Direct Line Car Insurance Review
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Our articles are written by experts in their fields (finance, trading, insurance etc.) whose signatures you will see at the beginning and at the end of each article. They are also systematically reviewed and corrected before each publication, and updated regularly.
Discover the methodologyThis is the ultimate review to guide you through Direct Line car insurance.
You might already know that Direct Line offers several car insurance policy options.
Some are great, others not so much.
So if you want to get:
- Better value for money for your car insurance
- Indicative quotes
- Tips to lower your insurance premium, then you might love the following article.
Let’s dive right in.
Is Direct Line the best car insurance provider?
Getting the best car insurance deal is not all about the price. Indeed, focusing on just getting the cheapest deal might be a bad calculation when it comes to getting a good payout if you ever have an accident.
We’ve studied in detail Direct Line car policy terms and conditions and given our own ratings based on different criteria.
3,9 Safe overall rating for Direct Line
| Our rating | Our opinion | |
|---|---|---|
| Customer service & satisfaction |
24/7 Customer Care availability | |
| Cover provided |
Unlimited cover for windscreen, windows and sunroof | |
| Value for money |
No admin fee charged for amendments to already existing policies during the year | |
| Financial strength for pay out | Average financial capability | |
| Technology |
100% online availability |
Expert and customer reviews on Direct Line
We compiled expert and customer reviews from independent institutions, to give you an overall idea of Direct Line's reputation.
| Review organisation | Consumer satisfaction rates for Direct Line |
|---|---|
| Defaqto expert rating for Direct Line |  |
| TrustPilot | 4,1/5 based on 2593 opinions |
To check if Direct Line is the right car insurance for you, you can use our free comparison tool and finally compare coverage features, optional extras, excess, admin fees and customer rating without having to give any personal information.
Our review on Direct Line car insurance policy
Direct Line is one of the leading car insurance provider in the UK. The company has been awarded top provider (4th) by Which.
Direct Line seems to be a very customer friendly and intuitive company. The Company was presented with the Financial Services Forum Awards in 2016 for Customer Loyalty and Retention. The comprehensive car policy is recommended. It covers up to £5000 as well as fair claim commitment, vandalism promise, medical expenses in the case of an accident, used car replacement, uninsured driver promise. To take advantage of the discount provided, the Black box and Online subscription options are recommended.
The downside of Direct Line is that they do not provide lost key cover as standard.
What does Direct Line car insurance policy cover?
Are TPO, TPFT and Comprehensive covers available at Direct Line?
| Car insurance policy | Available at Direct Line | Coverage in a nutshell |
|---|---|---|
| Third-Party Only |
| |
| Third-Party Fire and Theft |
| |
| Comprehensive |
|
Keep in mind that you can always add optional extras to your policy.
Main guarantees at Direct Line explained in details
Let's find out what does Direct Line covers in its car insurance policy.
Breakdown cover at Direct Line
- 24/7 Roadside assistance guaranteed all year round
- On the occasion that a car cannot be driven after an accident, up to £150 provided for accommodation for a single person (£250 for more than one person)
- If the approved repairers cannot fix the damaged car in seven days, a fee of £10 would be paid daily until the job is done.
Keycare cover at Direct Line
Will cover cost of repairs for:
- affected locks or parts of the alarm/immobiliser
- repair or replacement of the lock transmitter/central locking interface
- affected parts of the alarm and/or immobiliser, if it can be established to reasonable satisfaction that the identity or garaging address of your vehicle is known to any person in possession of your key.
Windscreen cover at Direct Line
- Windscreen, window or sunroof repair is included in comprehensive cover
- Not available for courtesy car.
Motor legal protection at Direct Line
£100,000 of legal cost is provided so long as there is a 50% chance that the claim will be successful.
Personal policy injury available at Direct Line
Coverage abroad at Direct Line
When you have Direct Line Car Insurance, a maximum of 90 days of Foreign Use is offered during each year of your coverage policy and this is only available for cars less than 16 years old. On the case of a breakdown, if the car cannot be fixed, up to £850 is provided for a hire car and £500 for hotel accommodation (maximum of £45pp per day). The list of EU countries covered by this abroad coverage is not listed.
