Can I get car insurance while I am banned from driving?

Not as a driver. You cannot drive until the ban ends and you have your licence back, so a policy for you to drive starts from that date. Tell us the end date and we can quote ahead of it.

How long is a ban for penalty points?

Six months, automatically, once you reach 12 points in any three years, or seven points if you hold a learner permit or are in the first two years of your first full licence. You must surrender your licence to the NDLS within 14 days of the start date.

Can I get my licence back early?

Only once you are more than halfway through the disqualification, and not if it is for two years or less or you have had another in the past ten years. You apply to the court that made the order, which can reduce the period to two-thirds of the original or to two years, whichever is greater, and considers the offence, your character and your conduct since.

Does a fixed penalty drink-driving ban count as a disqualification?

Yes. Paying the fixed penalty within 28 days avoids court but the disqualification order is still imposed. Our full quote asks about disqualifications and their dates, so declare it.

What if I was banned abroad?

Ireland and the UK recognise each other’s driving disqualifications for certain offences, but not penalty points, and points from other countries are not recognised between states. Declare a disqualification wherever it was imposed if the full quote asks about it.

What do I need to get a quote?

For the Quick Quote: the car’s registration and value, your area, name, date of birth, licence type, no-claims years, mobile number, email, cover start date and Eircode. For the full quote: the reason for the ban, its dates, and the court and offence if there was one.

Car insurance after a driving ban

A ban and a disqualification are the same thing: a period in which you may not drive. You cannot insure yourself to drive while it runs. When it ends and you have your licence back you can apply, and the ban and the reason for it are things you declare. Enter your details in the form below and one of our agents reviews them, checks which of the 14 different insurers we compare will quote, and calls you back with the options. Do it before the end date and tell us when cover needs to start.

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How disqualification works in Ireland

There are two routes. Penalty points: 12 points in any three-year period, or seven if you hold a learner permit or are within the first two years of your first full licence, brings an automatic six-month disqualification; the Road Safety Authority (RSA) writes with the start date and you must surrender your licence within 14 days. Conviction: you are disqualified for an offence, by a court or by paying a fixed penalty notice that carries a disqualification.

There are three kinds of court order. A consequential disqualification is automatic under law, for example on conviction for drink driving or for dangerous driving causing death, and you generally have ten days to surrender your licence. An ancillary disqualification is at the court’s discretion for any Road Traffic Act offence, again with ten days to surrender. A special disqualification follows a Garda application on grounds of physical or mental unfitness or incompetence, with 14 days to surrender, and Citizens Information says it rarely happens.

Driving while disqualified is a serious offence that can lead to heavy fines, prison or both, and the National Driver Licence Service (NDLS) returns your licence after the period ends. You can apply to the court that made the order for early restoration once you are more than halfway through the disqualification; the licence will not be restored if the ban is for two years or less or if you have had another disqualification in the past ten years, and the court can reduce the period to two-thirds of the original or to two years, whichever is greater.

Getting back on the road when the ban ends

Declaring it. Our full quote asks about disqualifications and about the convictions or points behind them, over a set number of past years. The Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019 requires answers that are honest and given with reasonable care; the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission’s (CCPC) warning is that undisclosed details can lead to the policy being cancelled and make later cover hard to find. Give the reason, the start and end dates, and the court and offence if there was one.

Your no-claims bonus. Citizens Information notes that if you go two or more years without insurance in your own name, many insurers will not give you your no-claims discount when you reapply. Keep your last no-claims letter and declare the gap; each insurer decides how it treats it.

The three kinds of disqualification order and how each is imposed are on our disqualified driver insurance page. Drink driving and drug driving have their own pages, and the hub is car insurance for convicted drivers. Three written refusals bring you under Insurance Ireland’s Declined Cases Agreement, and its committee arranges a quote; see our refused car insurance page.

Have ready the reason for the ban, its start and end dates, the court and offence if there was one, your licence status, and your no-claims bonus letter. To talk it through, call 0818 92 92 42, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5.30pm.

Sources: Citizens Information – being disqualified from driving; Citizens Information – penalty points; Citizens Information – motor insurance; Consumer Insurance Contracts Act 2019; CCPC – car insurance. Last reviewed September 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I get car insurance while I am banned from driving?
Not as a driver. You cannot drive until the ban ends and you have your licence back, so a policy for you to drive starts from that date. Tell us the end date and we can quote ahead of it.
How long is a ban for penalty points?
Six months, automatically, once you reach 12 points in any three years, or seven points if you hold a learner permit or are in the first two years of your first full licence. You must surrender your licence to the NDLS within 14 days of the start date.
Can I get my licence back early?
Only once you are more than halfway through the disqualification, and not if it is for two years or less or you have had another in the past ten years. You apply to the court that made the order, which can reduce the period to two-thirds of the original or to two years, whichever is greater, and considers the offence, your character and your conduct since.
Does a fixed penalty drink-driving ban count as a disqualification?
Yes. Paying the fixed penalty within 28 days avoids court but the disqualification order is still imposed. Our full quote asks about disqualifications and their dates, so declare it.
Will I lose my no-claims bonus during a ban?
It depends on the gap. Citizens Information notes that after two or more years without insurance in your own name, many insurers will not give you your no-claims discount when you reapply. Keep your last no-claims letter and declare the gap.
What if I was banned abroad?
Ireland and the UK recognise each other’s driving disqualifications for certain offences, but not penalty points, and points from other countries are not recognised between states. Declare a disqualification wherever it was imposed if the full quote asks about it.
What do I need to get a quote?
For the Quick Quote: the car’s registration and value, your area, name, date of birth, licence type, no-claims years, mobile number, email, cover start date and Eircode. For the full quote: the reason for the ban, its dates, and the court and offence if there was one.