Is short-term or annual cover better value?<\/h3><\/div>![\"Danny](\"https:\/\/www.finder.com\/finder-us\/wp-uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/07\/Danny-Butler.jpg\")
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Finder insurance expert Danny Butler<\/a> answers <\/em><\/div><\/div>The answer to this depends on your circumstances and isn\u2019t quite as simple as annual vs short term.<\/p>
If you drive a car (whether your own or someone else\u2019s) fairly regularly and want the reassurance of having a breakdown service on hand if the car conks out whenever you\u2019re using it, it\u2019s almost certainly cheaper to take out an annual breakdown policy for it. That\u2019s because, per day, short-term breakdown cover is much more expensive than annual cover. You may even find that it\u2019s cheaper to buy an annual policy than one that only covers you for a month.<\/p>
If, on the other hand, you rarely drive \u2013 perhaps borrowing or hiring a car for a couple of days once or twice a year \u2013 then temporary breakdown cover could work out cheaper overall. That might apply particularly if you bolt it on to temporary car insurance<\/a>. This principle might also apply if you feel you don\u2019t usually need breakdown cover (perhaps because you mostly use your car for pottering about locally) but occasionally go on longer trips.<\/p>There\u2019s also a third option, whereby you regularly drive your own car, but also drive borrowed or rental cars every now and then. In this case, one option is to take out annual vehicle breakdown cover<\/a> on your own car and pay for short-term breakdown cover on the other vehicles as needed. But it\u2019s probably also worth exploring the option of annual personal breakdown cover<\/a>, which protects you whatever car you drive. It\u2019s typically more expensive than a single-vehicle breakdown policy, but could well work out cheaper overall than a vehicle breakdown policy plus multiple temporary policies.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article>Pros and cons of short-term breakdown cover<\/h3>\n \n Pros<\/h4>\n \n - Could work out cheaper than annual cover if you rarely drive<\/li>\n
- Bolting cover on to temporary car insurance could save money<\/li>\n
- Offers peace of mind if you're driving an unfamiliar (and potentially unreliable) car<\/li>\n <\/ul>\n <\/div>\n \n \n
Cons<\/h4>\n \n - If you have personal breakdown cover, you may already be covered to drive other cars temporarily<\/li>\n
- You may not need it if you have breakdown cover with your bank account<\/li>\n
- More expensive per day than annual breakdown cover<\/li>\n <\/ul>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
Bottom line<\/h3>
Breakdown cover can provide peace of mind that there\u2019s a service you can call out for \u201cfree\u201d if the car you\u2019re driving grinds to a halt. And in some cases, short-term car insurance is a good option \u2013 for example if you\u2019re borrowing a friend\u2019s car for a couple of days. But before you buy, check if you\u2019re already covered through your bank account or an annual policy on your own car. Even if you\u2019re not, bear in mind that short-term breakdown cover is much more expensive per day than annual cover. If you\u2019re likely to drive that friend\u2019s car several times over the course of a year, it could work out cheaper to take out an annual policy.<\/p>
Frequently asked questions<\/h3>- \n \n
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<\/p>
The answer to this depends on your circumstances and isn\u2019t quite as simple as annual vs short term.<\/p>
If you drive a car (whether your own or someone else\u2019s) fairly regularly and want the reassurance of having a breakdown service on hand if the car conks out whenever you\u2019re using it, it\u2019s almost certainly cheaper to take out an annual breakdown policy for it. That\u2019s because, per day, short-term breakdown cover is much more expensive than annual cover. You may even find that it\u2019s cheaper to buy an annual policy than one that only covers you for a month.<\/p>
If, on the other hand, you rarely drive \u2013 perhaps borrowing or hiring a car for a couple of days once or twice a year \u2013 then temporary breakdown cover could work out cheaper overall. That might apply particularly if you bolt it on to temporary car insurance<\/a>. This principle might also apply if you feel you don\u2019t usually need breakdown cover (perhaps because you mostly use your car for pottering about locally) but occasionally go on longer trips.<\/p> There\u2019s also a third option, whereby you regularly drive your own car, but also drive borrowed or rental cars every now and then. In this case, one option is to take out annual vehicle breakdown cover<\/a> on your own car and pay for short-term breakdown cover on the other vehicles as needed. But it\u2019s probably also worth exploring the option of annual personal breakdown cover<\/a>, which protects you whatever car you drive. It\u2019s typically more expensive than a single-vehicle breakdown policy, but could well work out cheaper overall than a vehicle breakdown policy plus multiple temporary policies.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/article> Breakdown cover can provide peace of mind that there\u2019s a service you can call out for \u201cfree\u201d if the car you\u2019re driving grinds to a halt. And in some cases, short-term car insurance is a good option \u2013 for example if you\u2019re borrowing a friend\u2019s car for a couple of days. But before you buy, check if you\u2019re already covered through your bank account or an annual policy on your own car. Even if you\u2019re not, bear in mind that short-term breakdown cover is much more expensive per day than annual cover. If you\u2019re likely to drive that friend\u2019s car several times over the course of a year, it could work out cheaper to take out an annual policy.<\/p>Pros and cons of short-term breakdown cover<\/h3>
Pros<\/h4>\n
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Cons<\/h4>\n
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Bottom line<\/h3>
Frequently asked questions<\/h3>
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