How do I renew my car insurance policy?

Car insurance ending soon? You can either renew your existing policy (which might happen automatically) or switch to a more competitive quote for cheap car insurance. Here's how the car insurance renewal process works in the UK.

• Renew car insurance
• Best time to renew car insurance
• Car insurance renewal quote
• How to renew car insurance
• When is my car insurance due for renewal?
• Does car insurance automatically renew?
• Can I change car insurance before renewal date UK?
• Forgot to cancel auto-renewal car insurance

Renew car insurance

With the exception of short-term or temporary car insurance, most car insurance policies run for 12 months. The standard is for these annual policies to automatically renew when the year is up, so that motorists have continuous cover. About 3 to 4 weeks before this automatic renewal happens, you should get a renewal quote from your existing insurer with their price for the coming year.

If you're happy with the renewal price and your insurer, it's certainly fine to let the auto-renewal go forward (and you don't usually have to do anything to make this happen). But most people will want to check the market to see if that renewal price is reasonable or not. No one should overpay for car insurance!

Best time to renew car insurance

The best time to renew car insurance is 2-3 weeks before your existing policy expires. Why? This is when you'll typically get the cheapest quotes from the marketplace, as we found in our research, This is when to buy car insurance to save up to 50%. The cheapest time to renew car insurance is the same as the cheapest time to buy car insurance.

Before you renew, it's critical to use a comparison engine to compare quotes for you and your vehicle, in order to learn how the market is pricing your particular risks. If your current insurer is pricing your renewal too high compared to competing quotes, it's time to negotiate with your current insurer or perhaps to even switch to a more competitive quote.

Tell us when your car insurance is up for renewal and we'll remind you to test the market:

Car insurance renewal quote

Ideally, compare car insurance renewal quotes a few weeks before your renewal date—but even if your renewal is happening any day now, it's never too late to see if you can get a better deal.

Admiral car insurance renewal

Admiral automatically renew car insurance policies so their customers have continuous cover on their vehicles. Why? It's illegal to keep an uninsured vehicle unless you've notified the DVLA that your vehicle is being kept off the road via a Statutory Off Road Notice (SORN).

To change your auto-renewal preference at anytime during your policy term, contact Admiral online or by phone.

Admiral sends renewal notices around 21 days ahead of time. For customers registered online, this notice will be sent out via email. You can call Admiral's renewals department to discuss or cancel the renewal. If you cancel outside the 14-day cooling off period, you'll be charged for the days on cover (a pro-rata amount).

There’s also a cancellation fee to pay (typically £25, but more for telematics policies).

LV= car insurance renewal

If you've selected automatic renewal, your policy will renew automatically. If your policy is not set to automatic renewal, you can renew online through your account. For this, you'll need your renewal documents and payment details.

To cancel automatic renewal with LV=, the steps are different depending on when you do this. If your renewal date is in 30 days or less, you can cancel your car insurance renewal online up to 4 working days before your current policy ends. If your renewal date is more than 30 days away, you fill out an online cancellation form.

Aviva car insurance renewal

Aviva sends renewal invite emails with your policy details and premium for the upcoming year at least 21 days before your renewal date.

If your policy is set to automatically renew, you don't technically need to do anything if you don't need to make any changes. If you do want to make a change, log into your account to do so.

If your policy is not set to automatically renew, log in to your Aviva account, review, make any necessary changes, and if you want to proceed then accept the renewal price and pay your renewal premium.

Churchill car insurance renewal

Churchill car insurance policies set to automatic renewal will renew... automatically. For those set to 'manual' renewal, you must contact Churchill before your current policy expires.

How to renew car insurance

Most annual car insurance policies will automatically renew—check your terms and conditions to see if your policy with auto renew, and be on the lookout for your renewal notice around three to four weeks before your current policy expires. This renewal notice will include your new rate for the coming year. Car insurance renewal rules can vary slightly from company to company, but generally remain the same:

If your policy is set to automatic renewal

If your policy is set to auto renew and you're happy with the terms and rate, you generally don't need to do anything to renew your car insurance. That said, it's a good idea to check the details of the renewal notice, and even log in to your account and check everything is correct. The company should renew your policy using the payment details shown in your renewal invite.

If your policy is set to auto renew and you want to make any changes, you'll need to make these change requests via your online account or over the phone, depending on the company. You'll want to check the revised renewal quote, which you can either go ahead with or not.

If your policy is not set to automatic renewal

But if your policy is not set to automatically renew, you'll need to take action to ensure you're covered going forward. While the renewal process varies by insurance company, it's common practice to log onto your account online to check your new renewal price and make any changes and then, if you're happy to continue, you'll click a 'Renew' (or similar) button to confirm. Alternatively, there may be other ways to renew, such as calling in to customer service. Then your insurer will take payment and renew your policy for you when it's time.

When is my car insurance due for renewal?

To find out when your car insurance is due for renewal, you need to know when your current policy expires. Here are a few alternative ways to find this out:

Does car insurance automatically renew?

Most policies in the UK with automatically renew—this is generally done so that motorists are continually covered. Avoiding gaps in cover is important to avoid driving without insurance, which is not just financially risky but also illegal.

That said, not all policies automatically renew. Check your policy terms and conditions to find out if your policy will auto renew. Or call the insurance provider to find out.

Also, be on the lookout for communications from your insurer. If your policy is going to auto renew, the insurer should send you notice of your new rate around three to four weeks before the renewal date. If you don't receive this communication, your policy is probably not set to auto renew.

Ultimately, it's a motorist's responsibility to ensure they are properly covered.

Can I change car insurance before renewal date UK?

Yes! You can absolutely change car insurance before the renewal date in the UK. To do this:

^Did you know? You can buy today buy have the policy start at a later date.

Forgot to cancel auto-renewal car insurance

If you forgot to cancel auto-renewal car insurance, and you don't want the policy anymore, you'll need to cancel the policy as soon as possible once you notice the situation. Depending on the policy terms and when you cancel, this can be expensive[symbol:-dash]you may owe a cancellation fee and need to pay part of the premium[symbol:-dash]or it can cost you nothing.

If possible, it's best to cancel a policy within the first 14 days, during the cooling off period, when cancellation costs tend to be lower. NimbleFins research has found that cancellation fees on regular car insurance policies range from £0 to £100 during the cooling off period, but £30 to £125 afterwards:

In addition, insurers charge part of the premium when you cancel, even if you didn't use or need the insurance. So don't expect to get your entire premium refunded (although you might get the whole premium back if you cancel during the cooling of period). Beware that while some insurers charge a reasonable pro-rata amount of the premium at cancellation (essentially, a per-day amount that is fairly calculated) but others charge using a scale that is more costly to the motorist. For example, GoGirl charges 20% of the premium if you cancel in the first month.