver

Superior Features
  • Higher audio/satnav cover
  • Higher key cover
  • Courtesy car for repairs as standard
  • Fewer FOS complaints
  • Better Trustpilot rating

Customer Service Access
Webchat and phones lines open 7 days a week, including bank holidaysPhones lines open 7 days a week, with webchat only open Monday - Friday

Customer Ratings
  • Trustpilot 3.6 out of 5
  • FOS Complaint Rate 2.34
  • Trustpilot 4.4 out of 5
  • FOS Complaint Rate 4.73
Read NimbleFins' Admiral ReviewRead NimbleFins' AXA Review
Get Admiral QuotesGet AXA Quotes

Admiral vs AXA Overall Review

When comparing Admiral and AXA car insurance, there are a few key areas where they differ.

Most notably for us, is that Admiral basic comprehensive plans offer as standard: higher key cover (£300 from Admiral vs no cover from AXA), higher stereo cover (unlimited for original or £1,250 for aftermarket permanently fitted from Admiral vs £1,000 from AXA for any permanently-fitted), a courtesy car if you're using an approved repairer to fix accident-related damage (this costs extra with AXA, although only £9.99/year) and higher child car seat cover (unlimited vs max £300 with AXA).

It should be noted that neither company's basic tier of comprehensive cover includes transport/hotel after an accident that leaves your car unable to be driven safely.

In the table below, you'll find more details on what each insurance policy provides under the 'must have', 'should have' and 'could have' feature categories outlined by Money Advice Service. To make things easier for you, we have bolded which coverage we see as the best of the two.

How Do They Compare?Admiral Comprehensive CoverageAXA Comprehensive Coverage

"Must Have" Features

Windscreen

IncludedIncluded
BelongingsUp to £150Up to £150

Keys

Up to £300, as long as not lost/stolen from your vehicleNot included

Protected NCD

If you buy the add onIf you buy the add on

Car recovery after accident

IncludedIncluded
Courtesy car (repairs)Included, if you use an approved repairerIf you buy the add on (£9.99)

Repairs guaranteed (if use approved repairer)

Repairs guaranteed for as long as you own the vehicle (parts guaranteed under manufacturer's warranty)Guaranteed throughout the time you own your car

"Should Have" Features

New car replacement

Theft or if cost to repair more than 59% of list price; cars up to 12 months oldIf the cost of repairing will be more than 60% of the manufacturer's last UK list price (inc. taxes); vehicle must be less than 1 year old; you must be the first and only registered keeper and legal owner
Stereo and satellite navEquipment fitted by the manufacturer is covered in full. For 'aftermarket' equipment up to £1,250 or market value of your car, whichever is the lowerPermanently fitted equipment cover up to £1,000 (unless equipment is fitted by the manufacturer of your car or their approved dealer then cover is unlimited)
Alternative transport & Hotel after accidentNot includedNot included
24-hour emergency helplineIncludedIncluded
Courtesy car (total loss or theft)If you buy the add onIf you buy the add on
Motor legal expensesIf you buy the add onIf you buy the add on
Breakdown coverIf you buy the add onIf you buy the add on

"Could Have" Features

Same cover in EU

Up to 90 daysUp to 90 days
Child car seat replacement after accident, theft, fireIncludedUp to £300 per child seat
Uninsured driver NCD protectionIncludedIncluded

Cancellation fee

£25 cancellation fee during cooling off period if cover has not started; otherwise £55£52.50 + admin fee after cooling off period; during 14-day cooling off period, £10 for any change or correction to your policy

What we don't like about Admiral

Admiral provides worse coverage for the following features:

  • Slightly higher admin fees

What we don't like about AXA

AXA provides worse coverage for the following features:

  • Need to pay extra for courtesy car for repairs
  • Less cover for child car seats, stereo/satnav, keys

Admiral vs AXA Cost Comparison

As much as the features an insurance policy offers is important, we all know money is the most important factor when deciding — if you can't afford it you can't consider it.

In this case, it appears Admiral is the cheaper of the two options and even requires a lower upfront cost if you go with monthly payments.

However, as we always say, quotes are very case sensitive and you must get your own quotes before making any decisions.

