Santander bank is a household name, but is its car insurance any good? Find out what’s on offer, what’s included in the cover, pros and cons, and what existing customers say.
What is Santander?
The Santander Group was founded in 1857 in Spain. It is predominately a bank, but, along with traditional banking products, Santander also offers car, travel, life and home insurance.
What company underwrites Santander’s car insurance?
Santander’s car insurance is arranged and administered by BISL Limited and underwritten by a panel of insurers.
Compare Santander’s car insurance policies
Santander offers all three types of car insurance available, so you can choose from fully comprehensive, third party fire and theft, and third party only cover.
Santander’s comprehensive car insurance policy includes the following benefits:
Cover if your car is stolen or damaged by fire or accident
Windscreen replacement and 24/7 repair helpline
Courtesy car while yours is being repaired by an approved repairer
Up to 60 days cover in the EU
Unlimited cover on manufacturer-fitted audio, sat nav and entertainment equipment
Stolen keys cover up to £500
Personal belongings cover up to £100
Three-year guarantee on all approved claims repairs
Optional extras
For an extra fee, you can add any of these elements to your cover:
Motor legal protection
Breakdown cover
Guaranteed replacement car
No claims discount protection
How to save on your car insurance policy with Santander
Some elements affecting your car insurance premiums, like your age, driving experience and address are beyond your control. However, there are steps you can take to reduce the cost of your insurance:
Don’t make cheap claims. It might be cheaper in the long run to pay out of pocket for smaller expenses rather than claiming them on insurance. Maintaining a no claims history can make a substantial difference.
Be careful listing other drivers. When possible, only name other drivers on the policy if they’re at least as experienced and safe behind the wheel as you are.
Avoid driving offences and points on your driver’s licence. It’s easier said than done, but a trail of fines and points will follow you around and keep bumping up your car insurance costs.
Match policy to use. Try finding a policy that suits your typical car use. For example, if you only drive six months per year, you can get a considerable discount by looking for laid-up, pay as you go or temporary cover.
Choose a higher excess. You should always be able to afford your excess so you can make claims if needed, but you might also consider keeping it high in order to reduce your premiums.
Drop extras. If you won’t be pulling a trailer, you probably don’t want a policy that makes you pay for trailer cover. Try dropping unwanted extras, or consider avoiding policies that are loaded with features you don’t need.
How do I contact Santander?
You can contact Santander’s customer service on 0800 975 2623. Lines open Monday to Friday 8am-9pm, Saturday 9am-5pm and Sunday 10am-4pm.
You can also email the team on customerrelations@santanderconsumer.co.uk or use the company’s Twitter or Facebook accounts.
What is the claims process for Santander?
Depending on the nature of your claim, you can contact Santander on the following numbers:
Car insurance accident and claims line: 0344 854 9823. Lines open 24/7. Windscreen damage: 0330 018 4248. Motor legal protection: 0344 854 9823. Breakdown cover (RAC): 0330 159 0352. Guaranteed replacement car: 0344 854 9823.
It’s unclear from the Santander website when these lines are open, with the exception of the main claims line, which is open 24/7.
Santander car insurance customer reviews
On customer reviews platform Trustpilot, Santander as a bank has 1.5 out of 5 stars and a rating of “Bad”, based on more than 2,500 reviews.
Things are a little better on the Review Centre, where Santander has 3.7 out of 5 stars and 67% of reviewers saying they would recommend the service. However, this is based on just a handful of reviews.
For Santander’s car insurance service, customers like the helpful staff, but many complain of technical issues and some report premium hikes (updated November 2020).
Santander car insurance pros and cons
Pros
All three levels of car insurance offered: comprehensive, third party fire and theft, and third party only
A three-year guarantee on all approved claims repairs
24-hour claims line
Cons
Legal protection is an optional extra
Website is not easy to use and lacks a lot of important information
Verdict
Santander is a well-known and respected bank. It offers the full range of car insurance options, and its comprehensive policy includes some good features as standard (like a courtesy car and unlimited cover for audio, sat nav and entertainment equipment).
Customer reviews for Santander are not great and its website is not very user friendly, but the company’s claims line is open 24/7 and the customer service helpline is open 7 days a week.
Frequently asked questions
Car insurance costs are based on a number of personal factors, like your age, driving experience, location and even job title. The make, model and age of the car also play a part in determining how much you pay.
That said, Santander claims on its website that half of its customers got cover for £282 or less.
The best way to find the best value deal for you is to shop around and compare policies.
Most car insurance policies require an excess payment for certain claims.
Santander will set your compulsory excess and the amount will depend on your personal circumstances.
When you go through the application process for Santander car insurance, you will be asked to set a voluntary excess of between £0 and £500. The figure you choose will affect the cost of your cover, with the higher excess bringing your premiums down.
Make sure you can actually afford to pay this amount should you need to make a claim, and remember that Santander will not pay for repairs that cost less than the excess amount.
Yes. When you take out a policy with Santander, you get access to the self-service centre, where you can view your documents and manage your policy details.
Yes, you are covered as standard to drive up to 60 days in the EU.
The offers compared on this page are chosen from a range of products we can track; we don't cover every product on the market...yet. Unless we've indicated otherwise, products are shown in no particular order or ranking. The terms "best", "top", "cheap" (and variations), aren't product ratings, although we always explain what's great about a product when we highlight it; this is subject to our terms of use. When making a big financial decision, it's wise to consider getting independent financial advice, and always consider your own financial circumstances when comparing products so you get what's right for you. Most of the data in Finder's comparison tables has the source: Moneyfacts Group PLC. In other cases, Finder has sourced data directly from providers.
*Based on data provided by Consumer Intelligence Ltd, www.consumerintelligence.com (July ’24). 51% of car insurance customers could save £523.17
Ronny Lavie was a deputy editor at Finder, specialising in insurance content. She has almost a decade of experience writing about financial topics, including five months spent as the interim managing editor for the Fintech Times newspaper. Ronny has a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from London Middlesex University. See full bio
Find out how agreed value car insurance works and if it’s the right option for you.
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