Best alloy wheel insurance providers 2026
Damaged wheels are ugly and expensive to fix. Alloy wheel cover can help – but which is best?
The sickening sound of an alloy wheel scraping on a kerb is enough to make any motorist weep. But as cars have got wider and parking spaces haven’t, there’s pressure to leave the smallest possible gap, and kerb rash is inevitable. To make matters worse, low-profile tyres offer less protection and diamond-cut rims are harder – and pricier – to repair.
You can soften the blow by taking out separate insurance on your alloys, meaning you can cover the cost of a refurb without affecting your no-claims bonus or paying the full cost yourself. It’s often sold as an add-on by car dealers, but you should be able to get a better deal by buying independently.
Many policies will insist you take out the insurance within a few weeks of buying the car, and that purchase must be from a trader rather than a private seller. Make sure you get the cover you want as the claim limits, repair types offered and excesses will vary too.
How we tested the best alloy wheel insurance provider
We asked six insurance providers for prices on alloy-wheel cover on a new Cupra Born, which is being leased. The policy was to cover a three-year period and if a choice was offered, we asked for quotes for both wheel and tyre cover, as well as for the wheels only.
Used - available now
2023 Audi
e-tron
64,750 milesAutomaticElectric
Cash £17,000
2023 MINI
Cooper Electric
27,736 milesAutomaticElectric
Cash £14,116
2023 Ford
Kuga
22,180 milesAutomaticPetrol2.5L
Cash £17,599
2023 Ford
Puma
24,561 milesManualPetrol1.0L
Cash £12,850While cost was the main factor, we also looked closely at the restrictions on claims, any excesses and the choice of cover. We checked if the repairs would be sorted by the insurer or had to be organised by the customer and the cost claimed back. We also favoured websites that were easy to use.
Reviews
See where we ranked the top alloy wheel insurance providers…
tidyalloys.com
- Premium: £199/£470 (wheel/wheel & tyre)
- Claims/year: Four
- Rating: 5 stars
- Website: tidyalloys.com
As the name suggests, Tidy Alloys is a site which specialises in wheel insurance, and as such, it has a highly competitive offering.
The quote process takes just one click, but hang around the homepage and you’ll find plenty of advice and guidance in clear language. A flat-rate of £199 for cover applies to any wheels up to 23 inches in diameter, with a maximum of four claims allowed per year, or 10 claims in total over the three-year cover period. Adding tyre cover increases the price substantially, but you are allowed five claims per year. It’s limited to drivers who have purchased or leased a car within the last 90 days from a dealer.
ala.co.uk
- Premium: £339.53 (wheel & tyre)
- Claims/year: Two
- Rating: 4 stars
- Website: ala.co.uk
Ala will only cover the alloys and tyres together, and you need to purchase the policy within 30 days of getting your new car from a dealer. The car can’t be more than seven years old, either.
The price looks reasonable, but there is a catch – you are limited to two claims annually, for both tyres and wheels. So if you kerb a wheel and damage a sidewall in an incident then that’s your lot for 12 months. You can upgrade to four claims per year, but the cost rises to £402.42.
totallossgap.co.uk
- Premium: £189.99 (wheels only)
- Claims/year: Three
- Rating: 4 stars
- Website: totallossgap.co.uk
Using Total Loss Gap takes some patience because the site has scattered information and a 10-question buffer before finally reaching a price. The initial quotes are nothing special – especially with a £10 excess. But the company also offers an ‘Alloy Wheel Maintenance Plan’ for £189.99, which it says is ‘not an insurance policy’. It has no excess and allows 10 claims in three years. We think this is a way to avoid premium taxes but can’t see a drawback for the customer.
directgap.co.uk
- Premium: £347/£465 (wheel/wheel & tyre)
- Claims/year: Four
- Rating: 3.5 stars
- Website: directgap.co.uk
Getting a Direct Gap quote takes just a few steps, with the site asking how long you want the policy to last and the size of your wheels – you’re not allowed anything bigger than 21 inches.
You are then offered three choices – wheel insurance at £347, tyres at £397 or more competitive combined cover at £465. This allows a maximum of four claims each for wheels and tyres – there is a £10 excess, though. Cover is available on cars up to 10 years old.
motoreasy.com
- Premium: £202.41/£569.33 (wheel/wheel & tyre)
- Claims/year: Four
- Rating: 3.5 stars
- Website: motoreasy.com
Motoreasy is a big name in warranty products and offers its services to other big brands including Halfords. You have to plod through a lot of form-filling to get a quote and will be badgered by sales calls afterwards, but the alloys-only price is among the cheapest here.
It allows up to four claims per year, but the policy only covers cosmetic damage rather than cracks or buckles. The extra cost of adding tyre cover is substantial, though.
Easygap.co.uk
- Premium: £299.99/£489.99 (wheel/wheel & tyre)
- Claims/year: Five
- Rating: 3.5 stars
- Website: easygap.co.uk
We thought the Easy Gap homepage looked familiar, and then realised it is a reskinned version of the Total Loss Gap site. But, oddly, the cheaper ‘Alloy Wheel Maintenance Plan’ option is not available, which leaves you with the choice of two packages that can be bought cheaper elsewhere. On the plus side, you can get cover for vehicles up to 10 years old and can make up to five claims per 12-month period.
Verdict
Tidy Alloys wins here, with low prices and the best cover, plus we couldn’t find any nasties hidden in the small print on the easy-to-use website. ALA’s price for combined cover is initially attractive, but it limits the number of claims you can make, so won’t be suitable if you’re accident prone. Third place goes to Total Loss Gap, which has a cheeky ‘Maintenance Plan’ that cuts costs for wheel cover.
- tidyalloys.com
- ala.co.uk
- totallossgap.co.uk
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