Post Office car insurance review

The Post Office isn’t just for letters, packages and parcels – it offers a range of different services, including car insurance. 

One of the main ways the Post Office sets itself apart as an insurer is by offering different policies for drivers under and over 50 years old. 

Our Post Office car insurance review takes a look at what these different levels of cover include, how you can make a claim, and how it compares to other providers. 

What car insurance cover is offered by the Post Office? 

The Post Office splits its car insurance policies by age, offering one for under-50s and one for over-50s. Both policies can be bought as third party; third party, fire and theft; or comprehensive cover.

Under-50s car insurance

If you purchase the Post Office’s under-50s car insurance as third-party cover, it will include:

• Injuries to other people: you’ll be covered for the cost of any injuries you cause to a third party, including death
• Damage to third-party property: you’ll be covered for the cost of any damage you cause to a third party’s car or their property, up to £20 million
• Driving abroad: you’ll be able to drive in the EU for up to 60 days a year

If you take out under-50s cover as third party, fire and theft insurance, it’ll include everything above, as well as:

• Fire damage: you can claim if your car is damaged in a fire
• Theft: you can claim if your car is stolen or damaged in an attempted theft
• Towing cover: your car will be covered while you’re towing a trailer, caravan or broken-down vehicle
• Manufacturer-fitted audio and navigation equipment: you can claim an unlimited amount for any audio, navigation or entertainment equipment permanently fitted by the manufacturer
• Aftermarket audio and navigation equipment: you can claim up to £500 for any audio, navigation or entertainment equipment not fitted by the manufacturer
• New car benefit: if your vehicle is less than 12 months old and is stolen and not recovered or if it’s damaged to the extent it’d cost more than 60 per cent of its market value to repair it, you can receive a like-for-like replacement
• Three-year repairs guarantee: any repairs carried out at an approved repair facility will be guaranteed for three years

Finally, if you purchase under-50s comprehensive car insurance, your policy will include all of the above, plus:

• Accidental damage to your own vehicle: you’ll be able to claim for the damage to your car if you get into an accident
• Glass cover: you’ll be able to claim for the windscreens, side windows, rear windows and sunroof without impacting your no-claims bonus. You’ll just have to pay an excess (less than the excess you’d pay for a different type of claim)
• Courtesy car: you can receive a courtesy car (subject to availability) if your car needs to be repaired following an accident and you take it to an approved garage
• Medical expenses: you can claim up to £200 per injured person following an accident
• Personal belongings: you can claim up to £100 for any personal belongings 

Over-50s car insurance

The Post Office’s over-50s car insurance includes everything found in an under-50s policy. If you take out an over-50s comprehensive policy, your cover will also include:

• Personal belongings cover: this benefit increases to £500 for over-50s
• Child car seat cover: you can claim up to £150 per child seat following an accident
• Glass cover: you won’t need to pay an excess when making a windscreen cover claim
• Onward travel: you can claim up to £100 per person (to a limit of £400) for alternative transport or overnight accommodation if your car isn’t roadworthy following an accident
• Uninsured driver promise: if you’re in an accident with an uninsured driver, your excess will be refunded. If it’s a non-fault accident, your no-claims bonus won’t be affected either
• Vandalism promise: your no-claims discount won’t be affected if you claim damage caused by vandalism (you’ll normally need to have reported the incident to the police)

Post Office car insurance policies at a glance

	Under-50s comprehensive car insurance	Over-50s car comprehensive insurance
Age range	17 to 49	50+
Level of cover	Comprehensive (also available as third party or third party, fire and theft)	Comprehensive (also available as third party or third party, fire and theft)
Injuries to other people	Yes	Yes
Damage to other people’s property	Yes	Yes
Theft	Yes	Yes
Fire damage	Yes	Yes
Repairs to your own car following an accident	Yes	Yes
Motor legal protection	Optional	Optional
Your medical expenses	Up to £200 per injured person	Up to £200 per injured person
Driving other cars	Yes (if eligible)	Yes (if eligible)
Breakdown cover	No	No
Courtesy car cover	Yes	Yes
Hire car cover	Optional	Optional
Windscreen replacement	Yes	Yes
Personal belongings	Up to £100	Up to £500
Replacement locks and keys	Optional	Optional
Protected no-claims bonus	No	No
Cancellation fee	Yes	Yes

