Policy renewals (renovación) and surprise premium increases

Key rules

• Your notice: To stop a policy renewing, give written notice at least one month before it ends.
• Insurer's notice: If the insurer will not renew, it must tell you at least two months before the end date.
• Renewal length: A tacit renewal lasts no more than one year at a time.
• Price rises: A higher premium must rest on your contract's terms and objective criteria, and you can contest it.
• Life insurance: Life policies follow their own rules, not this renewal rule.

Your policy probably renews by itself

If your policy says it renews tacitly, it starts a new period automatically when the current one ends. Each new period lasts no more than one year. If you do nothing, you stay insured and you pay the new premium.

Your policy conditions show the end date of the current period and the renewal terms. Find them now, not the week before the date.

This page covers home and other non-life policies. Life insurance follows its own rules, so check your life policy conditions separately.

How to stop a renewal

Send written notice to the insurer. Do it at least one month before the end date. Use a method that leaves proof, such as a registered letter or an email you can show was sent. Keep the proof.

If you miss the deadline, the policy renews for another period. Put the date in the renewal calendar below, with a reminder well ahead of it.

The insurer has a longer deadline. If it does not want to renew, it must tell you at least two months before the end date. If you get that notice, start looking for new cover straight away so you have no gap.

Spotting a price increase

The insurer may change the premium at renewal, because each renewal is a new period. It must tell you about changed terms or price in good time. Compare the new premium and terms with last year's. Look at the excess, the covered items and the sums insured, not just the price.

A rise should rest on your contract's terms and on objective criteria, such as the insurer's tariff or your claims history. If nobody explains the rise, ask for it in writing.

If you disagree with the new premium

You have three options:

• Refuse the new premium and cancel. Give your written notice at least one month before the renewal date.
• Complain first to the insurer's customer service and ask for the reason for the rise. A complaint does not move your cancellation deadline, so keep the date in view.
• Challenge terms that are unfair or not transparent, using consumer protection rules. Your town hall's consumer office can tell you how.

If you plan to switch, arrange the new policy to start on the day the old one ends. Cancel the old one only once the new one is confirmed.

The decision, timeline and checklist below walk you through these choices.

Choosing between options

Should you let your home policy renew or stop it?

• Let it renew: The new premium and terms are acceptable and you do nothing: the policy renews for a new period of no more than one year.

• Stop it renewing: You disagree with the new premium or want to switch: send written notice at least one month before the policy ends.

• Complain first: The increase seems unexplained or not based on the policy's terms: complain to the insurer's customer service while you keep the notice date in mind.

If the insurer has not told you in time that it will not renew, which it must do at least two months before the end date, the policy can renew. Your own written notice must still reach the insurer at least one month before the end date.

Timeline and deadlines

• Find the end date of the current period and the renewal terms in your policy conditions: well before the policy ends

• Expect the insurer's notice if it will not renew: at least two months before the policy ends

• If the policy renews, it runs for a new period of no more than one year: at the end of the current period

Renewal and notice calendar for all your policies

Build one simple calendar for every insurance policy in your household, so you know each renewal date and the last safe day to cancel. It is for anyone with home, car, health or other Spanish policies.

Set up one table with a row per policy

Use a spreadsheet or a digital calendar. Give every policy its own row, so a missed date is easy to spot.

For each policy, write down the insurer and policy number, and what kind of policy it is (home, car, health, life or other). Add the name of the person who handles it, the yearly renewal date, the notice deadline, the premium and how you pay it. Finish with the place where the documents are kept.

Put the policy documents, receipts and claims history in a single folder. Then you can find everything when you compare quotes.

Work out the notice deadline for each policy

Most Spanish policies renew by themselves every year. The notice deadline is the last day you can tell the insurer in writing that you do not want the renewal. Count back from the renewal date using the notice period in your policy conditions. Many contracts set their own period, so read each one rather than assuming. Life policies follow their own rules.

Set three reminders for each policy

• 90 days before renewal, compare quotes and review your cover.
• 60 days before, decide whether to stay or switch.
• 35 days before, send your notice if you are leaving. This is the last safe date.

Keep proof of every notice

Send notice by burofax, registered mail, or email with a read receipt. Keep the copy you sent and any confirmation from the insurer. Without proof, the policy can renew and you pay another year.

Keep the table up to date

Review the whole table every January. Update it after any change in your home, car or family, and after any change of insurer.

Notice periods can differ by contract and by type of policy, so check the conditions of each policy or ask your insurer.

Checklist

• Check whether your policy says it renews tacitly, meaning automatically, each period.

• Compare any new premium or changed terms with last year's, and ask the insurer to explain any increase.

• Send written notice at least one month before the end date if you do not want the policy to renew.

• Keep proof that you sent your written notice.

Frequently asked questions

Can my insurer raise the price when my home policy renews?

Yes, your insurer can revise the premium at renewal, because each renewal starts a new period. The change must rely on the policy's terms and objective criteria such as the tariff or your claims history. It must also tell you in good time.

What can I do if I disagree with the new premium?

You can refuse the new premium and stop the policy renewing by giving written notice at least one month before it ends. You can also complain to the insurer's customer service. If a term seems unfair or unclear, you can challenge it under consumer protection law.

Does the same renewal rule apply to life insurance?

No, the tacit renewal rule described here is for damage insurance such as home policies. Life policies follow their own rules, so read your policy conditions for its term and renewal terms.