Insure a friend’s cars for one hour via app

Cuvva is making it possible for users to get insured on their friend's cars, on-demand, for as little as an hour.

Owning a car in London and other UK cities is prohibitively expensive and good public transport services make it a luxury rather than a necessity. However, there are times when a car is required and a new Edinburgh-based startup Cuvva is making it possible for users to insure themselves on-demand for as little as an hour.

Previously, drivers looking to borrow a car from a friend or family member were required to arrange to be covered by the owner’s insurance policy, usually for a minimum of 24 hours and with time-consuming paperwork. Now, Cuvva is offering on-demand car insurance via an easy to use smartphone app. To begin, users must take a selfie and give Cuvva permission to verify their identity and license. Then they enter the license plate and how long they want cover for to receive a quote. Once they accept the rate and excess, their insurance is activated immediately.

Cuvva envision the service being used by those looking to share driving duties, take the wheel from a friend who is over the alcohol limit or need to borrow the family car. The service is currently available to anyone in the UK over the age of 21. We’ve already seen an online guide to hotels available for a few hours, what other services could be made available for extremely short periods?