You can increase your excess anytime, but you can only reduce it when your policy is up for renewal.
Changing your excess at renewal
Changing your excess at other times
How age affects excess depends on whether a driver is listed on your policy:
For learner drivers, any excess related to a claim when the vehicle was driven by a learner driver is based on the excess of the supervising driver.
See moreAn excess is an amount that may apply and that you may need to contribute towards the cost of a claim. Depending on your policy and the type of claim you make, different excesses may apply.
An excess usually applies for most claims unless there's someone else we can recover the costs from, like the driver of another car who caused the accident. In some cases you’ll be asked to pay the excess to the repairer or supplier. We can also deduct it from any payment we make to you.
To find out which excess type applies to your policy, please refer to your policy document or view your policy in your online account.
For more general information about excesses, see our Premium, Excess and Discounts Guide.
See moreWe’ll talk to you about your options to pay your excess. It depends on the type of claim and how the claim will be settled.
We might ask you to pay your excess to the repairer or supplier that we've arranged to manage your claim. Or, we might deduct the excess from a settlement we pay you.
You can also pay your excess directly to us for your car insurance or your home insurance.
See moreWhen the damage to your car has been inspected, we can discuss the cost of repairs with you.
You can then decide if you'd like to proceed with the claim.
See more