Who is RAC?
The Royal Automobile Club, better known as the RAC, was founded in 1897 initially offering roadside assistance and motoring services to its members. It has expanded its offering and now provides a whole range of vehicle-related insurances to around 2.2 million individual and 4.5 million corporate members. RAC car insurance is underwritten by a panel of insurers which include AXA, Co-op Insurance LV= and Zenith Insurance Plc.
RAC car insurance policies
RAC offers 5 main car insurance policy types:
Single car insurance
Car insurance cover for a single car either Third Party Fire and Theft, Comprehensive or Comprehensive Plus.
Multi-car insurance discount
RAC will offer a 10% discount for every additional car insured from the same household. No claims discounts are separate for each car so only one policy will be affected by any claim.
Young or new drivers
In an attempt to keep car insurance premiums lower for new or younger drivers RAC offers a policy that monitors the driving habits of the policyholder through a Black Box fitted to the insured car. The driving habits of the policyholder will then be monitored and safe driving could reduce their premiums on renewal. Unlike some providers, this policy has no curfews, no charge per mile and no installation fee
Pay by Mile
For drivers that only do a low mileage (less than 6,000 a year) RAC offers a Pay by Mile car insurance. The policyholder is only charged for the miles they drive plus a low monthly premium to insure the car when parked.
Temporary Insurance
RAC offers Temporary Car Insurance to cover you when you drive another car or want someone to drive your car over a short period. Cover can start immediately for periods from 1 hour to 30 days.
RAC car insurance extra benefits
RAC Breakdown Cover
Cover starts from as little as £19.99 per year and offers 24/7 roadside rescue breakdown cover providing you are over 1/4 mile from home.
Motor Legal Protection
Up to £100k of legal cover to help cover legal fees and expenses following an accident. Free for 12 months with all car insurance policies.
Guaranteed Replacement Car
Up to 28 days cover from only £12.99 per year in the event of your car being repaired, stolen or written-off.
No Claims Discount (NCD) Protection
For an additional premium you can protect your NCD and have up to 2 fault claims in 3 years without affecting your discount. Available if you have 4 years or more No Claims Discount.
Personal belongings
Personal belongings are covered up to the value of £250 (Comprehensive Plus) or £150 (Comprehensive). There is no Personal belongings cover with the Third Party Fire and Theft policy.
Sound and Sat-nav equipment
If fitted by the manufacturer there is unlimited cover on sound and sat-nav equipment. Non-manufacturer fitted equipment cover is limited to £1,000 (Comprehensive Plus) or £500 (Comprehensive and Third Party Fire and Theft).
Personal Accident Benefit
A Personal Accident Benefit of £10,000 (Comprehensive Plus) or £5,000 (Comprehensive) is available to cover medical expenses as a result of an accident. There is no Personal Accident Benefit with the Third Party Fire and Theft policy.
Transport home after an accident
The Comprehensive Plus policy provides transport to any location in the UK if your car is unusable following an accident (excluding Channel Islands or Isle of Man).
Emergency accommodation expenses
If your car cannot be used following an accident, and you are more than 100km from your home you will be covered for the cost of accommodation for you and up to 4 passengers. £250 maximum applies.
Essential temporary repairs
If your car cannot be safely driven following an accident, emergency repairs can be arranged to make your car safe and roadworthy up to a total of £750.
Keycare cover
For £19.99 a year you can be covered up to £1,000 per year for any lost or stolen keys. The cover is not limited to car keys and so includes home, workplace and property keys
Windscreen cover
Windscreen cover is standard on all policies and any claim will not affect your No Claim Discount and no policy excess will be charged.
Uninsured Driver Promise
If you have a Comprehensive Plus policy and are involved in an accident with an uninsured driver then your No Claim Discount will not be affected and any policy excess will be reimbursed. Not available with Comprehensive or Third Party Fire and Theft policies.
60 days EU cover
All car insurance policies will provide cover for up to 60 days per year if you travel within the EU.
RAC car insurance policy summary
| Comprehensive Plus | Comprehensive | Third Party Fire and Theft | |
| Courtesy Car | Yes | Yes | No |
| Personal Accident Benefit | £10,000 | 5,000 | No |
| Medical Expenses | Up to £250 | Up to £100 | No |
| Transport home after an accident | Anywhere in Great Britain | No | No |
| Essential temporary repairs | Up to £750 | Up to £750 | No |
| Emergency accommodation expenses | Up to £250 | Up to £250 | No |
| Personal belongings | Up to £250 | Up to £150 | No |
| Sound and Sat-nav equipment | £1,000 or unlimited if manufacturer fitted | £500 or unlimited if manufacturer fitted | £500 or unlimited if manufacturer fitted |
| Cover for accessories | Yes | Yes | No |
| Child seat cover | Yes | No | No |
| Windscreen cover | Yes | Yes | No |
| Replacement locks | Yes | Yes | No |
| Uninsured Drive Promise | Yes | No | No |
| Motor Legal Protection | Free for 12 Months | Free for 12 Months | Free for 12 Months |
| 60 days EU cover | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Repairs guaranteed for 3 years (approved repairers) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| No Claims Discount Protection | Yes | Yes | Yes |
How do RAC car insurance benefits compare with other insurers?
To provide a comparison between RAC car insurance and other similar car insurance providers, we have compared three insures benefits in the table below.
| RAC | Direct Line | Aviva | |
| Guaranteed Car Hire | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Transport after an accident | Comprehensive Plus only | Yes | Yes |
| No Claims Discount Protection | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Breakdown Cover | From £19.99 p.a. | From £25 p.a. | Individual cost calculation |
| Motor Legal Protection (£100,000) | Free for the first 12 months then £15 p.a. | £28 p.a. | £29 p.a. |
| Multi-car Discount | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Black Box available | Yes | Yes | No |
| Admin fee for policy amendments | No | No | No |
| Available on comparison sites | No | No | No |
How to make a claim with RAC
If you need to claim on your RAC car insurance policy then just call the claims helpline on 0333 2000 999 and then will deal with everything for you.
To help with the processing of your claim, you will need to provide the following information:
- Your policy number and documents
- Your vehicle registration number
- Details of what happened and when
- Details of any other vehicles, people or property involved
- Contact details for any witnesses
- Crime reference number if applicable
RAC car insurance customer reviews
Trustpilot
RAC is rated as 'Great' with an average score of 4.2 out of 5.0 from over 70,000 independent customer reviews.
Which?
With an overall score of 56% RAC car insurance ranked 13th out 16 car insurance providers in the Which? car insurance policy survey. However, Which? customers ranked RAC car insurance higher with a score 74% ranking them 5th out 16 car insurance providers.
Summary
RAC car insurance provides a range of standard and optional features such as Black Box Insurance for young or inexperienced drivers and a Pay Per Mile policy for low mileage drivers. Windscreen cover is provided as part of RAC's Comprehensive and Comprehensive Plus policy and making a claim will not affect your No Claim Discount. What is particularly impressive about RAC's windscreen cover is that no excess is charged if making a claim, something most other insurers do charge. Unfortunately, misfuelling is not covered on any of the policies and if you opt to pay your premium monthly you will be charged 30.9% APR.
