A guide to campervan insurance

Like any vehicle, you need insurance to legally drive your campervan. Owning a campervan comes with various risks, such as accidents, theft, or damage to your vehicle and its contents.

Campervan insurance is crucial to protect yourself financially and ensure you can continue enjoying your nomadic adventures with peace of mind.

Campervan insurance policies are designed to cater to the specific needs of campervanners. In addition to the basic components of campervan insurance, many policies offer additional coverage options to enhance protection for campervan owners.

One crucial aspect is coverage for personal possessions. Since campervans often serve as both transportation and living space, they tend to carry valuable belongings, such as camping equipment, electronics, and personal items. Campervan insurance policies typically include coverage for these possessions, protecting them against theft, loss, or damage while on the road or parked at campsites.

Another add-on is breakdown assistance. Breaking down in the middle of a journey can be incredibly inconvenient, especially when you're far from home. Many campervan insurance policies provide roadside assistance and recovery services to ensure you receive help promptly and get back on the road as quickly as possible.

Repatriation coverage is also vital for campervan travellers who plan to explore beyond the UK's borders. If your campervan becomes unroadworthy while abroad, repatriation coverage will take care of the expenses involved in bringing you and your vehicle back to the UK.

Campervan insurance may also offer windscreen cover, safeguarding you against the costs of repairing or replacing a damaged windscreen. Given the exposed nature of campervans to debris and road hazards, this coverage can prove valuable in keeping your vehicle in top condition.

Lastly, some campervan insurance policies offer extended periods away from the UK. As campervanners often embark on extended journeys or explore other countries, this feature ensures that your insurance coverage remains valid even during extended trips outside the UK.

Before finalising a campervan insurance policy, carefully review the coverage options and any additional benefits included. By tailoring your insurance to your specific needs, you can travel with confidence, knowing that you have comprehensive protection for your campervan, belongings, and adventures on the road.

If you've converted a van into a campervan, insuring it correctly can be more complex. If your campervan has undergone a conversion, you should declare it as such to your insurance provider. Conversions typically involve adding living accommodations such as a bed, kitchenette, or toilet facilities.

Not declaring the conversion accurately could lead to issues when making a claim, as standard van insurance might not adequately cover the modifications and contents. Basically anything which changes the way your van looks or drives is considered a modification and so must be declared with your insurer.

While it’s not essential to have your campervan classified as a motor caravan by the DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency), in order to get campervan-specific insurance, some insurers will require it. So, if you’re buying a conversion, check its V5C or you could find that insurance becomes a problem.

Another legal consideration is that motorhomes have higher speed restrictions than light commercial vehicles, so, if your campervan is actually registered as a van, you could potentially be fined for speeding if you drive it like a motorhome.

Some insurers may require evidence of the conversion's quality and safety standards before providing coverage. When insuring a self-converted campervan, it's essential to retain documentation of the conversion process and materials used.

Different campervan lifestyles require tailored insurance solutions.

Just like car insurance, you need to decide whether you need comprehensive, third party fire and theft or third party-only cover.

• Comprehensive: Comprehensive cover pays out to repair or replace your campervan if it's damaged in an accident or suffers malicious damage.
• Third party, fire and theft: This covers your campervan from damage caused by fire or theft but not if it’s damaged in a crash. It will cover the other driver if you're involved in an incident.
• Third party only: The minimum cover available, protects you if you cause damage to someone's property or injure them while driving.

Other campervan insurance types include:

Don’t just accept the first quote. Make sure you shop around to find the best deal. Don’t just look at the headline price; pin down what you’re getting for your money as well as whether or not there are any add-ons.

Not all policies are the same; some allow you to tailor things to suit your needs while others are little more than car policies, which don’t provide the specialist cover than you need. We advise always using a specialist broker and only using comparison websites as an initial research tool. Have a list of your specific needs and ask questions about the cover to compare like for like, as, if you don’t, you could end up without crucial benefits. Specialist brokers will ask all the relevant questions, too, so make sure you have all the details of the campervan, drivers, and the intended use before you call.

Ask who the underwriter is. A well-known underwriter can provide reassurance your claim will be paid and dealt with efficiently. Also look at what other owners have to say about their experience of an insurer online, on customer review websites like Trustpilot and Review Centre, as well as on social media forums.

Don’t just fill out a form online – give the insurance company a call as they might be able to offer a better deal on the strength of a conversation.

Also think about getting a policy that includes breakdown insurance, but make sure it provides recovery of a vehicle that is the size and weight of your campervan.

• Don’t forget to consider the actual contents of your campervan – specialist policies generally cover the items inside your campervan, but it’s worth checking what the maximum value per item is. If they’re covered by other policies (such as home insurance), then they may not be covered by the campervan insurance.
• It’s worth thinking about areas such as gas and explosion cover, too. While such incidences are very rare, they can happen, so make sure you are covered. Then there’s new-for-old cover, which is a very important benefit if you’ve purchased your campervan from new. If you want to lend your camper to family or friends or even hire it out in an Airbnb-style service, then ensure it’s fully insured for this.
• If you’re selling a car to buy your campervan, it’s possible to transfer your no claims bonus from your car policy to your new campervan policy.
• Being a member of a major Club, like the Camping and Caravanning Club or the Caravan and Motorhome Club, often attracts an insurance discount. In addition, these both have their own insurance services.