Courtesy car at Direct Line
A replacement car will be provided for 21 days if the vehicle has to be fixed, has been written off or has been stolen.
No-Claim Bonus (NCB) at Direct Line
A driver is only eligible to apply for a No Claims Discount Protection when he/she has a minimum of 4 years no claim discount with no more than one fault claim for close to three years.
If the damage has been caused by any of the following, the NCD would not be affected:
- Potholes or bad road maintenance
- Theft
- Accident while the car is parked
- Damage as a result of flood.
A claim would affect your No Claim Discount when more than one claim is made during the current period and also when more than two claims are presented within the span of three years.
At Direct Line, you can apply for the NCB protection. The NCB protection allows you to make a certain number of claims within a period without losing your No-Claim bonus.
NCB protection claims (number per year): 2 claims in 3 years.
Good to know
A No-Claim bonus is a reward that you get from driving during a long time (at least one year) without making any claim. The more years you drive without claims, the higher your NCB rate gets hence the higher the discount on your insurance premium.
Direct Line car insurance terms and conditions
How much does Direct Line car insurance cost?
You'll find below indicative car insurance quotes at Direct Line:
| Drivers'age | Monthly premium |
|---|---|
| 18 years old | £103,70 |
| 40 years old | £42,76 |
| 60 years old | £31,53 |
Costs of Direct Line insurance car policies vary widely based on different factors such as:
- The driver’s age
- The date on which they received their driving licence
- The type of car
- Expected repair costs if the car is damaged
- The performance, safety and security of the car
- The driver’s address and how busy the streets in the neighbourhood are
- Who drives the car (any additional driver on the policy)
- The driver's record of accidents and claims (number of injuries, No Claim Bonus etc.)
- Insurance taxes.
Good to know
The higher risk you represent, the more expensive your policy will be.
Is there any promo codes or discounts available at Direct Line?
Direct Line provides a multi car discount which is meant for people with more than one car in their house or family. The discount covers claims.
Discount is also given to first time drivers who have gotten their licences. Apart from this, a considerable amount of discount is given to "Safe drivers" i.e. Drivers who have a high driving safety score the safety score can be obtained from the data generated from the black box installed in the driver car.
| Discount types | Comment |
|---|---|
| Discounts | Discounts are given at the first year of policy and also when new service products are added to the existing ones. Amount is not stated. |
If you want to get a cheaper car insurance policy, another good way to do so is to never auto renew and always compare car insurance quotes.
Save more on your car insurance checking out our 13 tops tips to cut your insurance premiums!
Direct Line car insurance policy summarized
Guarantees
| At Direct Line | |
|---|---|
| NCB benefit | Yes |
| Uninsured driver NCB benefit | Yes |
| Loss or theft of keys | Market value / insurer's discretion |
| Personal belongings | £250 |
| Audio equipment | No |
| Medical expenses | £100 |
| Liability limit for property damage | £20,000,000 |
| Legal expense | £100,000 |
| Courtesy car benefit | As standard |
| Courtesy car cover | Duration of repairs or up to 21 days if total loss |
| Coverage abroad | 90 days |
Excess
| At Direct Line | |
|---|---|
| Fire excess | £150 |
| Theft excess | £150 |
| Accidental damage excess | £0 |
| Windscreen replacement excess | £10 |
| Young driver excess | £400 |
Admin fees
| At Direct Line | |
|---|---|
| Interest charged by payment installments | Variable |
| Renewal fees | £0 |
| Cancellation fees | Cancellation fees during cooling off period: £0 |
| Modification fees | Adjustment fee: £0 |
Other car insurance policies available at Direct Line
Direct Line multi-car insurance
The Multi cover insurance from Direct Line offers flexibility and saves cost.
When more than one car is insured at the same address, money can be saved by adding extra policies to the already existing ones as opposed to taking out new ones. The cars are under one policy and there are discounts associated with this.
There is an introductory discount attached to every additional car that is registered under an insurance policy with Direct Line with the maximum of 10 cars per address or household.
