Bought a new car but not sold your old one: insurance options
When you move your insurance to a new car, the old one becomes uninsured the moment you switch. The traditional fix is often a Temporary Additional Vehicle added to your existing policy, which keeps the old car covered while you sell it, without affecting the no claims bonus that moves with you to the new car, but you do have options... such as temporary car insurance.
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Temporary Additional Vehicle
Option one is to ring your existing insurer and say you are buying a new car, need to move your policy across, and want to keep the old car covered while you sell it. Ask specifically whether they can add it as a Temporary Additional Vehicle, often shortened to TAV.
It typically keeps the old car insured for around 30 days while your main policy moves to the new car. Terms vary between insurers, so this is always worth asking about rather than assuming.
One thing to be clear on: the moment you switch your main policy to the new car, the old car is uninsured unless you actively arrange cover for it. Driving it, or letting a buyer drive it, before sorting that out exposes you to a driving-without-insurance offence.
How your no claims bonus works when you switch cars
The biggest worry for most people is not the cost, it is the no claims bonus. The reassurance is simple: your no claims bonus is attached to your main policy, so it travels with you to the new car. Switching cars does not reset it.
If you cancel your existing policy and without completing the full year, then you wouldn't earn another year's NCB but you wouldn't lose any of your existing. You may still earn the full year if you simply switch your car, over but you will usually pay a MTA fee, which stands for Mid Term Adjustment.
You may also find that your new car carries a different rating with your existing insurer, so they could charge more or less then your existing premium. In some cases, if your insurer doesn't cover your new car, you could be forced to cancel it and seek a new policy from a different provider.
Our guide to the no claims discount explains how the bonus builds and what does and does not affect it.
What if your insurer will not add a TAV?
Not every insurer offers a Temporary Additional Vehicle, and the ones that do may cap how long it lasts. If yours says no, you still have clean options.
The most flexible is standalone temporary car insurance on the old car or the new car.
You could get temporary insurance on the new car until you get round to amending your existing policy or amend your annual policy and short term insure your old car whilst you still own it.
You cover it for exactly the days you need, by the day or week, and a claim stays entirely separate from your main policy. The other option, if you are not ready to show the car to buyers yet, is to take it off the road with a SORN.
The SORN option: take it off the road until you are ready to sell
If the old car is sitting on your driveway and you are not actively showing it to buyers, you do not have to keep it insured at all. You can declare it off the road with a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN), which removes the requirement to insure and tax it.
The condition is that a SORN car must be kept off the public road, on a driveway, in a garage or on private land. You cannot park it on the street. When a serious buyer wants a viewing, you arrange a short-term policy just for that day. Our guide to what SORN means explains how to declare one and the rules that apply.
Insuring the old car for test drives
A Temporary Additional Vehicle, or your own short-term cover, usually insures you, the owner, to drive the car. It does not necessarily cover a buyer who wants to take it for a test drive.
The cleanest and safest approach is to ask the buyer to take out their own short term policy in their name before they drive, and to show you the documents first. That way any claim from the test drive goes through their cover, not yours. Letting an uninsured buyer drive your car is a risk to them and to you, so it is worth getting this right rather than assuming a buyer is covered.
What if the car takes months to sell?
A Temporary Additional Vehicle is usually capped, so check with your insurer what their cap is. If the car has not sold by the time it runs out, you reach a decision point rather than a dead end.
At that stage your choices are to keep covering the old car with rolling short-term insurance for as long as the sale takes, to SORN it between viewings if it is off the road, or, if you expect to keep it much longer, to put it on its own annual policy.
Why you shouldn't use the cooling off period
A trick that circulates online is to take out an annual policy on the old car and cancel it within the 14-day cooling-off period. It sounds like free short-term cover. It is not.
Insurers can charge a pro-rata amount for the days you were covered, as you were using their insurance during this time they would have to pay for any claims. There could also be an administration fee, so a fortnight this way could actually cost more than a purpose-built short-term policy. It is not what the cooling off period is intended for and you have better options, such as short term car insurance. For keeping an old car covered while you sell it, dedicated temporary insurance is a cleaner and safer way. When the car does sell, our guide to selling your car covers the paperwork side.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need insurance on my old car while I try to sell it?
If it is kept on a public road or driveway and you may drive it or show it to buyers, yes. The exception is declaring it off the road with a SORN, kept on private land, and arranging short-term cover only when a buyer comes to view it.
Will I lose my no claims bonus if I move my insurance to my new car?
No. Your no claims bonus is attached to your main policy and moves with it to the new car. Any cover you arrange for the old car is separate and does not affect the bonus you have built up.
What is a Temporary Additional Vehicle?
It is an add-on some insurers offer that keeps a second car insured on your existing policy for a short period, often around 30 days, while you move your main cover to a new car. Terms vary, so call your insurer to ask whether they offer it.
What happens if a buyer crashes my car during a test drive?
If your cover only insures you as the owner, a buyer driving the car may not be covered at all. The safest approach is to ask the buyer to take out their own day policy before driving, so any claim goes through their insurance rather than yours.
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