What Policy?AnnualMonthly
Admiral Comprehensive£543.20£48.60 (11 payments, £48.73 deposit)
Admiral Third Party, Fire and Theft£424.48£37.98 (11 payments, £38.05 deposit)
AXA Comprehensive£782.13£74.24 (10 payments, £148 deposit)
AXA Protected NCD£58.35£5.54
AXA Motor Legal£29.99£2.85
AXA Breakdown Cover£19.99£1.90
AXA Courtesy Car Upgrade£24.99£2.37

These quotes are based on 22-year-old Essex-based male driving a 2008 Ford Fiesta, 8,000 miles a year. He parks at home. They have been driving for 4 years and has 3 years no claims. This quote is for a young driver, hence why they are so high. Drivers with more experience can pay up to 45-50% less than the premiums listed here.

Admiral vs AXA Reviews and Ratings Compared

Looking at customer ratings can always help gauge what real customers think of an insurance provider's service.

The ratings below show that Admiral has a significantly lower Trustpilot score than AXA. But a slightly higher review.co.uk score. However, the Trustpilot reviews have significantly more reviews (almost 18,000 compared to just over 2,000) so these scores may be more reliable.

That being said, AXA have one of the highest FOS complaint ratios. Whereas, Admiral have a comparably low ratio. This combined with Admiral having only 5 star policies could suggest that they provide better customer service than AXA.

Review SiteAdmiral RatingsAXA Ratings
Trustpilot3.6 out of 54.4 out of 5
reviews.co.uk customer service rating2.8 out of 52.5 out of 5
FOS Complaint Ratio2.344.73

Admiral vs AXA Cancellation Fees Compared

At a glance, it looks like Admiral provider the best cancellation fees with both their cooling off and after cooling off cancellation fees being lower.

However, their mid-term admin can run you £65 — the highest we've seen here at NimbleFins. If you think there is a chance of you making a mid-term change, you may want to avoid Admiral.

When Are You CancellingAdmiralAXA
During cooling off if cover hasn't started£25£0
After cooling off period or during if cover has started£55£52.50
Mid-term admin changes£9.50 to £65£10 for any change or correction

Important Phone Numbers

We all hope we'll never need to call our insurance provider because it usually means something bad has happened. But when the time does come, you want them to be open.

Both insurance providers' customer service lines are open for similar times Monday through till Sunday and on bank holidays. However, Admiral have better Webchat opening times, due to AXA being closed on Saturday and Sundays.

Opening HoursAdmiralAXA
Customer Service (Mon-Fri)8am-7pm8am - 8pm
Customer Service (Sat)9am-5pm9am-5pm
Customer Service (Sun)9:30am-4pm9am - 3pm
Customer Service (Bank Holiday)9:30am-4pm9am - 3pm
Webchat (Mon-Fri)7am-10:45pm8am-11pm
Webchat (Sat)8am-7:45pmClosed
Webchat (Sun)8am-7:45pmClosed
Emergency Hotline24-hour24-hour

Admiral Contact Numbers

Admiral Contact Numbers
Customer Service (UK)0333 220 2000
Renewals0333 222 6715
Claims (in UK)0333 220 2033

24 Hour Helplines
Windscreen Claims0333 220 2025
Accident recovery0800 600 840

AXA Contact Numbers

AXA Contact Numbers
Customer Service (UK)0330 024 1158
Customer Service (NI)0289 002 0104
Claims (in UK)0330 024 1305
Claims (claims outside UK)+44 (0) 1217 520 685
Windscreen Claims0330 024 1306
Get a Quote0333 241 3545
24 Hour Helplines
Accident recovery0330 024 1305

Policy Documents

More information about Admiral car insurance policies can be found by reading their policy documents.

To read about the full details of an AXA policy, including what's covered and exclusions, read through the AXA's car insurance policy documents here.

Ryan S. Gladwin

Ryan S. Gladwin is an Essex-based writer with a passion for teaching others what he has learnt. While studying for his Multimedia Journalism degree he realised that writing about the things he loved (music, culture and finance) was what he wanted to do as a career.

Since graduating he has written for publications such as Insider, Dummy, Leverage.com, Hedgehog.app and more. Now he also writes for NimbleFins, where he aims to help people financially empower themselves. Find more about him on LinkedIn.

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The guidance on this site is based on our own analysis and is meant to help you identify options and narrow down your choices. We do not advise or tell you which product to buy; undertake your own due diligence before entering into any agreement. Read our full disclosure here.

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