How Much Does It Cost to Insure a Campervan?

Whether you’re budgeting for your first ever campervan, or you’re looking for tips on reducing your premium after last year, there’s a lot that goes into the cost of insuring a campervan that you need to be aware of.

Nobody wants to pay more than they need to, but at the same time you need to make sure you’ve got all the cover you need in case of any emergency or incident. A campervan isn’t just your car – it’s your portable holiday home, and so you want to make sure it’s fully covered at a reasonable price.

In this guide we’ll look at all of the factors that go into the cost of insuring a campervan.

While there’s no single answer on how much it costs (because there are so many factors at play), we can at least make it clear on the different options you have to make sure your campervan insurance is as cheap as possible, without compromising on cover.

What Is a Campervan?

It’s worth defining a campervan first because this can have an impact on your insurance. A campervan is any vehicle that is designed to provide both transportation and living accommodation. They can be larger motorhomes, or smaller van conversions.

In terms of vehicle type, their classification can also vary. Some will be formally defined as a motor caravan, especially those that are clearly a campervan from the outside. If you’ve bought a converted campervan, or made your own, and it doesn’t look like a campervan from the exterior then it might – for the purposes of DVLA registration – still be classified as a van.

However, that doesn’t mean you can get away with a standard van insurance policy. The registration of the vehicle with the DVLA doesn’t dictate the type of insurance you need – and you absolutely need to make sure you have proper campervan insurance if that’s what you’re using your van as, regardless of its official designation.

What Are the Average Costs to Insure a Campervan?

While it is difficult to give an average cost to insure a campervan, policies can start from as little as £150 a year, although most people will pay more. The average is likely within the £300-500 range, with some drivers having to pay more than this depending on their circumstances.

What Type of Insurance Do You Need?

Just as when you’re insuring a car, there are different levels of cover that you can choose between when insuring a campervan. These are:

• Third Party – covering the cost of compensating other drivers if you’re involved in an incident which is your fault.
• Third Party, Fire & Theft – offering the same level of cover to other drivers as Third Party, but also insuring your campervan against loss due to fire damage or if it’s stolen
• Fully comprehensive – Covers your campervan in the event of an incident that is your fault, as well as the same cover as Third Party, Fire & Theft.

As a legal minimum, you must have Third Party insurance. However, it’s recommended to pay for Fully Comprehensive unless you don’t mind paying for the cost of any repairs to your campervan out of pocket.

Despite the levels of cover being the same as typical car insurance, you still need to declare that it’s a campervan that you’re taking the policy out on. That’s because the way you use a campervan is different and can change the cost of cover.

After all, in a Third Party, Fire & Theft policy for a car, you aren’t likely to have a kitchen in the back which could increase the risk of a fire, are you?

What Extras Can You Get When You Insure a Campervan?

There are some additional extras that may be added to your campervan insurance policy. Depending on your insurer, some of these could be standard, and so won’t cost you a penny extra. Others will definitely incur an additional charge, but you may see them as worth it.

Potential extras include:

• Personal belongings cover – for anything that you leave inside the campervan.*
• Windscreen cover – for repairs or replacements if you have a chipped or cracked windscreen
• Awning cover – specific cover for damage to an awning attached to your campervan
• European cover – insurance that covers you for driving your campervan in Europe
• Breakdown cover – extra cover for any immediate roadside assistance you require
• Legal expenses cover – to pay for any legal costs if you have a dispute with another driver after an accident

*It’s worth noting that some home insurance policies may cover some of your belongings outside of the home, but you’ll need to check your policy.

What Isn’t Covered When You Insure a Campervan?

What isn’t covered when you insure a campervan will, again, vary depending on the policy.

That’s why you need to compare them, and make sure you read the terms!

Broadly, you won’t be covered for any of the following:

• Theft if you’ve left the motorhome unlocked, or it can be proven you haven’t activated any security features that you listed in the policy
• General wear and tear to the vehicle or the camping elements
• Vermin infestations

You will also not be covered if you live in your motorhome permanently, or if you try to use it for a business.

What Affects the Cost of Campervan Insurance?

Nobody will have the same insurance quote – it’s a very individual process based on a long list of factors. As a guide, here’s what will likely impact the cost of your quote:

• Your age – typically older drivers pay less as they are seen to be more experienced and less reckless.
• Your address – this relates to the crime levels in your area, and the average number of insurance claims.
• Your driving history – if you have a lot of years’ no-claims bonus, your policy will usually be significantly cheaper.
• Your campervan history – experience driving a motorhome will be seen as beneficial.
• The campervan – expensive campervans, or retro campers considered a classic, will be more expensive to insure. Obscure campervans where repairs are more costly will also incur a higher premium.
• Where you keep the campervan – the more secure it is stored, the lower the insurance costs.
• Other vehicles – if you are insured already on another vehicle, your campervan insurance costs will be lower, as it’ll be assumed you don’t use it to commute.
• Additional drivers – adding a more experienced driver to the policy can lower the cost.

How Can You Make It Cheaper to Insure a Campervan?

Armed with all this knowledge, there are a few ways you can help to reduce the cost of your campervan insurance.

The most obvious is to build up your no-claims discount, as this proves you’re a safer driver, and to become experienced at driving a campervan. Of course, these are not immediate solutions, but in time they will help to bring down the costs.

The best ways to make your insurance cheaper in the short term are:

• Make sure it is parked securely off-road, preferably with security camera coverage
• Upgrade the security of the van, including alarms and tracking devices
• Join a motorhome owners club – these can sometimes get you a discount
• Consider your mileage, and reduce it – but be honest

On that last point – it can be tempting to fudge the numbers a bit in order to bring the cost down, but that won’t work. If you say you’re going to drive it 6,000 miles, and then you make a claim and it’s proven that you’ve driven 8,000 miles, your insurance will be invalidated.

So, try to give a fair estimate, but as close to accurate as you can.

What Do You Need to Have to Get Your Campervan Insurance Quote?

When you’re ready to get your insurance quote for your campervan, you just need to have a few details to hand:

• Your personal details and your driving licence
• Your no-claims history
• Details of the campervan you want to insure
• An estimated annual mileage, and details of where you’re storing the campervan

Once you have these details, you can begin to get a quote.

Comparing Prices to Insure a Campervan

It is possible to go direct to a campervan insurer and request a quote, but if you do that then you’re undermining all the work you’ve put into lowering your insurance cost.

If you’re planning on insuring a campervan, you need to use a comparison service like ours. Comparing quotes from multiple specialist providers of campervan insurance is the only way to make sure you get the fairest deal.

It’s also faster than getting individual quotes from different companies yourself – just fill in your details once, and you’ll see all the prices and levels of cover available. Then you can choose the one that best fits your campervan and your budget.

Reading our guide and tips about how to compare campervan insurance like an expert.