Caravan Insurance

By law you don't have to buy caravan insurance, but without it you won't be protected from theft or damage

To tow a caravan with a car, car insurance is enough by law on the road. If you damage someone's property or injure them, it pays out (see our Car Insurance guide for the best deals).

But just having car insurance only gives you third party cover – which means there's no cover for your caravan if it's damaged or stolen. So you'd normally have to foot the bill yourself.

We're not urging you to buy caravan cover. For many it is useful, but if you're buying (or have been given) an old second-hand caravan you only plan to use once a year and don't mind a knock or two on it, you don't necessarily need to do anything else – it's up to you.

However, if you've spent thousands of pounds – or it's a pastime you spend most weekends on – specialist cover is worth considering, as it could be a hell of a lot of money to lose if the worst happens.

As we explain below, some home insurance policies can cover your caravan while at home, and other policies can cover its contents anywhere you go.

Quick questions

A specialist caravan policy covers you for theft and damage

If you take out a standalone specialist policy, it will cover you if your caravan's stolen or suffers damage and needs repairs, or is written off in an accident. You'll be covered for:

• Theft outside your home / in a public place / at a campsite anywhere in the UK
• External damage (whether stationary or moving) outside your home / in a public place / at a campsite
• Accidental damage inside the caravan (eg, you start a fire during cooking which damages the inside)
• Public liability cover will also come as standard with most specialist policies. This means you'll be covered if your caravan causes damage to someone else's property or injures someone. For example, if your caravan tips over in bad weather and crushes someone's garden fence, or a caravan kitchen fire spreads to other caravans in a park, your insurer should pay out.

Contents within a caravan – how you're covered

Cover for theft or damage of personal items kept locked inside the caravan or equipment such as gas canisters and power generators often is NOT covered on a bog-standard caravan policy. For this you'll often need to pay extra.

Before paying extra, check if your home insurance already covers that. However, the excess (the amount of any claim you must pay) on a home insurance policy is usually higher than a caravan excess, while claiming can push up future home insurance costs too.

What's more, home insurance may not cover all items in the caravan such as frying pans or crockery as people do not usually take these outside their home.

Quick questions

Trick to turn annual cover into summer-only cover

You can only buy caravan insurance annually, so what if you just need it for a few months? Here's a canny trick (that comes with risks)...

Buy an annual policy to cover you for when you need to use it, then cancel when necessary and pocket the refund. You'll get a pro-rata refund (minus a small exit fee, £25 say) which you could haggle anyway.

What's the risk?

You may save money but it's a gamble on these counts.

• If you've a cheap policy the cancellation fee may wipe out much of the saving.
• You'll be exposed if anything happens to your caravan when you don't have insurance, so make sure it's securely stored. Most home insurance won't cover you if it's stolen from your home, though it is possible to buy specialist cover as a home insurance add-on, often at a high price.

Your home contents could cover your possessions inside the caravan

Home contents insurance can also give you a degree of protection but only if you have the right type. A home contents insurance add-on – called 'all risks' or 'personal possessions' – covers valuable goods and clothing you take away with you outside the home, such as in a caravan. Check if you already have this in place.

This add-on gives cover for all valuables up to a certain limit – often about £1,500 – though you can choose to buy more protection. Cover is for the likes of clothes, computers and jewellery (though if you carry a lot of valuable gadgets e.g. a laptop, tablet and smartwatch, then gadget insurance could be worth considering). However, kitchen equipment and bedding may not be covered as they're not items people tend to take out of their home.

When we say contents of your caravan, imagine turning your tourer upside down and shaking it vigorously (yes, you'd need to be Superman, but you get the gist). You'll be covered for everything you take with you that falls out.

But most home contents insurance policies do NOT cover the caravan itself unless you buy an often pricey add-on for your caravan. It's rarely worth buying this over specialist caravan insurance because it is so expensive. What's more, to be able to buy the add-on you often need a high-end policy to start with, such as from the likes of Hiscox.

How to buy cover for items outside your home

If you're not already covered then call your insurer to find out the cost of extending your policy. But don't assume you have to pay that price.

