DNA Insurance Review: How's the Service?

DNA Insurance Review: How's the Service?

A broker that lots of customers like, especially when it comes to renewals.

Good for

  • Potentially cheaper quotes

Bad for

  • Higher admin and cancellation charges
  • Mixed customer reviews
  • Closed at the weekend

Editor's Rating

3.0/5.0

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.

DNA is a broker that offers specialist and business car insurance. But do they offer value for money and how do their customer reviews compare? Read our review to find out. If you're ready to find cheap car insurance, you can also click the blue "Get Quotes" button below to see how much you can save.

Cheap Car Insurance in Your Area

Quickly compare over 100 UK insurance providers.

{"applyCallToAction":"Get Quotes","defaultSelectedItem":"car","description":"Quickly compare over 100 UK insurance providers.","formType":"Insurance","onCurrent":true,"options":[{"label":"Car Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/car-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"car"},{"label":"Home Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/home-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"home"},{"label":"Motorbike Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/bike-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"motorbike"},{"label":"Pet Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/pet-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"pet"},{"label":"Travel Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/travel-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"travel"}],"title":"Cheap Car Insurance in Your Area"}

In This Review

DNA Car Insurance Overall Review

Is DNA Insurance any good? They have a UK call centre aiming to provide a personal service, which you might like, and they work with a range of underwriters to try to find you a cheap deal—but customer reviews are mixed and hard to find. But a browse through their website and you'll see they're full of personality. Here's what you need to know about DNA before you decide if they're the best option for you.

First, know that DNA offers cover for a range of different types of vehicles:

  • Car Fleet
  • Car
  • Standard Car
  • Home
  • Classic Car
  • Minibus
  • Convicted Driver
  • Motor trade
  • High Performance Car
  • Property Owner
  • Imported Car
  • Taxi
  • Modified Car Insurance
  • Travel
  • Impounded Car
  • Van Insurance
  • Short Term Car

Features

How do DNA features compare? They now offer specialist private car insurance to cover classic, high performance and modified cars. They no longer provide standard car insurance for typical cars.

Regardless, if you go to them for specialist cover, remember some "must have" features should you look for in a policy. While these may not apply to all specialist cars, we generally like plans that include a courtesy car (regardless of fault) for a minimum of 14 days while your car is in an approved repair shop for damage related to a claim, windscreen cover, personal belongings, keys (loss, theft), car recovery after an accident, and a repair guarantee, at a minimum. Keep these features in mind as you look through their offer—coverage can vary depending on the underwriter.

DNA Car Insurance Customer Service Reviews, Complaints and Ratings

DNA Ratings & Customer Reviews
Trustpilot customer service rating1.7 out of 5
Feefo4.7 out of 5

DNA Insurance seems to have strong customer reviews—but they're worth digging into.

DNA Insurance TrustPilot

DNA has been rated with 1.7 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot. Insurance ratings tend to be lower in general due to claims processes across the industry, but nonetheless DNA's rating is really low compared to other insurance providers. That said, the rating is based on only 130 reviewers so it seems a high proportion of people leaving reviews are people with a complaint (whereas a higher number of reviews e.g. in the thousands typically indicates the rating is based on a broader section of customer experiences, primarily the buying experience). While 55% of reviews were "Excellent" (5 stars), 39% were "Bad" (1 star). Hmmm.

A common complaint seems to be difficulty getting through to them (e.g. with questions or for renewal).

DNA Insurance Feefo

DNA was rated 4.6 out of 5 on feefo by close to 400 customers in the past year. With a higher number of reviews at Feefo, we have more faith in this figure being a better indicator of the typical experience. These reviews mostly relate to a good buying and renewal process. Given the difficulties that motorists sometime face with their insurance renewal, the high feefo rating is comforting.

We scoured the online reviews to curate a selection of customer comments—both positive and negative—to give you an idea of the typical customer experience. Here's what we found:

Positive customer reviews of DNA

"Just renewed again with DNA for another year, I think that makes 15 years I've been with them now. The service was great and after some discussions about the cover required and the pricing we came to an amicable agreement. DNA were acquired by Aston Lark last year, the service has remained really good, only change is that wait times when phoning them have increased."

"Found a great price for me."

"I had a problem with my midas direct and DNA operators really helped me."

"Excellent customer service skills, response rate for queries is extremely quick."

"Amazing service as always from these guys, great prices and great people too."

"Highly personal customer service experience. 10/10 highly recommend."

"... beaten my renewal price from a company i've been with years, very happy, just what i need, little businesses like me need this sort of company looking to save us money thanks again."

