esure in 60 seconds
esure at a glance (2026)
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About esure
esure was founded in 1999 by Peter Wood, the entrepreneur who created Direct Line in 1985. The group launched as a direct-to-consumer motor insurer aimed at undercutting incumbents through telephone and (from 2000) online sales. esure listed on the London Stock Exchange in 2013 with a market cap of around £1.2 billion, before being taken back into private ownership by Bain Capital in 2018 for £1.21 billion.
Today esure runs three brands from a single underwriting platform in Reigate: esure for mainstream motor and home customers, Sheilas' Wheels aimed at women drivers, and First Alternative for non-standard motor risks. The group covers around 2 million UK policyholders.
Why the lowercase "esure"?The brand name was deliberately styled in lowercase from launch to evoke a digital-first identity, similar to easyJet and several late-1990s dot-com brands that wanted to look more accessible than the old establishment.
Ownership and group structure
esure Group plc is owned by Bain Capital, the US private equity firm, following the 2018 take-private. esure Insurance Ltd is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the FCA and PRA. The group is no longer listed and does not publish standalone share information.
Strategy: tech-led, multi-brand
Since the 2018 take-private, esure has invested heavily in a new digital platform, replacing its legacy systems with a cloud-based stack used across esure, Sheilas' Wheels and First Alternative. The strategy is to compete with Aviva, Direct Line and Admiral Group on aggregator-led car and home insurance while keeping a sharper price-per-quote thanks to lower operating costs.
esure ceased selling travel insurance in 2017, focusing instead on motor and home where it has the largest data set and the strongest brand recognition.
esure insurance: cover and prices in 2026
esure offers a focused product range built around motor and home. The headline products are below.
The esure product range
esure Car Insurance
Comprehensive, third-party fire and theft, or third-party only. Multi-car discount, named-driver no-claims bonus and optional Driving Convictions cover for points-affected customers.
- Up to £100,000 personal accident cover.
- Courtesy car included on Comprehensive.
- European cover up to 90 days included.
esure Home Insurance
Combined buildings and contents or standalone, with optional accidental damage, home emergency and legal expenses. Three tiers (Bronze, Silver, Gold).
- Up to £1m buildings cover.
- Up to £75,000 contents cover.
- Optional £1,000 freezer-contents cover.
Sheilas' Wheels
Long-running brand aimed at women drivers, with handbag cover and personal-belongings cover as standard. Underwritten by esure Insurance Ltd from Reigate.
- Handbag cover up to £300.
- Personal belongings cover included.
- Optional Sheilas' Choice extras.
First Alternative
esure Group brand for non-standard motor risks: modified cars, convicted drivers and complex no-claims histories. Underwritten by esure Insurance Ltd.
- Cover for modified vehicles.
- Open to convicted drivers (DR / SP codes).
- Single-car or multi-car policies.
esure Motorcycle Insurance
Standalone motorcycle insurance for road bikes, scooters and trikes. Three cover levels, named-driver options and optional helmet and leather cover.
- Helmet and leather cover available.
- Up to £7,500 personal effects cover.
- No-claims bonus transferable from car.
esure Optional Extras
Layered extras for motor and home: motor legal protection, breakdown cover (RAC partnership), key cover, home emergency and lifestyle legal protection.
- RAC breakdown from £36 a year.
- Motor legal protection from £28 a year.
- Home emergency call-out included on Gold.
Three brands, one underwriteresure, Sheilas' Wheels and First Alternative all share the same Reigate underwriting team. Compare quotes on each brand on a price-comparison site before you buy — the same risk can return very different prices depending on the brand selected.
Making a claim with esure
esure claims are handled in-house from Reigate. Motor and home claims can be reported online, through the My esure account or by phone 24 hours a day. esure publishes a claims-acceptance ratio of around 96% on motor and 92% on home in its latest annual report.
For step-by-step instructions on the claims process, visit the esure help and support pages. Have your policy number and (for motor) the other driver's details ready when you call.
My esure: app and online account
Every esure policy can be managed from the My esure online account or the iOS/Android app. From the account you can view documents, add a driver, change cover, renew or start a claim. Sheilas' Wheels and First Alternative customers use the same account.
- Sign in: by registered email and password.
- Forgotten password: reset via the email on file with a secure link.
