Insurers use car insurance groups to determine the amount of premiums to charge for each group. If you are looking for a cheap car insurance group, then you need to buy a car in a low insurance group.
- To find car insurance group for your car, you can use the Money Supermarket or Compare the Market group checker tools.
- For a good overall comparison you can also check car insurance companies that are not listed on those comparison sites.
What are Car Insurance Groups?
Every car belongs to one of the 50 car insurance groups. Car insurance groups bands cars hence determining the most expensive and the least expensive vehicle to insure. For instance, new cars range from 20 in the car insurance group list to insurance group 1 cars. In this case, 1 represents the lowest risk hence it belongs to the lowest insurance group. Cars in group 50 of the car insurance group list are the most expensive. Consequently, they attract higher premiums.
Factors Determining Car Insurance Groups UK
Group panel rating decides the car insurance groups in the UK. The panel uses the following factors to determine where new car models will fall into.
- The value of new cars
- Availability and price of spare parts
- The extent of damage costs
- The performance of the vehicle in terms of power, speed and acceleration
- Repair times
- Safety features of the vehicle like the AEB (autonomous emergency braking)
- Security features of the car like alarm
In addition, the security features of the car also play a critical role in determining car insurance groups UK. Security features are denoted by the letters E A P D U G:
- E Excellent for the type of car. It reduces the group rating by one. For example, a vehicle in the car insurance group 7 with E rating will be 6E.
- A Acceptable
- P Provincial
- D Doesn’t meet security requirements
- U Unacceptable
- G Import
How to Lower Cost in Insurance Car Groups
If you are aiming at lowering the cost of insurance, one of the surest ways is to purchase a car that belongs to the cheap car insurance groups. However, if you already have a car that belongs to the higher car insurance groups, then you can reduce the premiums in the following ways.
- Enhance the security features of your car like locking the garage
- Take an annual insurance cover instead of a monthly one so that you can get discounts
- Reduce the miles you drive the car
- Consider the black box insurance
- Pay insurance excesses
- Take advantage of No-claims bonus
Types of car
There are many car insurance categories and cars can be classified in many ways. Here’s a list according to Wikipedia.
- Microcar, Bubble car
- City car
- Supermini
- Small family car
- Large family car
- Compact executive car
- Executive car
- Luxury car, BMW 7, Audi A8, Tesla Model S
- Grand tourer
- Supercar, a fancy, very expensive car, often made in Italy, e.g. Ferrari, Lamborghini or Bugatti
- Convertible, a car with a roof that can be opened for an open air experience, e.g. a Volvo C70
- Roadster
- Mini MPV
- Compact MPV
- Large MPV
- Van, e.g. Ford Transit, Volkswagen Transporter, Mercedes-Benz Sprinter
- Minibus
- Compact SUV
- Mini 4×4
- Large 4×4, e.g. a Hummer H2
- Pick-up
The other category of cars is according to classification by the European Commission document. Classic cars and taxis belong to special cases of the car insurance groups.
Other Car Insurance Categories
The other insurance groups cars are based on the type of engine:
- Electric engine
- Hybrid engine
- Diesel engine
Most insurers consider the size and power of the engine and the car’s acceleration to determine the amount of premiums they will charge.
4X4 Vehicle Insurance Groups
4×4 insurance groups are of two types: mini 4×4 and large 4×4. The size of the car and its engine determine the insurance category. When you are looking for a 4×4 car insurance quote, make sure that you have the details of your car at hand. The size of car and engine will make a big difference in the amount of premiums you will pay.
Car Insurance Categories vs Groups
Car insurance groups are the same as car insurance categories. They determine the amount of premiums you will pay for insuring your car. Different types of vehicles fall under different car insurance categories or car insurance groups. You need to find car insurance group that is specific to the type and category of your vehicle. For instance, if you’re looking for a van insurance, then the only car insurance you can choose falls under the insurance groups for vans.
You can always check insurance groups prices online.