"Thoroughly recommend DNA, used them for my black taxi insurance and was the cheapest by far."

"Very happy with them as they sort out my trade insurance where other wouldn't as i have points on my licence."

"... they got me the best price around..."

"No nonsense reminder, good rates and quick electronic implementation"

"... insurance can be confusing but it was broken down very simply. As a bonus it was a lot cheaper too"

Negative customer reviews of DNA

"... they took the deposit, 1 week later they said I had not declared a conviction (which I did) . They cancelled my policy. They then took 3 direct debit payments. £400 for a weeks insurance..."

"... took out a trade ins and after 3 weeks rang and said I didn't declare I was a director in two other businesses so they cancelled the policy 95 pound cancellation fee..."

"... make demands left right and centre. Asking for proof of trade and driving licence is fine, they then went on to ask for pictures of the car site, gates, entrance roads, proof of why I have access to the site, pictures of vehicles uploaded on my MID parked within the site. Then after that, more threats to cancel policy if I don’t send them an up to date lease."

DNA Car Insurance Quote Comparison

A great way to see if DNA can find you cheap car insurance is by comparing them against the market. DNA is included in our car insurance partner's panel, so getting a quote with them can save you time, as well as money, and let you see how prices compare against the average cost of car insurance. To start the process, which only takes a few minutes, click here.

Cheap Car Insurance in Your Area

Quickly compare over 100 UK insurance providers, including DNA.

{"applyCallToAction":"Get Quotes","defaultSelectedItem":"car","description":"Quickly compare over 100 UK insurance providers, including DNA.","formType":"Insurance","onCurrent":true,"options":[{"label":"Car Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/car-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"car"},{"label":"Home Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/home-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"home"},{"label":"Motorbike Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/bike-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"motorbike"},{"label":"Pet Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/pet-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"pet"},{"label":"Travel Insurance","url":"https:\/\/quote.nimblefins.co.uk\/travel-insurance?id=76f4ecd6e1ca7c2f442633593566fdaa","value":"travel"}],"title":"Cheap Car Insurance in Your Area"}

DNA Car Insurance Discounts

In addition to building a good driving record and your no claims discount, here are some other ways to save on car insurance with DNA:

DiscountWho qualifies?
No Claims DiscountEach year you don't make a claim should increase your No CLaim Discount
Pay upfrontPay your full premium at the start of the policy to save money (variable APR)
Buy your policy earlyBuying your policy a few weeks in advance of the start date can save you money
Limited Mileage PoliciesFor motorists who don't drive very much
Car Club DiscountsIn some cases, even joining a Facebook group counts
Second Car DiscountsMutlicar policies can save you on your second car's insurance premium

Admin and Cancellation Fees

There's no mention in DNA's terms of business about cancellation fees if you cancel during the 14-day cooling off period; however, cancelling after this time there's a fee of £40 plus a commission on any premium that was refunded to you by the underwriter (this is 10% for private vehicles and more for business, as you can see in the table below).

DNA Administration Fees
Arranging PoliciesVariable
Mid Term Adjustments£40
If your policy is declared void or cancelled due to non-disclosure or misrepresentation£100
Reduced Deposit Fee£50
Mid Term cancellation£40 (£20 for property owners)

Remember you're also likely to pay a fee to the underwriter, and that you must pay the premium according to the time you did have cover. All of these contribute to the cost of cancelling.

Important DNA Car Insurance Phone Numbers

DNA customer service is open from 9am - 6pm from Monday to Friday, but they're closed on Saturday and Sunday.

DNA Car Insurance Contact Numbers
Customer Services03445 732 400

FAQs

DNA prefers for customers to use their website to make a vehicle change. Depending on which insurer you're with, this will either navigate you to the insurer’s website or will accept the details of the vehicles you wish to add or remove and DNA will pass this information on to them.
DNA no longer offers standard car insurance.
DNA no longer offers standard car insurance. To get a car insurance quote, please use a comparison site like our partner QuoteZone
Policyholders will be charged a £40 cancellation fee to DNA, plus there are other cancellation costs to consider.

Other Car Insurance Reviews

If you'd like to compare DNA to other car insurance brokers, see a sample of other car insurance reviews below:

Erin Yurday

Erin Yurday is the Founder and Editor of NimbleFins. Prior to NimbleFins, she worked as an investment professional and as the finance expert in Stanford University's Graduate School of Business case writing team. Read more on LinkedIn.

Comments

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.

Car Insurance

  • You could save up to £523*
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars**
  • Quotes from 100+ providers



Motor Insurance Reviews

NimbleFins Newsletter

Get deals, tips, news, and more!