Skip to content
Back to Insurance
Back to Holidays
Back to Saga Money
Back to Saga Magazine
A couple of cyclists relaxing next to a river in autumn

BICYCLE INSURANCE

Get bike cover for mountain-biking, roadie trips and green commutes

Bicycle cover with Saga Plus and Saga Select Contents insurance

Whether you’re happy to hurtle down hills on your mountain bike or you’re doing your bit for the environment by cycling rather than driving, you’ll want to be sure your bike’s insured against theft and accidental damage. But what’s the best bicycle insurance for your needs?

What is bicycle insurance?

If your bike is stolen or damaged, bicycle insurance will cover the cost of replacing or repairing it. Depending on what type of bike cover you have, it can protect you when you ride your bike, when you leave your bike locked up away from home, or if you race at cycling events.

Bicycle insurance sometimes also provides financial protection if you’re injured while riding, or if you cause an accident involving other people.

How does bicycle insurance work?

If you can’t bear the thought of being without your wheels but you don’t want to face the cost of replacing a bike out of your own pocket, bicycle insurance can help minimise disruption and reduce expense.

Most home insurance policies have an option to include some kind of cover that will protect against damaged or stolen bikes, but if you ride a more expensive bike or you have more specialist needs such as racing at events, you may want to look into additional insurance.

Specialist bike insurers can offer bike cover for a range of different situations:

  • mountain bike insurance
  • push bike insurance
  • electric bicycle insurance
  • road bicycle insurance

So whether you occasionally cycle for leisure, or you regularly race or cycle abroad, it’s important to know exactly what aspects of bicycle insurance suits you. That will help you decide if a general or more specialist policy fits your needs, and what level of cover you should get.

What does home contents bicycle insurance cover?

Saga Plus Contents Insurance covers unspecified personal belongings away from home as standard, which includes loss or damage to your bicycles and their accessories up to £1,000 each.

This cover can be added to Saga Select policies as an optional extra.

With our home contents insurance bicycle cover you can also choose to add specified bicycles to be covered outside of your home. This will allow you to add bicycles above the usual £1,000 limit.

Whichever way you choose to cover your bicycle with Saga, we'll cover your bike and accessories anywhere in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, or in Europe for up to 60 consecutive days.

Does home insurance cover bicycle accidents?

If you’re in an accident when you’re on your bike and it’s your fault, it's sometimes possible for the injured person or damaged party to make a claim against you for legal liability.

With Saga Plus and Saga Select contents insurance, personal liability cover is included as standard up to £2 million. If you’re involved in an accident and people are injured or property damaged.

Does renters insurance cover bicycle theft?

Saga's home contents for renters can include bicycle insurance which covers theft and accidental damage. This may be optional or standard depending on whether you choose our Select or Plus level of cover.

Find out more about renters insurance

What’s the difference between bicycle insurance and home contents insurance bicycle cover?

Contents insurance bicycle cover in the home is included in most home contents insurance policies and provides cover to a set limit for the theft or damage of your bike on your property. You can also insure your bicycle separately with a standalone policy.

Contents insurance bicycle cover

Bikes are often included in a home contents policy, but there will be a limit on the amount of cover this includes.

Home contents policies cover theft and accidental damage, with some additional options:

  • away from home cover
  • accessories
  • European travel

Bicycle insurance

Specialist bike cover adds other services to the basic cover for damage and theft that will apply to specific cycling activities.

These options might include:

  • personal accidents and collisions
  • replacement bike hire
  • competition and race fees
  • European and worldwide travel
  • commuting or commercial use

Cover varies from policy to policy, so you should always check the details, to make sure your bike is insured for the way you use it and that you aren’t buying additional cover when your home contents insurance already has bike cover.

Who are Saga's home insurance policies underwritten by?

Saga Home Insurance policies, exclusively for people over 50, are unique products designed specifically for our customers. They are underwritten by a number of carefully selected insurers that provide our high standards of quality and service.

Get a contents insurance quote with bicycle cover

Is bicycle insurance necessary?

Even though cyclists often ride on public roads, there’s no legal requirement in the UK to have insurance to ride your bicycle. But if you’re concerned about bicycle theft, insurance will help you feel more confident about leaving your bike securely fastened when you’re out and about. And the cost of bicycle insurance will be much lower than the cost of replacing your bicycle with a new one.

A lot will depend on the type of bike you have and the way you use it. The best bicycle insurance for you will depend on how much your bike costs, how often you use it and what you use it for. If you have an expensive bike that you use regularly then bicycle insurance might be more important to you than if you’re an occasional rider of a cheaper bike.

Once you’ve decided you do need bicycle insurance, you’ll need to investigate whether you already have enough bike cover with home contents insurance, or should get bicycle insurance separately.

What doesn’t bicycle insurance cover?

Our bicycle insurance doesn’t cover the following:

  • The excess you agree to pay
  • Loss or damage caused by wear and tear, or any scratches and dents
  • Cuts to tyres or burst tyres
  • Any damage caused when cleaning, restoring or repairing your bike
  • Bikes kept by students in halls of residence or other student housing
  • Bikes used for racing, pacemaking or testing
  • Theft or attempted theft if you haven’t securely locked your bike on its own
  • Any claims outside the UK or Europe unless we agree it before you go
  • Any claims for bikes in Europe for more than 60 days, unless we agree it before you go and you pay any extra premium needed
  • Motorised bicycles designed to travel over 15.5mph unassisted

You should always check your policy book to make sure that you have the exact cover you need.

How to keep your bike safe

Bike theft is a common problem in the UK, with one bike stolen every six minutes. In 2020/21, 77,300 bikes were stolen in England and Wales, causing a major headache for everyone affected.

To lower the risk of becoming just another bike theft statistic, you can take these steps:

  1. Invest in a good quality bike lock and if you have to leave your bike, make sure it’s secured to something that can’t be stolen along with it.
  2. When out and about, lock up your bike in well-lit public areas, somewhere with CCTV if you can.
  3. Keep your bike in a secure place – your locked garage is an ideal home for it.
  4. Add your bike to the BikeRegister, a national cycling database that helps track your bike if it does get stolen.

Taking these precautions will mean your bike is less likely to be stolen, while having the right bicycle insurance in place means it should cost you less to repair or replace your bike if you have to.