Best for
Cheaper rates

The best car insurance gives you the right cover at the right price and is there in your hour of need. We’ve given comprehensive policies a policy score for the level of cover they provide, and surveyed customers to give a customer satisfaction rating. We’ve also picked out policies that excel in specific categories like multi-car or for young drivers. That being said, it’s always a good idea to compare quotes from a range of providers to make sure you’re getting the right cover at the right price.
The average motor insurance premium rose by nearly 8% during the first 5 months of 2022, to hit £786, according to recent analysis by research firm Consumer Intelligence. This makes it even more important to shop around. The cheapest policy for one driver might not be cheapest for another, because insurers price risk in different ways (risk is calculated using your driving history and personal details). But some providers tend to offer good rates.
How to get the cheapest car insuranceNeed to know: There’s an admin fee for changing the vehicle or a named driver on your policy.
Read our review of LV= car insurance.
Many households in the UK own more than one car. The good news is that there are also many insurance companies who offer a discount for insuring multiple cars with them. Some will even let you throw a motorcycle or van into the mix.
Understand and compare the best multi-car insurance companies
Need to know: Claims helplines aren’t open 24/7.
Read our review of Admiral car insurance.
All providers offer insurance to older drivers – and non-specialists can offer great rates – but over-50s car insurance policies offer tailored extras, and age limits tend to be more flexible. Age Co has no upper age limit and offers a Message Relay service, where a friend or family member to be contacted if you have an accident.
Compare the best over 50s car insurance companies
Need to know: Cancelling a policy can incur an admin fee of up to £50.
Read our review of Saga car insurance.
If you’re travelling a short distance or only plan on using a car for a short period of time, it doesn’t make sense to get long-term cover.
With temporary car insurance, if you have to make a claim, the no claims discount of the car’s named driver won’t be affected.
Compare the best temporary car insurance companies
Need to know: You have to pay upfront for your policy.
Read our review of Tempcover car insurance.
It can be tough being a new driver, especially when you see how much you may have to pay for insurance. Drivers under the age of 25 typically need to pay more than £1,300 a year for car insurance.
While most providers will cover a young or inexperienced driver, there are a few who offer deals that won’t break the bank, and some may even offer discounted premiums.
Marmalade insurance deserves a mention here. The company scored 4 stars in our customer satisfaction survey, with 87% of customers saying they would recommend it. Marmalade’s black box policy is not the most comprehensive, but it is a strong option, especially if you value good customer service.
Need to know: The Hastings Direct website isn’t easy to navigate.
Read our review of Hastings Direct car insurance.
If you have a driving conviction, such as speeding or drink driving, getting car insurance can be a struggle. This disclosure calculator, run by Unlock and Home Protect can help you gauge whether a past conviction is now “spent”.
Need to know: There’s no option to have third-party cover only.
Read our review of Swinton car insurance.
Need to know: The claims line isn’t 24/7, but there is an out-of-hours emergency helpline.
Read our review of Direct Line car insurance.
Black box cover is when a telematics device is installed in your car to track your driving. If you drive well, your premiums reduce. Consistently breaking the rules and restrictions of the policy will end up costing you in higher premiums.
Compare the best black box insurance companies
Need to know: No 24/7 claims line (but an emergency helpline is available).
Read our review of Churchill car insurance.
Rank | Company | Comprehensive policy score | Compare |
---|---|---|---|
1 | NFU Mutual | 83.2% | Compare providers |
2 | Aviva | 82.51% | Compare providers |
3 | Saga | 82.3% | Compare providers |
4 | M&S Bank | 81.47% | Compare providers |
5 | Direct Line | 80.84% | Compare providers |
6 | Sheilas' Wheels | 79.9% | Compare providers |
7 | Age Co | 79.57% | Compare providers |
8 | RIAS | 79.24% | Compare providers |
9 | AXA | 77.97% | Compare providers |
10 | Hastings Direct | 77.02% | Compare providers |
For all results, including customer satisfaction ratings, skip to our full table.
To come up with the league table, our team looked at 29 different elements of a car insurance policy from 35 providers across the industry. Those at the top have the most comprehensive cover, in our view.
We looked at the range of ages they cover, cover limits, whether essential benefits are included as standard, the payment options, the ease of claim and whether you can manage your policy online. For essential benefits, such as courtesy car, old for new car replacement and key cover, if they weren’t included as standard, we judged them on how much extra you had to pay to add these benefits to your policy.
With other benefits, such as driving in the EU and continuing your journey if your car’s out of action, insurers lost points if they impose restrictions on cover, like the number of days and distance from home.
Some elements got extra weighting, based on how important they are to drivers. In a couple of cases, two insurers received the exact same score, and so they share the same spot on our list. We also feature the results of our satisfaction survey of 1,513 customers, so you can hear what companies are like from the people who matter most.
Below, we picked out policies we think are outstanding in certain categories, such as great rates or multi-car. Choose which benefits are important to you in the next section. Insurance is highly personal and rates change often, so these picks are just a steer.
Car insurance premiums are highly personalised – a tweak to your job role, or the amount of excess you’re happy to pay can make a big difference to your premiums. We explain more in our guide how premiums are calculated. The key is the get the right cover level, plus good service at the cheapest price. This is why we survey customers. All our best picks are at least 3-star rated for service.
Ranking | Logo | Provider | Overall satisfaction | Customers who’d recommend |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | ![]() | Admiral | ★★★★★ | 86% |
2 | ![]() | Direct line | ★★★★★ | 82% |
3 | ![]() | Aviva | ★★★★★ | 82% |
4 | ![]() | Churchill | ★★★★★ | 82% |
5= | ![]() | Hastings Direct | ★★★★★ | 81% |
5= | ![]() | Swinton | ★★★★★ | 81% |
5= | ![]() | LV= | ★★★★★ | 81% |
6 | ![]() | Sheilas’ Wheels | ★★★★★ | 80% |
7= | ![]() | Age Co | ★★★★★ | 79% |
7= | ![]() | Ageas | ★★★★★ | 79% |
8 | ![]() | Tesco | ★★★★★ | 78% |
9 | ![]() | Diamond | ★★★★★ | 76% |
10= | ![]() | NFU Mutual | ★★★★★ | 73% |
10= | ![]() | Saga | ★★★★★ | 73% |
10= | ![]() | AXA | ★★★★★ | 73% |
10= | ![]() | More Than | ★★★★★ | 73% |
11 | ![]() | Endsleigh | ★★★★★ | 69% |
The algorithms that insurers use to calculate their premiums are a dark art and are all different, so it will always pay to get a range of quotes from different providers each year. Then consider the extra benefits a policy might offer you, and check our ratings to see what customers think of any brand you haven’t tried but are considering.
In December 2022, we ran a customer satisfaction survey on insurance providers. We had 1,654 responses about car insurance providers.
The survey asked respondents how satisfied they were with their current insurance company (on a scale from one to five, and also whether they would recommend the brand to a friend or not). We turned the results into star ratings and shortlisted the top-performing brands for our awards. If there was a draw, we used the recommendation score (that is, the percentage of customers who said they would recommend the brand to a friend) as a tie-breaker.
Full details of our star ratings for this sector are on the insurance ratings methodology page.
★★★★★ — Excellent
★★★★★ — Good
★★★★★ — Average
★★★★★ — Subpar
★★★★★ — Poor
The customer satisfaction score is based on a survey of 1,654 customers carried out in December 2022.
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