Ageas car insurance review

Ageas offers two levels of fully comprehensive car insurance: Essentials car insurance, and its Standard car insurance. 

Essentials car insurance

If you want to take out an Ageas Essentials car insurance policy, you can only do so by using a price comparison website. It isn’t available directly through Ageas.

With this policy, you’ll be covered for the following:

• Injuries to other people: if you injure a third party in a motor accident, Ageas will help with the costs
• Damage to someone else’s property: if you damage someone’s property in a car accident, Ageas will cover the costs up to £20 million (plus a further £5 million for expenses)
• Fire damage: if your car is damaged in a fire, you can make a claim 
• Theft: if your car is stolen, or damaged in an attempted theft, you can make a claim
• Manufacturer-fitted sound and sat nav equipment: you’ll have unlimited cover for any sound and sat nav equipment fitted when the car was made that is lost or damaged in an insured event
• Aftermarket sound and sat nav equipment: you can claim up to £300 for any sound and sat nav equipment that was fitted after the car was made
• Courtesy car cover: if you have a motor accident and the car is not written off, and you then use an Ageas-approved service for repairs, you’ll receive a courtesy car
• Personal accident cover: you’ll have up to £5,000 in personal accident cover per accident, with a maximum claim of £2,500 per person per accident
• Uninsured driver promise: if you’re in a non-fault accident with an uninsured driver, you won’t have to pay your excess and your no-claims bonus won’t be affected 
• Driving other cars: if eligible, you’ll be able to drive other cars with third party only cover under this policy

Standard car insurance

Ageas standard car insurance includes everything found at the Essentials level, as well as:

• Accidental misfuelling: if you accidentally put the wrong fuel type in your car, you can claim for any damage to the car’s engine and the cost of draining and flushing in the tank
• Child car seat: if your car is in an insured event, you can claim for the cost of replacing your child car seat with the same or similar model and standard
• Windscreens and windows: you can claim for your windscreens and window glass to be repaired or replaced, but must cover the first £15 of any claim
• Medical expenses: you can claim up to £300 per person for medical expenses in the event of an accident
• Personal accident cover: you can claim up to £10,000 per accident, with a maximum of £5,000 per person per accident
• Personal belongings: you can claim up to £300 for personal belongings lost or damaged in an insured event (exclusions apply)
• Onward travel: if your car is not roadworthy following an accident, Ageas can arrange for you and your passengers to be driven home, or to your planned UK destination. Alternatively, you can claim up to £150 per person for transport costs (to a maximum of £400), or up to £50 per person for overnight accommodation (up to a limit of £250)
• Replacement locks and keys: you can claim up to £500 for the cost or replacing your ignition device and related locks if the device is lost or stolen (as long as it wasn’t left in the car at the time of the loss)
• Driving abroad: you can drive your car throughout the EU, alongside select other European countries, for up to 90 days under your existing policy. You can extend your cover beyond 90 days for an additional cost

Other Ageas car insurance policies

As well as the policies above, Ageas also offers van insurance. You can choose between third party, fire and theft cover, or comprehensive insurance.

On top of your Ageas car insurance policy, you can add the following optional extras:

• Legal expenses cover: this is motor legal protection worth up to £100,000, covering legal costs associated with recovering losses following an accident that wasn’t your fault
• RAC breakdown cover: you can choose from four different levels of breakdown cover – Roadside, Roadside Plus, Full UK Recovery and Full UK & European Recovery
• Replacement vehicle cover: your policy won’t provide a courtesy car if your vehicle is stolen or written off. However, if you take out replacement vehicle cover, you can get a hire car up to 1,600cc following an insured event, including theft and total loss
• Excess protection cover: with excess protection, you’ll be covered if your excess, up to £500, can’t be recovered by a third party. You’ll be able to make two such claims during your period of insurance
• Key protection cover: you can claim up to £1,500 to replace not only your car ignition device and related locks, but your home, office and security safe keys and locks
• Protected no-claims bonus: if you’ve built up at least four years of a no-claims discount, you can protect your bonus at the start of your policy. This means you can make up to two claims in a three-year period before your bonus is reduced

If you need to make a car insurance claim through Ageas, you should follow these steps:

• Check everyone is okay: if you’re in a car accident, the first thing to do is stop and check that everyone involved, including any third parties, is safe and secure
• Exchange details: if your accident involved a third party, you’ll need to exchange details, including personal information and your insurance policy number
• Gather evidence: it’s also a good idea to take photos of any damage, and make a note of relevant details, such as the time of day, location, and weather conditions
• Contact Ageas: even if you don’t want to make a claim, you should inform Ageas of your incident as soon as possible. You can start the claims process online, or by calling 0345 125 2450
• Ageas will inform you of the next steps: once you’ve outlined the claim you’d like to make, Ageas will help you with the next steps. For example, it may send a repairer to your location, or help you get back home

If you want to cancel your Ageas car insurance policy, you can do so through your online account. Once you’ve logged in, select ‘Thinking of leaving us’ at the bottom of the page, and then follow the instructions.

As long as you haven’t made a claim, you’ll receive a refund for the remaining time on your premium, minus the following fees:

If you want to contact Ageas for help with your car insurance that isn’t related to a claim, you can:

• Virtual assistant
• Live chat with agent (you’ll first have to go through the virtual assistant)
• Phone: 0345 165 0570 (8.30am to 6pm Monday to Friday; 8.30am to 4pm Saturday)

If you make any changes to your policy over the phone, there’ll be a £25 admin fee. However, you can avoid these fees by making the changes yourself online.

Ageas has a ‘Great’ Trustpilot rating of 4.1 out of five stars, based on more than 14,700 reviews.

It is important to note, however, that this score is for Ageas as a whole, and not just its motor insurance products.

Of its five-star reviews that mention car insurance, Ageas is praised for its customer service when dealing with claims. As for its more negative reviews, there are the familiar complaints around renewal prices, as well as issues with contacting customer service over the phone.

“I will definitely renew my car insurance with this professional provider. Outstanding service especially when you need to make a claim.”

• Melanie, via Trustpilot

“I had a total loss claim with Ageas and was instantly surprised by the superb customer service, a human approach centred around them wanting to make sure I was OK. The claim process was thorough, efficient, well communicated and dignified. I was surprised by how polished the company has been and the way it treated its customers in a superb manner. Well done Ageas. When things have settled down I will hopefully renew my insurance policy with you.”

• Mark, via Trustpilot

“Again another company where speaking to a human is almost impossible. Renewal should have been easy, just a couple of questions, but having just been in hospital and feeling vulnerable I did not want to put any business online. Finally after much stress I confirmed acceptance on an automated phone. Another case of stuff the elderly.”

• Sheila, via Trustpilot

What Defaqto rating does Ageas car insurance have?

Alongside its ‘Great’ Trustpilot score, Ageas also has the following ratings from Defaqto:

• Essential Car Insurance: ★★★
• Car Insurance: ★★★★★

With frequent praise for its claims team, a five-star review for its standard policy from Defaqto, and a ‘Great’ rating on Trustpilot, Ageas is a solid option for anyone looking for car insurance.

However, complaints about accessing over the phone customer service means it might not be for you if you feel more comfortable talking to a real person instead of making changes online. Then again, if you do manage to talk to someone over the phone, you’ll be hit with a £25 for any admin changes. 

You’ll also only be able to access certain features – such as breakdown cover, motor legal protection and hire car cover – as optional extras, as none of Ageas’s policies offer them as standard.