What is Car Insurance Excess? Saga Explains

Your guide to car insurance excess

Claiming on your insurance after a car accident can be stressful. You won’t want any more shocks, so here’s what to expect when it comes to paying your excess.

Published - 2 Jan 2024 | Updated - 30 Sep 2025

What is the excess on car insurance?

The excess is an amount stated in your policy Schedule that you agree to pay towards a claim.

The excesses can vary between different claim types. Accidental damage usually has the highest sum, followed by fire and theft then broken glass repair or replacement.

Understanding the different types of excess

Even though you only pay one excess per claim – your total excess – this payment is made up of two different components.

So what is compulsory excess on car insurance and how does it differ from voluntary excess car insurance?

Compulsory excess – this sum is set by your insurer based on a number of factors, including your age, your driving experience and the make and model of your car.
Voluntary excess – you decide how much voluntary excess you are prepared to pay in the event of a claim, from zero to normally a couple of hundred pounds. Increasing the amount of your voluntary excess is a valid way to make buying your car insurance cheaper.
Total excess – this is the combined amount of your compulsory and voluntary car insurance excesses. This is the total sum you’ll have to pay when you make a claim, so make sure it’s an amount you can afford to pay in full following an accident.

When do you pay excess on car insurance?

You may need to pay this upfront to your insurer as part of a claim or to their approved repairer on completion of work.

For a claim following a car accident, you have to pay the excess whether you were to blame or not.

However, if the incident wasn’t your fault, you or your insurer may be able to get the excess back from the other driver’s insurance provider.

Accidents caused by an uninsured driver will cost you your excess too, unless your policy has an uninsured driver promise.

Is it better to have an excess or no excess?

There will always be a compulsory excess on your policy – that’s the amount set by your insurer that you have to pay towards a claim.

When you’re trying to get the price down on car insurance, you may be asked by your provider whether you want to change your voluntary excess.

So should you increase it? Or is it worth having an excess on insurance at all?

Increasing your voluntary excess (sometimes just called ‘accidental damage excess’) can bring down the cost of your policy. So if price is the most important consideration when buying cover, doing this can help.

However, if you have to make a claim after an accident and your total excess ends up costing you more than you’re actually paying for your annual policy, you might end up losing out financially over the year.

Of course, if you don’t claim, this won’t be an issue.

Another consideration when choosing the amount of your voluntary excess is that your insurer won’t usually pay out on a claim that costs less than the total excess.

This will only really affect smaller claims but, should the situation arise, you may need to sort out repairs yourself.

Can I change my excess?

Yes, the best time to do this is when taking out or renewing a policy or switching your vehicle. It may be possible to change it mid-policy but not if you’ve got an open claim.

How do I know what excess applies to my policy?

Check your Schedule. Your excesses (both compulsory and voluntary) should be listed next to the different circumstances they cover, such as accidental damage, fire and theft and windscreen damage.

What does Saga offer?

All three of our Comprehensive car insurance cover levels include our uninsured driver promise, which means you’ll get your excess reimbursed for valid uninsured driver claims.

And if you need to make a claim for damage after an accident that wasn’t your fault, we’ll always do our best to reclaim your total excess from the other party’s insurer.

With our Key Protection cover (included in Saga Plus or can be bought as an extra with Saga Select or Saga Standard) you can get up to £2,500 per claim for lost or broken keys without having to pay any excess at all.