What the law says about your insurance dates
Until when you can say you are not renewing, how much advance notice of changes you have to be given and when you can withdraw, with the article each date comes from. And what happens if you insure for less than something is worth.
Reviewed on 11 October 2026Sources: Ley 50/1980 · Ley 22/2007Who is behind this
Saying you are not renewing
If your policy renews automatically each year, you can object to its extension (prórroga). The law requires you to notify the insurer in writing at least one month before the end of the current period (art. 22.2 of the Ley de Contrato de Seguro, the Insurance Contracts Act, as worded since 01-01-2016).
It has not been settled whether it is enough to send your letter on that last day or whether it has to have arrived, so the review gives you the day by which it has to have arrived. If the month before the expiry date does not have that same day, its last day is taken: no rule settles that case when counting backwards, so it is an interpretation and the earliest day is given.
Laws
The notice of changes
The insurer has to notify you of any change to the contract at least two months before the end of the current period (art. 22.3). The review tells you how many days in advance the notice reached you and, for information, how much the premium goes up or down.
What consequence a notice that arrives late has is not stated here: it has not been found in an official source. And if the only thing that changes is the premium, no statement is made on whether that counts as a change to the contract for these purposes.
Laws
Withdrawing from insurance taken out at a distance
If you took out the insurance online or by phone without meeting anyone, you have 14 calendar days to withdraw (desistir), from when you took it out or, if you received the contract terms later, from that day (art. 10.1 of Ley 22/2007).
The law excludes insurance with which you meet an obligation to be insured, such as compulsory car insurance. Home insurance required by your mortgage also meets one (art. 8 of Ley 2/1981). The law does not make clear whether you can withdraw from only the voluntary cover in those policies: in those cases the review does not give a date.
Laws
Insuring for less or more than something is worth
If the sum insured is less than what the insured item is worth, the insurer pays the damage in the same proportion, unless the policy excludes this (art. 30). For example, a home worth 200.000 € insured for 150.000 €: for damage of 20.000 €, the insurer pays 15.000 €.
If the sum insured is much higher than what the insured item is worth, either party can ask for it to be reduced, together with the premium; and in the event of a loss (siniestro) the actual damage is paid (art. 31).
Laws
What you declare and what the policy says
Before taking out the policy, the law requires you to declare what the insurer asks you in its questionnaire and that you know; what the questionnaire does not ask, you have no duty to declare (art. 10).
If the policy does not match what you asked for or what you agreed, the law gives you one month from when it is delivered to you to ask the insurer to correct it; after that month, what the policy says applies (art. 8).
Laws
Where to get free information
- The Dirección General de Seguros y Fondos de Pensiones (DGSFP), which supervises insurers.
- The complaints service (Servicio de Reclamaciones) of the Dirección General de Seguros y Fondos de Pensiones.
- The municipal consumer information offices (OMIC) and the consumer services of your region (comunidad autónoma).
What the review does not look at
- Whether the clauses in your policy are clear and valid
- Whether the price of your insurance is expensive or cheap
- Whether the sum insured matches what your home or your car is worth
- How a loss (siniestro) is assessed
Frequently asked questions
Until when can I say I am not renewing my insurance?
The law requires you to notify the insurer in writing at least one month before the end of the current period (art. 22.2 of the Ley de Contrato de Seguro, the Insurance Contracts Act). As the law does not make clear whether sending it on that day is enough, the review assumes the letter has to have arrived by then. The review works out that last day from the expiry date of your policy.
How much advance notice do they have to give me of a change to the policy?
The insurer has to notify you of any change to the contract at least two months before the end of the current period (art. 22.3 of the Ley de Contrato de Seguro, the Insurance Contracts Act). What consequence a notice that arrives late has is not stated here: it has not been found in an official source.
Can I withdraw from insurance taken out online?
If you took it out online or by phone without meeting anyone, you have 14 calendar days from when you took it out or, if you received the contract terms later, from that day; for life insurance it is 30 days (art. 10.1 of Ley 22/2007). It does not apply to insurance with which you meet an obligation to be insured, such as compulsory car insurance.
What happens if I insure my home for less than it is worth?
The insurer pays the damage in the same proportion as there is between the sum insured and what the insured item is worth, unless the policy excludes this (art. 30 of the Ley de Contrato de Seguro). For example, a home worth 200.000 € insured for 150.000 €: for damage of 20.000 €, the insurer pays 15.000 €.
What do I have to declare when taking out insurance?
What the insurer asks you in its questionnaire and that you know; what the questionnaire does not ask, you have no duty to declare (art. 10 of the Ley de Contrato de Seguro).
What happens to the details I type?
Everything is calculated on your device: what you type does not leave it and is not stored. The review does not ask for your name, your DNI or your policy number. Of your visit, only which sheets you go through and the result, as codes from a closed list, are measured, without cookies; never your dates, your premiums or the insurer's name.