Also, find the cost of a new policy in case your insurer becomes expensive after the change, or if it was expensive to start with. See our full home insurance cost-cutting system to get a better deal (factor in a £50ish cancellation fee to change mid-policy).

If your caravan's too heavy, it won't be covered

Government rules mean you can tow heavy tourers and trailers with a car but just how much you can pull depends on when you passed your driving test.

If you passed your test after 1 January 1997, as a rule of thumb the total weight of your vehicle and trailer shouldn't be more than 3,500kg (though licence holders who passed before this are usually allowed a greater combined total weight.)

For your insurance to be valid, you must meet this criteria, though it shouldn't be a problem for most. Many family cars tend to weigh about 1,500kg (though that's an average and some will be more or less); and many caravans weigh a similar amount. You can usually find details of what your vehicles weigh in your car handbook, and in your caravan documents.

To double-check if your car and licence is up to scratch, Gov.uk has a handy tool for checking if you're road ready.

Keep your caravan locked up in storage to cut costs

How and where you store your caravan can make a difference to your specialist insurance premiums and could even give an insurer a reason not to cover you.

As a minimum insurers will expect a wheel lock and a hitch lock (which prevents your caravan being towed away). These will set you back anything from £20 to over £100 each; prices will vary, so compare deals between shops or see if you can pick up a cheaper second-hand one on eBay.

Not having these locks could mean your insurer won't pay out if your caravan is stolen – so it's worth the investment. When it comes to storing your caravan, you've two options: at home where you can keep an eye on it, or in a dedicated caravan lock-up. Here are some more security tips:

Lock it up in storage

You'll pay a fee for a lock-up, around £500 for the year depending on where the site is and the size of the caravan. If you haven't got the space at home or would just prefer to use a caravan lock-up, you can find a list of recommended storage sites here.

Make sure you check the terms of your policy as some will only cover "approved sites", which can mean approved by the Caravan Storage Site Owners' Association (CaSSOA) or that it meets a certain standard of security given by the CaSSOA; for example, that it's gold registered. You can find your nearest approved site here.

Keep it outside your home

If you're happy that you can keep it safely at home then it probably makes sense to save the money there. You can't just park it on a road outside your home; it'll need to be kept on a drive or on land (usually a small garden if not) by your property.

Is it cheaper to keep it outside your home?

There may be no higher cost to consider if you store it at home. From our research, some insurers didn't ask where the caravan is kept overnight so keeping it on your driveway shouldn't have any impact on your premiums.

However, given that some insurers rate premiums for your personal circumstances based on how risky they think you are, it'll be worth comparing different specialist prices.

Should I leave my caravan in storage and forget about insurance?

No, in fact you won't be able to leave your caravan in most storage sites without paying for your own separate specialist insurance policy.

The cost of keeping your caravan in a designated lock-up doesn't come cheap – it tends to be about £400-£500 a year so most people will be better off storing their caravan themselves if possible.

Is there anything else I can do to keep premiums down?

Some insurers will say you have to have particular devices in place to keep your caravan from being towed off by thieves.

For example, when the caravan is parked up, they may ask that you use a hitch lock to stop the caravan being hitched to another vehicle, a ground anchor to fix the caravan to and a security post to prevent the caravan from being moved.

Alarms can also help prevent thefts and tracking devices can help recover your caravan if the worst does happen. Some insurers offer a discount if you have these measures in place so you might be able to save in the long run.

Get your towing mirrors in place

To comply with the law anyone towing a caravan must be able to see 20 metres behind them and four metres either side. Most vehicles will need additional mirrors fitted to meet this – towing mirrors cost around £15 or £20 a set. Safety on the road comes first – they'll help you to be more aware of other drivers.

Register your caravan in case it's stolen

The Central Registration and Identification Scheme – or CRiS – allows you to register your caravan so that if it's stolen there's a better chance that the police will be able to reunite you with your caravan.

Most insurers say you have to be registered to get cover and while some newer caravans will be registered when you buy them, if you're buying second-hand you'll need to make sure it's registered in your name. So just be sure to double-check when you buy.