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With six main policies to choose from, and discounts for Clubcard members, Tesco Bank could be an option when you come to compare car insurance quotes.
Operating since 1997, and with 5 million customers across its banking and insurance products, it’s the personal finance arm of its supermarket namesake.
Read on below for our Tesco car insurance review, including the details of each major policy it offers, what its customers say, and how it stacks up against its competitors.
Tesco Bank offers six different levels of cover. Four of those policies are fully comprehensive: Bronze, Silver, Gold, and black box insurance.
You can then also get Tesco Bank Silver-tier insurance for third party only, and third party, fire and theft cover.
With Tesco Bank Bronze fully comprehensive car insurance, you’re covered for the following:
Tesco Bank Silver car insurance includes everything in the Bronze level, as well as:
The Tesco Bank Gold car insurance policy includes everything found at the Silver level, as well as:
With Tesco Bank’s third party only Silver car insurance, you will have cover for:
As for Tesco Bank’s third party, fire and theft cover, it includes:
Tesco Bank’s black box insurance is a comprehensive policy for drivers aged between 17 and 35 looking to reduce the price of their car insurance long-term. Tesco Clubcard members can receive a guaranteed discount when taking out a policy.
A black box or telematics device will be installed in your car that will monitor how you drive. At the outset of your policy, you will choose the maximum number of miles you’ll drive a month: 6,000, 8,000 or 10,000. If you find you need more, you can buy additional miles online or over the phone.
You can earn up to 100 additional miles a month if your black box shows you’ve been driving safely.
At renewal, you may then be able to get a reduced premium, if you’ve proven yourself to be a safe driver.
| Bronze | Silver | Gold | Silver (third party only) | Silver (third party, fire and theft) | Black box insurance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age range | All | All | All | All | All | 17 to 35 |
| Level of cover | Fully comprehensive | Fully comprehensive | Fully comprehensive | Third party | Third party, fire and theft | Fully comprehensive |
| Injuries to other people | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Damage to other people’s property | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Theft | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Fire damage | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| Repairs to your own car following accident | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Legal costs | Optional | Optional | Optional | Optional | Optional | Yes |
| Your medical expenses | Emergency medical treatment up to £100 per person Personal accident costs up to £1,000 | Emergency medical treatment up to £100 per person Personal accident costs up to £5,000 | Emergency medical treatment up to £100 per person Personal accident costs up to £7,500 | Emergency medical treatment up to £100 per person | Emergency medical treatment up to £100 per person | Personal accident costs up to £7,500 |
| Driving other cars | No | If eligible | If eligible | If eligible | If eligible | No |
| Breakdown cover | Optional | Optional | Optional | Optional | Optional | Optional |
| Courtesy car cover | Yes | Yes | Yes (enhanced) | No | No | Yes |
| Hire car cover | Can upgrade courtesy car cover | Can upgrade courtesy car cover | Can upgrade courtesy car cover | No | No | Can upgrade courtesy car cover |
| Windscreen replacement | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Personal belongings | No | Up to £200 | Up to £500 | No | No | Up to £150 |
| Replacement locks and keys | Up to £300 if stolen | Up to £750 if stolen | Market value, if stolen or lost | No | No | Optional |
| Protected no claims bonus | Optional | Optional | Optional | Optional | Optional | Optional |
| Cancellation fee | £25 (within 14 days) £40 (after 14 days) | £25 (within 14 days) £40 (after 14 days) | £25 (within 14 days) £40 (after 14 days) | £25 (within 14 days) £40 (after 14 days) | £25 (within 14 days) £40 (after 14 days) | £25 (within 14 days) £40 (after 14 days) |
With your Tesco Bank car insurance policy, you can add a number of optional extras, including:
If you need to make a car insurance claim through your Tesco Bank policy, you should:
To cancel your Tesco Bank car insurance policy, you will need to ring the provider on 0345 246 2895. Your cancellation can take effect immediately, or from a chosen later date, but cannot be backdated.
