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As electric vehicles (EV) become more common, you can now buy insurance from pretty much all the big-name car insurance companies.
Almost all of the big-name insurers will cover electric cars as well as those powered by petrol or diesel. Some have launched specific policies for these vehicles; LV is one example.
In addition, there are also a number of specialist insurers that offer dedicated electric car polices. Examples include Novo and Pluginsure Insurance.
Here, Which? reveals the best insurance policies and insurers for electric vehicles.
Please note that the information in this article is for information purposes only and doesn't constitute advice. Please refer to the particular terms and conditions of an insurer before committing to any financial products.
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Get a quoteWe like Recharging your car at the side of the road and recovery to the nearest charging point is included as standard.
We don't like A replacement electric or hybrid car is only available at an additional cost.
To come up with our electric vehicle/hybrid policy score, we reviewed 10 areas of electric car and equipment cover, such as batteries, charging cables, wall box charging stations and charging adaptors.
The policies in the table below had an overall policy score of at least 64% (the average) and scored at least 75% when it came to their cover for electric vehicles.
87% | Optional extra | Yes | 100% | 100% | |
best buy | 83% | As standard | No | 75% | 75% |
best buy Swiftcover Plus | 83% | As standard | No | 75% | 75% |
M&S Bank Premier | 83% | As standard | Yes | 75% | 75% |
Table note: Last updated in February 2024. Next update in February 2025. Electric/Hybrid Cover Score: Review of 61 car insurance policies. Equipment damage score reflects cover levels for theft, fire and accidental damage. Equipment location score reflects cover levels at home, in a garage and in the car. Read more about how we analyse electric car insurance.
According to research by price comparison service Compare the Market, the average electric vehicle cost £929 to insure in November 2023. This was £313 higher than in November 2022, when it was £616.
Of course, this is just an average price – what you pay will vary depending on factors including your age, occupation and where you live, as well as the specific vehicle that you're buying cover for.
The make and value of the car can have a significant effect. You could expect a high-performance Tesla to cost more to insure than a Nissan Leaf, for example.
While the average EV price is clearly eye-watering, Compare the Market's analysis suggests that those driving petrol-fuelled cars typically pay more. In the same month, the typical premium for a petrol vehicle was £980, which is up £337 from the previous year.
Insurers weigh up various costs when pricing insurance for electric cars:
Pros | Cons |
---|---|
Electric cars tend to be less powerful than petrol and diesel cars. | EV parts can be harder to get hold of and more expensive, particularly batteries. |
Insurers are increasingly keen to support the shift to more sustainable ways of living with discounts for vehicles that pollute less. | EV repairs may require a specialist mechanic. |
Ultimately, the cost of repairs means that insurers often charge more to cover an electric car, even after taking into account its reduced power and any green discount.
Still, over time, electric car insurance is likely to come down in cost compared to petrol and diesel cars. After all, it won't be long before the petrol and diesel cars become the exception.
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Dean Sobers, Which? car insurance expert, says:
'If you're looking to drive in a more sustainable way, the good news is most car insurance policies – all of those we looked at in our analysis – will theoretically insure electric vehicles as well as hybrids.
'In practice, some insurers won't cover certain makes and models or might charge a very high premium. So if you have a very expensive, high-performance EV, you could find your insurance options narrowed.
'As with many other aspects of cover, it's also the case that policies can differ substantially when it comes to the extent of cover they will provide for your EV and the equipment that comes with it. Less than half will cover your wallbox charging station, for example, while around a third won't cover charging cables. One of the rarest cover elements in this area was a replacement EV or hybrid if yours if undergoing repairs – provided by a quarter of policies.'
Our editorial independence means we're able to work on behalf of consumers, not insurers. That means our reviews are fair and there's no hidden agenda.
We looked at 25 features of cover relevant to electric or hybrid cars in our analysis of 61 policies. We gave each policy a percentage electric/hybrid car score reflecting how fully each policy covers electric and hybrid cars.
The policies that made our table:
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