- Biometric login: Face ID, Touch ID and Android fingerprint supported.
- Two-factor authentication: SMS verification on sensitive changes such as adding a driver or updating bank details.
My esure across brandsIf you hold a Sheilas' Wheels policy and an esure home policy, both appear under the same My esure account — there is no need to register twice.
esure customer service
esure phone numbers change from time to time and differ by product and policy, so we do not list them here. The reliable contact details for your cover are the ones esure publishes for you directly.
How to contact esure
- For the general customer service line and the 24/7 motor and home claims numbers, use the number printed on your policy documents or in the My esure online account.
- You can manage your policy, message esure securely and find the current contact options through your online account or the esure app.
- Sheilas' Wheels and First Alternative customers can find their dedicated contact details in their own policy documents and online accounts.
- The current numbers and contact forms are listed on the esure help and support pages.
Contact esure online
- My esure: log in to the app or website for secure messaging and most policy changes.
- Live chat: available from the esure help pages during UK business hours.
- X (Twitter): send a DM to @esure for general queries (never share policy or payment details).
- Email: sensitive issues should be raised through My esure secure messaging rather than personal email.
Writing to esure
esure Insurance Ltd is registered in Reigate, Surrey, and the current registered office is shown on the FCA Register (firm reference 202787). For policy correspondence and complaints, use the address printed on your policy schedule, as it routes your letter to the right team.
How to complain about esure
Raise the issue first with esure by phone, in My esure or in writing. If esure does not resolve the complaint within eight weeks, or you receive a final response you disagree with, you can escalate the complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service free of charge.
Is esure a good insurer? Reviews and ratings
esure sits in the middle of the UK Trustpilot field at around 4.0/5 from more than 60,000 reviews. Reviews highlight the simplicity of the website and the cost of cover for first-time direct customers; the most common criticism is renewal pricing, with several reviews mentioning a meaningful gap between the aggregator quote and the renewal letter.
Defaqto rates esure Comprehensive Car at 5 Stars on the standard variant. Fairer Finance has consistently placed Sheilas' Wheels in the upper half of its women's-insurer rankings, helped by the handbag and personal-belongings cover included as standard.
If price is your priority, run an esure quote alongside our list of the best UK insurance providers before you renew.
esure news 2024–2026
- 2024: esure completes the rollout of its new cloud-based core insurance platform across motor and home for all three brands.
- 2025: esure relaunches Sheilas' Wheels with a refreshed brand identity to mark its 20th anniversary.
- July 2025: Following the Aviva-Direct Line merger, esure becomes one of the largest remaining independent UK personal-lines insurers.
- 2026: esure adds AI-led repair-shop routing on motor claims, reducing the average time from first notification of loss to courtesy car delivery.
esure timeline
- 1985: Peter Wood founds Direct Line.
- 1999: Peter Wood founds esure as a direct-to-consumer motor insurer.
- 2005: Sheilas' Wheels launched as an esure brand aimed at women drivers.
- 2013: esure Group plc lists on the London Stock Exchange.
- 2017: esure withdraws from travel insurance.
- 2018: Bain Capital takes esure private for £1.21bn.
- 2022: New cloud-based platform begins phased rollout.
- 2024: Platform rollout completes across all three brands.
- 2025: Sheilas' Wheels relaunched on its 20th anniversary.
- 2026: AI-led repair-shop routing introduced on motor claims.
esure FAQ
esure Insurance Ltd is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the PRA (FCA reference 202787). Policyholders are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), which covers 90% of an insurance claim with no upper limit on most general insurance products.
Yes. Sheilas' Wheels is a brand of esure Group, underwritten by esure Insurance Ltd from the same Reigate office. The brand was launched in 2005 to focus on women drivers, with handbag cover and personal-belongings cover included as standard.
No. esure stopped selling new travel insurance in 2017 to focus on motor and home cover. Existing travel policies were honoured to expiry but not renewed.
You have a 14-day cooling-off period in which you can cancel any new esure policy and receive a full refund minus a small admin fee. After the cooling-off period you can still cancel but esure will keep the portion of premium covering the time on risk plus an admin fee.
esure has been owned by Bain Capital, the US private equity firm, since 2018. esure was previously listed on the London Stock Exchange between 2013 and 2018.