Direct Line black-box insurance
Direct Line offers a black box policy.
A small plug in is attached to the driver car and it monitors driving speed and performance. At the end of a specified period, these results are analysed. If the driver falls on the safe side i.e. if the driving is safe, he/she would be eligible for a discount at the time of policy renewal. The higher the score, the lesser the amount to be paid and invariably, the higher the discount rate. Once the driver has passed the safety driving test, an upfront discount would be given at Direct Line.
Direct Line short term cover
Customers at Direct Line can add, up to 90 days, temporary vehicles to their policy. However, there is no temporary car insurance offer existing as a full policy.
Direct Line business car insurance
The business car insurance that Direct Line provides allows you to drive wherever your work takes you. When you buy car insurance on Direct Line’s website, business use is automatically included in your policy. This means you and your spouse/partner are covered for work purposes if you live at the same address, unless either of you are:
- Retired
- A housewife/househusband
- A student
- Unemployed
- Working in the motor trade
- A chauffeur working on a hire and reward basis
- A courier/driver working on a hire and reward basis and/or delivering goods that they or their employer do not own.
In these cases, the vehicle may only be used for Social, Domestic and Pleasure (SDP) purposes.
If you have business use, your documents will state Class 1 Business Use. But if you require additional drivers to have business use on your policy, you might need Class 2 Business Use.
On the business car policy, you can include another colleague as a driver if they use the same car when visiting clients. This policy is good for travelling salesmen.
Direct Line van insurance
In the event of a van written off in an accident, Direct Line for Business Van Insurance can either help find a replacement similar to the damaged van, or give the owner the money for the van in cash or even buy a better version of the van. In this case the customer would have to pay the difference in price.
All of this is in subject to availability and the van insurance excludes theft claims.The minimum amount in terms of purchase price that can be considered for a van is about £3500.
How to contact Direct Line auto insurance?
Direct Line phone numbers
You will find all important phone numbers to contact Direct Line car insurance:
| Contact number | Opening hours | |
|---|---|---|
Customer Service | 0345 246 8701 | 8am-9pm Monday to Friday |
Claims | Motor Claim Team: 0345 835 8471 | For new claims: |
Make general enquiry | 0345 246 3761 | 8am-9pm Monday to Friday |
24-hour accident recovery hotline | 0800 269 015 | 24 hours a day, 365 days a year |
Complete quote online | 0345 835 3500 | 8am-9pm Monday to Friday |
Direct Line other contact details
You'll find below Direct Line main contact details:
| Contact details of Direct Line | |
|---|---|
| Email address | no |
| Customer account with Direct Line login | |
| Social media | Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube. |
| Chatbot | Available. 8am-11pm Monday to Friday 9am-9pm on Saturday and 10am-9pm Sunday |
You can also contact them by mail by writing to Direct Line car insurance:
The Headrow,
Leeds
LS1 8HZ,
United Kingdom.
How to claim at Direct Line?
You can report a claim at Direct Line either using the claim online form or by calling the claim management team.
| Service | Car claim |
|---|---|
| Claim online | |
| Claim by phone | Motor Claim Team: 0345 835 8471 |
How to cancel your car insurance at Direct Line?
You can always cancel your car insurance policy at any time. However, some fees may apply especially if you cancel it after the 14 cooling-off period after your contract's anniversary date.
Since car insurance is a legal requirement, Direct Line as well as other insurers will renew your policy automatically at the end of the policy period without any notification from your side. However, Direct Line has the obligation to send you a renewal notice within 7 to 21 days before your contract comes to an end. You will therefore have 14 days - the cooling off period - to cancel your policy at reduced cancellation fees.
For the same reason, if you cancel your car insurance policy, you must sign up to a new one immediately. Find out more on car insurance legal requirement.
You would need to have various documents ready such as:
- your policy number (right hand corner of your documents);
- your bank details; and
- your payment method in case there are cancellation fees.
Direct Line could also refuse to cover your car any longer if you don't pay for your premiums within the time allocated, or if they find out that you omitted important information that was required by the company such as your driving experience or you if have committed a fraud of any kind. This act is known as ‘fronting’.
