Your Guide to Car Insurance Groups

19/07/2024 09:32 Share

What are car insurance groups, and how do they affect my premium? All your questions answered.

Car insurance groups define how much premium you pay for your car.
If you own a high-performance car, your insurance group is likely to be higher.
The letters in the insurance group indicate how safe your vehicle is.
Several factors, including the car’s value and repair times, affect the car’s insurance group.

Do you often wonder what car insurance groups are, and why are they important? Let us enlighten you, so you can make an informed decision on your next car.

What are car insurance groups?

Each car is part of an insurance group. There are 50 groups, which insurers use to define how much you pay to insure your car. Models in group one are the least expensive to insure, whereas the vehicles in the highest groups are the most expensive.

A good rule of thumb is that the more powerful, fast, and premium your car is, the more expensive it will be to insure.

What do the letters mean in insurance groups?

The letter behind the insurance group demonstrates the level of safety of the vehicle.

A: The car meets the set safety standards.
D: This vehicle does not meet the safety standards of its group and is moved to the higher insurance group.
E: The model exceeds the set standards and is placed in a lower insurance group.
P: The vehicle’s data is only provisional, as the rating system was not complete when the vehicle was introduced.
U: This car’s safety is significantly below the requirements. The vehicle can be insured, but the insurance provider may require upgraded safety systems.
G: This car has been imported – these vehicles fall under two groups: parallel imports and grey imports.

How are the insurance groups defined?

These groups are set up by the ABI Group Rating Panel. The panel consists of members of the Association of British Insurers and the Lloyd Market Association. They use data by Thatcham Research, which is known for the Euro NCAP testing.

All groups are defined by the following factors:

The value of the new car – price and specifications.
Repair and parts costs of the car.
Repair time estimates – the longer the repairs take, the higher the insurance group.
Performance of the car – high-performance cars are more likely to have an insurance claim.
Safety of the vehicle – the car’s AEB system helps avoid low-speed accidents.
Bumper structure.
Vehicle security – the better the security systems, the lower the insurance group.

How about electric cars?

Electric cars are allocated into the insurance groups in the same way as other cars. However, as these vehicles are less common, the cost of repairs and replacement parts can be more difficult to anticipate. This may lead to a higher insurance group compared to petrol or diesel vehicles.

As electric vehicles get more popular in the coming years, they will soon be treated the same way as any other vehicle.

Looking to make the switch to electric?

Find out more

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