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Short-term van insurance

Find the right short-term van insurance with our partners[1]

  • Dayinsure, which is backed by Aviva, offers short-term van insurance for vans up to 3.5 tonnes for drivers aged 19-75. Standard policies cover driving UK-registered vans on UK roads, with options available for driving in Europe.

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  • Tempcover compares short term van insurance from multiple insurers. Cover for 21-to-75-year-olds, with policies available from between one and 28 days. There are business and leisure options available, subject to a 7.5 tonne weight limit.

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What’s temporary van insurance?

Temporary, or short-term, van insurance covers you to drive a vehicle for just a few days, weeks or months.

Standard van insurance is annual and runs for 365 days, which is much more cover than you need if you’re just borrowing a van for the day.

Temporary van insurance can run for a set time that you choose when you buy the policy. It could be as little as a single day, up to a few months.

If you only need to drive a van occasionally, it might work out cheaper than taking out a comprehensive van insurance policy for the whole year.

short term van insurance

When would I need short-term van insurance?

There’s only so much you can fit into a regular car. If you know someone with a van you can borrow it can work out a lot cheaper to just insure it for a short while rather than to hire one:

  1. If you’re moving house

    Save on the cost of removal companies, just make sure your things are insured during transit

  2. Transporting large items

    Useful if you’ve bought or sold furniture on Facebook Marketplace, Gumtree or eBay

  3. You need a van for work

    If you’re self-employed you might need to take stock to an event, or to move customer goods

  4. Renting a van for a day trip

    Most rental companies will include insurance in the rental, but short-term van insurance will cover you if not

  5. Buying a new van

    If you haven’t yet sorted out an annual policy, one-day van insurance will let you test drive a prospective purchase and drive it home if you do go ahead and buy it

What’s covered with short-term van insurance?

Short-term van insurance policies usually include all the things standard van insurance covers, like:

  • Loss or damage to your van caused by an accident, fire, theft, or vandalism
  • Third party claims where someone makes a claim against you
  • Your personal belongings (what’s covered depends on your insurer)
  • Some policies include driving in the EU

What’s not covered with short-term van insurance?

Depending on your policy, you might not be covered for: 

  • Additional drivers
  • Driving other vehicles
  • Releasing the van from an impound (unless you get temporary impounded vehicle cover)
  • The loss or damage of a vehicle or trailer that’s being towed by the insured van
  • Any goods carried in or on the vehicle

You’ll usually also have to pay an excess if you need to make a claim – this is an amount of money you agreed to pay when you took out the policy. 

Who can use temporary van insurance? 

Anyone could find short-term van insurance useful, including small businesses that might not need a van all the time, but a temporary policy could be more cost effective for one-off use. 

Or if you’re a sole trader you might only need a van for a short period of time, say if you were attending a pop-up event and needed to transport your goods or equipment there

Generally, most people might find temporary van insurance handy when moving home, or if they’re off to university.

Pros and cons of temporary van insurance

Short-term van cover isn’t the best option for everyone. It might work out cheaper to be insured on someone else’s annual van insurance policy as a named driver instead, or even to take out your own.

Advantages

  • It’s usually quicker to arrange than being added to the main driver’s policy
  • You only pay for the time you need
  • Most policies give you comprehensive cover in the UK and third-party cover in the EU as standard, with the option to upgrade to comprehensive cover in the EU
  • You won’t have the cancellation fees that are sometimes applied when you cancel an annual policy early

Disadvantages

  • It could be more expensive than being added to the main driver’s policy as a second driver
  • The cost per day of short-term cover is proportionately more expensive than for an annual policy
  • So if you need use of a van a few times over the course of a year, short-term cover isn’t as convenient as an annual policy

How long does short-term van insurance last?

You can choose policies lasting however long you need, but there’s usually a minimum of one day and a maximum of a month

Policy extras on short-term van insurance

Check policy details before you buy to find out exactly what’s included in your cover.

Some policies might include things like cover for your personal belongings or legal cover as standard, or you might have to pay extra for them.

These elements of cover are generally charged as optional extras, so don’t add them if you don’t really need them:

Breakdown cover

Some policies will bundle temporary breakdown cover with your insurance.

Just make sure this is good value if you’re paying extra for it and that you’re not already covered by the vehicle owner’s breakdown cover.

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Courtesy van

If you’re unlucky enough to end up with your borrowed van spending time in the garage for repairs, courtesy van cover will make sure you still have a vehicle to use while your temporary van insurance is active.

Your replacement vehicle should be fit for what you need it for but might not be a direct equivalent to the van you were covered to use.

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Driving abroad

Even short-term van insurance usually gives you the minimum legal level of cover for driving in Europe, which is third-party only.

You might be able to pay extra to upgrade your insurance abroad to comprehensive if you’re planning a trip overseas in your borrowed van to import or export goods.

Find out more

Frequently asked questions

  • You should be able to find an insurer to cover almost any kind of of van or commercial vehicle , including:

    • Panel van
    • Tipper trucks
    • Pickup – single cab or double cab
    • Refrigerated/insulated vehicles
    • Motorhomes and campervans
    • Box van
    • Horsebox
    • Luton van

    When you get quotes, make sure you choose the correct body type to match the van you’re trying to insure. Not getting it right could cost you more and could also invalidate your cover.

  • No, because each vehicle comes with different risks, you’ll have to buy separate policies for your van and car. With short-term cover you’ll also need separate policies for each if you need to insure more than one van.

  • You can get a policy to drive a van for as little as an hour up to one month at a time.

    But there are no restrictions on the number of policies you can buy, so if you need van insurance for six months you can buy six one-month policies. If you think your situation might change it’s probably best to get each month’s policy one at a time.

    This might not be the most cost-effective way to insure your van though, so get some quotes for annual van insurance policies as well to see if that’s more cost-effective for you.

Van insurance guides and tools

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[1]We do not offer a full comparison service on short term van insurance at Gocompare.com but instead have provided links to some companies that offer short term van insurance. These companies are not listed in an order that indicates that one is better than another but are instead ordered in line with our commercial arrangement with each one. Please remember, as different companies offer different policies, it is up to you to choose the one that best suits your needs.


Gocompare.com introduces you to Dayinsure.com Ltd and tempsure.com to provide short term van insurance quotes. All providers are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Gocompare.com's relationship with Dayinsure.com Ltd is limited to that of a business partnership, no common ownership or control rights exist between us.