Temporary car insurance for 28 days (UK 2026)

How much is 28 days of car insurance, and how does it work?

28-day temporary car insurance gives you fully-comprehensive cover for a fixed four-week period on a specific car — one you own, are borrowing, buying or minding. In 2026 a clean-licence driver over 25 on a mid-group car typically pays £150–£280 for the 28 days, while drivers under 25 commonly pay £320–£600 or more for the same period because of higher risk. Cover is arranged online or in an app, can start within minutes, and runs for the exact four weeks you choose. Importantly, 28 (or 30) days is the longest single term most temporary insurers such as Cuvva, GoShorty, Tempcover and Dayinsure will sell — beyond that you generally move to an annual policy.

Like all short-term cover, a 28-day policy is a completely separate policy from the car owner’s annual insurance. If you borrow a relative’s car for a month and have an accident, the claim goes against the temporary policy — the owner’s premium and no-claims discount are untouched. This is why monthly temporary cover has largely replaced the old “driving other cars” extension, which is now rare and usually third-party-only. At the 28-day length, though, the total cost creeps close to a chunk of an annual premium, so it is worth checking the break-even carefully before you buy. Pricing is highly sensitive to your age, the car’s insurance group and your postcode.

28-day cover vs an annual policy: where the line sits

At the 28-day length the total cost starts to approach a meaningful slice of an annual premium, so temporary cover is not automatically the cheapest choice. As a rule of thumb for a clean-licence driver over 25 in 2026, use the shortest policy that covers your actual need and switch to annual once you cross roughly two months of use in a year:

If you only need a shorter period, our 1-week temporary cover and 1-day temporary cover guides give the same age-by-age pricing for those terms.

Five things to check on a 28-day policy

1. You have the owner’s permission. You can insure a car you don’t own, but you must have the registered keeper’s consent to drive it.
2. The cover is comprehensive. All the main providers offer fully-comprehensive 28-day cover — check it covers the car’s value and your liability, not just third party.
3. Compare it to an annual quote. At a month’s cost, always run a real annual quote too — if you will need the car again this year, annual may be cheaper overall and builds no-claims discount.
4. It won’t affect the owner. Confirm the policy is standalone so a claim never touches the owner’s annual cover or no-claims bonus.
5. Eligibility and extension limits. Most providers need you to be 17–75 (some 18+) with a valid UK licence, cap the car’s value/age, and will not extend past 28–30 days — you must buy a fresh policy if you need longer.

If you regularly drive someone else’s car, compare a month of cover against being added as a named driver — often cheaper for repeated use, though it doesn’t build your own no-claims discount either.