Review: Carrot Insurance

Summary

Carrot Insurance is a newcomer on the market (founded in 2012), specialising in black box insurance, particularly for young or less experienced drivers. The company offers weekly rewards, cash back deals and the option to manage your account from a handy phone app.

Carrot is listed as one of the best black box car insurance companies in our guide.

Click the link to see if Carrot Insurance made it into our list of the Best Insurance for Young Drivers.

From March 2018, Carrot started moving customers who had policies underwritten by Alpha Insurance A/S to policies covered by Aviva.

When Alpha was declared bankrupt on 8 May 2018 there were around 9,000 who had yet to be moved. They were transferred on 9 May but Carrot says there was a period of under 24 hours between 8 and 9 May when they did not have full cover.

In a letter sent to customers, Carrot said: "Fortunately, during this time if you were involved in an incident which may give rise to a claim as a UK private motor insurance policyholder you will fall under the protection of the Danish Guarantee Fund."

Customers who have been transferred to Aviva won't have to pay any additional premiums and if they're unhappy with the new policy they can cancel within 14 days with no additional charges. Although they'll have to seek a refund from The Danish Guarantee Fund independently.

What is Telematics Insurance?

Telematics is when a black box is installed in your vehicle, which sends data back to the insurer about the quality of your driving. This method has seen a dramatic rise in popularity in the past few years, as it can save drivers between 30% and 70% off their premiums, particularly those under 25 or with not much driving experience.

Understandably, however, not everyone is a fan. This technology can also be a detriment, as some insurers penalise drivers for driving at night, driving long distance and for sometimes unavoidable instances of harsh breaking and sharp corners.

Overview of the cover provided by Carrot Car Insurance

Carrot Insurance is attempting to set itself apart from its competitors, mainly by the ethos the company runs on. Carrot want to “help dispense with the idea that young drivers are bad drivers”, and they do this by using Telematics and a cash back and reward system for good driving.

It is important to note Carrot Insurance do not raise premiums for less than ideal driving, but your premiums will not be reduced on renewal (and of course you will lose out on all the rewards) if your driving does not improve with time.

There are two types of products available – New Driver and Better Driver.

New Driver is aimed at those with less than two years driving experience. It includes accidental cover, windscreen cover, EU Cover for up to 14 days, personal effects cover, a free courtesy car and cover in case your car is stolen (the GPS technology in the i-box might come in handy here and help police find your missing car). Legal Expenses Cover for up to £100,000 can be added to the policy for no extra cost.

Better Driver is for those with over two years’ experience on the road. As this policy relies heavily on the Better Driver app, it is only available for vehicles which have a native Bluetooth connection. The policy includes all the same benefits of the New Driver cover, but the rewards earned for safe driving are greater.

Breakdown Cover can be added to either policy for an additional premium.

Please note Carrot Car Insurance does not cover cars which have been modified in any way from the manufacturer’s original spec.

Check out our guide to the Best Insurance for Young Drivers to see how Carrot Insurance compares to other providers.

How much does insurance cover from Carrot Insurance cost?

Car insurance is always influenced by many personal factors, such as the details of the car driven and the driver. When it comes to Telematics driving, pricing the policy becomes all the more personal. While the starting premium might be based on things like the age, make, model and mileage of the car, plus the age and location of the driver, the data the insurer gets from the black box installed in the car will make all the difference, particularly on renewal.

With Carrot Insurance, drivers can earn up to 15% of their premiums back throughout the year. This is done in the form of a cash bonus, which goes into a debit card provided by Carrot that can be used in a variety of select retailers (including House of Fraser, Topshop, HMV and Papa John’s).

What do Carrot Insurance reviews by customers say?

As Carrot is such a recent addition to the car insurance market, there are not yet many reviews for its service available online. However, what is there is largely positive.

On Reviews.co.uk, Carrot Car Insurance scores 3.78 out of 5 stars, with 46% of more than 2,000 customers who left reviews giving the service 5 stars, and a further 24% leaving 4-star reviews.

On Trustpilot it scores 5.4 out of 10 from more than 300 customer reviews.

What do Carrot Insurance reviews from the experts say?

Defaqto – the independent reviewer of financial products – gave Carrot Car Insurance 2 out of 5 stars base on its cover levels and policy features.