Post Office car insurance optional extras 

Whether you get under-50s or over-50s Post Office car insurance, you can add the following optional extras for an additional cost:

• Motor legal protection: you’ll be covered for legal costs and uninsured losses up to £100,000 with Post Office motor legal protection
• Keycare cover: you can purchase lost key cover worth up to £1,000, with a 24-hour emergency helpline and car hire costing £40 a day for up to three days
• Guaranteed replacement car cover: you can receive a guaranteed replacement car if your vehicle is stolen or can’t be driven

How to claim with Post Office car insurance

If you need to make a claim on your Post Office car insurance, you should:

1. Make sure everyone is safe and secure: the first thing to do following an accident is make sure that everyone in your car and any other parties involved are okay
2. Exchange details: you’ll need to swap details with the other parties involved, including registration numbers, names, addresses and insurance policy numbers
3. Gather evidence: it’s a good idea to take photos and videos of any damage, make a note of the time, location and weather conditions, and see if there are any witnesses to the accident
4. Contact the Post Office: you should then contact the Post Office as soon as possible, even if you don’t intend to make a claim. You can call 0345 073 1005, which is available 24/7
5. Wait for the next steps: the Post Office will then inform you of the next steps. For example, you may be instructed to go to an approved repairer

How to cancel Post Office car insurance

If you want to cancel your Post Office car insurance, call 0345 073 1002. You may have to pay a fee, regardless of whether you cancel before or after the 14-day cooling-off period.

How to contact Post Office car insurance 

If you need to contact the Post Office and it isn’t related to a claim, you can call 0345 073 1002. The line is open from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday; 9am to 5pm on Saturdays; and 10am to 4pm on Sundays and bank holidays. 

Post Office car insurance customer reviews 

The Post Office has a “Bad” Trustpilot rating of 1.5 out of five, based on 480 reviews.

However, it’s important to note that these reviews aren’t just for Post Office car insurance but the brand overall, including everything from its money services to home insurance.

Of the few reviews that explicitly mention car insurance, most complain about the quality of the customer service, whether that’s to change policy details or when making a claim.

What Defaqto rating does Post Office car insurance have?

Alongside a “Bad” Trustpilot rating, Post Office has the following reviews from Defaqto:

• Under-50s car insurance: ★★★★
• Over-50s car insurance: ★★★★★

Meanwhile, from Fairer Finance, Post Office car insurance is rated:

• Under-50s car insurance: ★★
• Over-50s car insurance: ★★★

How does the Post Office compare to its competitors?

Provider name	Trustpilot score	Defaqto score
Post Office	1.5 stars	5 stars for over-50s, 4 stars for under-50s
Admiral Insurance	4.5 stars	5 stars (4 stars for Telematics, 3 stars for Essential)
Ageas	4.0 stars	5 stars (3 stars for Essentials)
Aviva	4.0 stars	5 stars (3 stars for third party, fire and theft)
Axa	4.3 stars	5 stars (3 stars for standard third party, fire and theft and comprehensive car insurance)
Direct Line	3.8 stars	5 stars (3 stars for third party, fire and theft and Essentials)
esure	3.6 stars	5 stars (4 stars for third party, fire and theft, 3 stars for Flex)
Hastings Direct	4.2 stars	5 stars (4 stars for third party, fire and theft, 3 stars for Telematics, 2 stars for Essential)
LV	4.4 stars	5 stars (3 stars for third party, fire and theft)
People’s Choice	1.4 stars	5 stars (4 stars for third party, fire and theft)

Conclusion

While its over-50s car insurance has a five-star rating from Defaqto, Post Office car insurance isn’t as complete as other policies available. This is captured in a two-star rating for the under-50s policy from Fairer Finance and just a three-star rating for the over-50s cover.

The lack of key cover as an automatic inclusion for both policies is notable, as is the apparent lack of personal accident cover. The Post Office also makes it quite difficult to find out about its cover without first getting a quote, with no policy documents available online. 

However, the over-50s policy does offer a healthy personal belongings benefit, alongside excess-free windscreen and glass cover.