Compare Breakdown Cover for Older Cars

There are many different levels of breakdown cover on offer. Most drivers will consider factors such as the condition and age of their car and where they typically drive their car before deciding on the level of cover they should take out. Basic breakdown cover will include roadside assistance and recovery to a nearby garage in most cases. However, policyholders will pay more for cover that includes things like home start recovery, national recovery or even European recovery.

Most breakdown cover policies will have an age limit on the cars they are willing to cover. This is because older cars are more likely to break down. However, many providers still offer cover to cars that are between 15 to 20 years old.

The levels of breakdown cover for older cars are similar to those available to younger cars. However, it’s important to check the age restrictions on the cars that the policy will cover before taking out breakdown cover.

Roadside assistance is a basic level of breakdown cover and usually includes calling out a repair engineer who will try to fix your car by the roadside and recover it to a nearby garage, should that not be possible. Many drivers opt to add ‘home start’ to their policies to ensure they can also call out help if their car won’t start while they are still at home or very close to home.

National recovery is another level of breakdown cover that will often include recovery to a garage anywhere in the country and may include recovery of the driver, the passengers and the car to any UK address.

European cover can provide those using their car abroad with the peace of mind that breakdown cover provides. European breakdown cover will allow drivers to call out roadside recovery when in Europe and might even cover repatriation of the car and onward journey expenses for the driver and passengers.

Anyone who drives a vehicle that is around 15 years old or more may find it more difficult to obtain breakdown cover, but some providers do continue to offer it. For those who drive very old cars, such as classic cars, specialist breakdown cover is available, but it is likely to cost more than standard breakdown cover.

Most policies have a number of eligibility criteria for the vehicles they will cover under a standard breakdown policy and the car’s age is just one such criteria. Older cars are more likely to break down, which might mean a driver of an older car will have to make many more call-outs than a driver of a brand new car, for example.