Temporary car insurance for young drivers
Instant, comprehensive car insurance for young drivers.
Get a price in under 60 seconds!
Do everything even faster in our app.
Why choose
Covertime?
- Do everything online
- Comprehensive cover
- Protect existing No Claims Discount
- Get on the road in minutes
- Insure only for the time you need
- Docs available right after purchase
- Cover from one hour to 28 days
- Quick and flexible
What types of cars can you insure short-term?
We cover a huge variety of cars on temporary insurance. Just enter the registration and a few details about you, and we'll look up the rest.
Hatchback
The UK's most popular family car shape: nimble, fuel-efficient and easy to park. Perfect for everyday driving and short-term cover.
Examples: Ford Fiesta, Volkswagen Polo, Vauxhall Corsa, Ford Focus, Volkswagen Golf, MINI Cooper
Saloon
Classic three-box silhouette with a separate boot. A great choice for longer drives, business use or when you need extra cargo space.
Examples: BMW 3 Series, Audi A4, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Volkswagen Passat, Vauxhall Insignia, Skoda Superb
Estate
Saloon footprint with the extended rear of an SUV, with huge boot space and none of the extra height. Brilliant for family trips, dog walks and weekend escapes.
Examples: Volvo V60, BMW 3 Series Touring, Skoda Octavia Estate, Audi A4 Avant, Volkswagen Passat Estate
Our temporary car insurance for young drivers is comprehensive
What is covered?
- Damage to the car you're driving
- Theft or attempted theft
- Fire damage
- Third party: damage to other vehicles / property / injury to others
What isn't covered?
- More than one driver on a temporary policy
- Delivery, courier or taxi work
- Theft or damage due to neglect; such as leaving the car unlocked
- Wear and tear
How to get temporary car insurance for young drivers
Getting temporary car insurance for young drivers couldn't be easier. With our simple online quote, you'll be insured in just a few simple steps.
- 1
Pop in the car's registration and a few details about yourself
- 2
Choose how long you need cover for, then check our quote
- 3
Choose how to pay, get your docs immediately, and you're off
Who is
temporary car cover suitable for?
Pay securely and easily
Benefits of temporary car cover
Cover from 1 hour to 28 days
Pick the exact window you need, whether it's a quick airport drop, a weekend away or a 4-week project.
Doesn't affect anyone's NCD
Cover is in your own name, so claims won't touch the car owner's No Claims Discount.
Comprehensive cover as standard
Fully comprehensive protection. No third-party-only compromises.
Quote in under 60 seconds
Pop in the reg, a few details and your dates, and you'll be on the road in minutes.
Do everything from your phone easily & quickly
Can young drivers get temporary car insurance?
Can young drivers get temporary car insurance?
Yes, young drivers can get temporary car insurance. It’s designed to give short-term cover when you need it, without locking you into a long-term policy.
Availability depends on a few key factors, including your age, the type of licence you hold, and your driving history. As with any insurance, eligibility and pricing are based on risk, so not every young driver will qualify. However, many do, especially if they have a full UK licence and a clean or limited driving record.
Temporary car insurance is built for short-term needs, such as borrowing a car, sharing driving on a trip, or covering a specific situation for a few days or weeks. It’s not intended as a replacement for annual cover, but as a flexible option when full-time insurance isn’t required.
For many young drivers, it’s also a practical alternative to being added to someone else’s annual policy. Instead of affecting another driver’s no claims discount or dealing with admin changes, you can take out your own standalone cover, just for the time you need it.
For students using a parent's car during university holidays, temporary student car insurance is designed specifically for that situation.
When might young drivers need temporary car insurance?
Temporary car insurance can be for young drivers in everyday situations where long-term cover isn’t needed. You might need it when borrowing a parent’s or family member’s car for a few days, whether that’s to run errands, practise driving independently, or share the driving on a trip. It’s also a common choice when driving home a newly bought car, giving you legal cover straight away while you arrange an annual policy.
Some young drivers use temporary car insurance for short-term access to a car for work or studying, such as a temporary job, placement, or short commute that only lasts for a short period. It can also be helpful if you’re between cars, providing flexible cover when you need occasional access to a vehicle without committing to a full policy.
For regular short-term use, daily car insurance lets a young driver pay only for the days they actually drive.
For a single occasion - borrowing a car for one specific day - one day car insurance covers that precise 24-hour window in the young driver's own name.
How to get temporary car insurance as a young driver
Getting temporary car insurance as a young driver online only takes a few minutes. We don’t waste your time with long, complicated forms. We only ask for the information we truly need to check eligibility and get you covered, while our technology takes care of the rest behind the scenes.
Need cover straight away? No problem. Just choose to start your temporary cover immediately and you can usually be set up and on the road within minutes.
If you’re planning ahead, you can also arrange cover in advance by selecting the exact date and time you’d like your policy to start, up to 30 days in the future.
The full range of durations and use cases is explained on our temporary car insurance page.
How does temporary car insurance affect a young driver's no-claims bonus?
This is one of the most common questions young drivers ask, and the answer is straightforward: a temporary car insurance policy is entirely separate from any annual policy, including a parent's or guardian's.
It does not affect an existing no-claims discount
If a parent adds a young driver to their annual policy as a named driver and there is a claim, the primary policyholder's no-claims bonus is at risk. With a temporary policy in the young driver's own name, that risk does not exist. A claim on the temporary policy has no effect on anyone else's cover or discount.
It does not build no-claims discount for the young driver
Temporary policies are not annual contracts, so they do not accumulate no-claims years. If a young driver eventually takes out their own annual policy, they will start from zero NCD regardless of how many temporary policies they have held. This is worth knowing upfront.
It can protect a parent's NCD during transition periods
When a young driver is using a family car temporarily — returning home from university, covering a gap before their own car arrives — taking out their own short-term policy is often the better choice precisely because it does not touch the parent's annual cover. The parent retains their full no-claims discount regardless of how the car is used.
The cover itself is comprehensive
Temporary cover for young drivers includes damage to the car, third party liability, fire, and theft. There is no downgrade in protection relative to a standard annual policy. For students using a parent's car specifically during term breaks, temporary student car insurance is designed for that situation and is worth comparing.
Young driver temporary car insurance FAQs
Can a young driver insure a borrowed car?
Yes. A young driver can take out temporary car insurance on a borrowed car, provided they have the owner’s permission and meet the eligibility requirements. This makes temporary cover a convenient option when borrowing a parent’s, family member’s, or friend’s car for a short period.
Does temporary car insurance affect a No Claims Discount?
No, temporary car insurance usually doesn’t affect a No Claims Discount. Because it’s a standalone policy, any claim is handled separately and won’t impact the car owner’s existing no-claims bonus, subject to the policy terms and conditions.
I already have an annual policy on my own car, do I really need to get insurance to drive a different car?
If you’re borrowing someone else’s car, it is a legal requirement to make sure you are correctly insured.
Even if their car is insured already, that doesn’t mean that you are personally insured to drive it, and the same principle applies if you already have a car insurance policy in place – you shouldn’t assume you’re covered to drive someone else’s car.
Make sure you know what's covered on your annual policy by reviewing your policy documents. Whilst some comprehensive annual policies can provide DOC (Drive Other Cars) cover, this is not always the norm and does often come with a few caveats.
Temporary or short-term car insurance can be a simple and often cost-effective way to get insured to drive someone else’s car for a week.
If you're looking to borrow the car for a short period of time or just a one-off, temporary car insurance is comprehensive, and it won’t affect your no claims bonus which is certainly a bonus in itself!