When cancelling, you will need to pay an exit fee:
| Cancellation period | Fee |
|---|---|
| Within 14 days of taking out your policy | £25 |
| After 14 days | £40 |
If you cancel outside the 14 day cooling off period, and haven’t made a claim, you will be refunded the cost of your premium for the time left on your insurance minus the £40 exit fee. This is unless you have made any claims on your policy; if so you must pay the full premium, plus the exit fee.
If you need to contract Tesco Bank car insurance about anything, you can call the following numbers:
Tesco Bank has a ‘Great’ Trustpilot rating of 4.1 out of five stars, based on more than 15,500 reviews (as of 15 November 2023).
It’s important to note, however, that these reviews are for the Tesco Bank brand as a whole, and not just its car insurance products.
Of those related to car insurance, many of Tesco Bank’s five star reviews mention the quality of its over-the-phone customer service, and the discounts available for Tesco Clubcard members.
However, some of the brand’s negative reviews mention frustrations with the fact Tesco Bank only really offers customer service over the phone, and the hike in renewal quotes once their initial policy had finished.
“I had tried to make a change to my insurance details after changing my car. Everything went well until I tried to pay for my increased premium. I tried three times but for whatever reason it wouldn’t frustratingly take my card payment. I decided to ring customer services and received exactly that, good customer service. My problem was resolved quickly by a very competent Tesco representative. Well done and thank you.”
“Just a thanks to the two lovely guys I spoke to on the phone over the past three days trying to renew my insurance policy. Their names were Chris and Scott, and I spoke to them both separately over the three days and both were so helpful and willing to put themselves out in order to sort the problem of my cards not working for renewing my insurance. Their manners and customer service are awesome and can’t thank them enough, as I was very stressed. Thank you to them again!”
“Tesco car insurance [is] cheap enough, but [they] asked for no-claims bonus proof but [when] you try and email them back even when you’re signed in to your Tesco insurance account it’s nonexistent. You can only phone, but I have trouble on the phone so couldn’t use it, plus the emails they sent me were no reply. Why? Subsequently, pretty sharpish they cancelled my policy. They don’t make it easy.”
Tesco Bank’s car insurance policies having the following ratings on Defaqto:
| Provider name | Trustpilot score | Defaqto score |
|---|---|---|
| Tesco Bank | 4.1 stars | 5 stars (3 stars for black box insurance, Bronze, and Silver third party, fire and theft) |
| Admiral Insurance | 4.4 stars | 5 stars (4 stars for Telematics, 3 stars for Essential) |
| Aviva | 4.0 stars | 5 stars (3 stars for Third party, fire and theft) |
| Direct Line | 3.7 stars | 5 stars (3 stars for Third party, fire and theft and Essentials) |
| Hastings Direct | 4.1 stars | 5 stars (4 stars for Third party, fire and theft, 3 stars for Telematics, 2 stars for Essential) |
| AXA | 4.3 stars | 4 stars (5 stars for Plus) |
| LV= | 4.5 stars | 5 stars (3 stars for Third party, fire and theft) |
| esure | 3.3 stars | 5 stars (4 stars for Third party, fire and theft) |
| Ageas | 4.1 stars | 5 stars (3 stars for Essentials, and Telematics) |
| NFU Mutual | 4.4 stars | 5 stars |
Tesco Bank might be an option if you don’t want the most feature-rich cover available, but still want comprehensive cover. Its Silver level, in particular, has a five-star rating on Defaqto – of interest if you don’t want the costs associated with the fuller Gold policy.
Loyal Tesco customers may want to consider it, simply for the fact that Clubcard members are eligible for a discount on their premium.
If you appreciate being able to speak to someone over the phone when you have an issue, then Tesco Bank’s Trustpilot reviews suggest it could be a good fit. However, if you’d rather communicate with your provider via email or live chat, Tesco Bank might not be for you.
Tesco Bank car insurance is underwritten by Tesco Underwriting Ltd.
Since 2008, Tesco Bank, including its car insurance arm, has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Tesco PLC.
