Car Insurance Groups
Getting to know the different car insurance group ratings and understanding how they work is vital before making a vehicle purchase, and subsequently finding out your car insurance premium is way more that you had budgeted for! This ratings system enables motorists to make a better judgement of the level of driver and vehicle protection, and the type of policy that would be most suitable for their particular profile.
Click through on the ‘Get a Quote’ button above to compare car insurance quotes from leading UK motor insurers, and obtain the most suitable cover and protection you require for your vehicle and it’s insurance group rating. The Quotezone click and compare service is entirely free to use. It is a totally independent and impartial insurance comparison site, already helping over 1 million drivers across the UK to get the best deal.
Car Insurance Group FAQs
What are car insurance groups?
Car insurance groups are categories (from 1 to 50) used by UK insurers to estimate how expensive a car is to insure. Group 1 cars are typically cheapest, while group 50 cars cost the most.
Who decides a car’s insurance group?
Insurance groups are set by the Group Rating Panel, which includes members from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) and Lloyd’s Market Association. They assess each car using standard criteria such as repair costs, performance, and safety features.
Why does my car’s insurance group matter?
Your car’s group helps insurers estimate: How expensive the car is to repair; How powerful or risky the vehicle is; How likely it is to be stolen
Higher groups usually mean higher premiums.
How can I find out my car’s insurance group?
You can check your car’s insurance group using: Your car’s make, model, and year; Online insurance group checkers or comparison sites; Manufacturer information or registration lookups.
Can changing car insurance groups lower my premium?
Yes. Switching to a car in a lower insurance group (e.g., from group 30 to group 10) can significantly reduce your premium. Smaller engines, cheaper repairs, and strong safety ratings usually put a car in a lower group.
Do modifications affect my insurance group?
Modifications don’t change the official group, but they can increase your premium. Changes such as engine tuning, alloy wheels, body kits, or suspension upgrades can make insurers classify your car as higher-risk.
UK insurers, companies, brokers, providers and intermediaries take advantage of the ratings system to provide the correct level of car insurance group. Motor Insurers meet every month to review the vehicles in each band. The categorisation of each car reflects a mix of specification data (engine size, performance, initial purchase cost etc) and ‘real-world’ data that considers the statistical probability of claims being made by owners, and the cost of repairs resulting from those claims.
Ratings are purely advisory and each group is assigned a number form 1 to 20. This enables each vehicle/model to be accurately banded with cars of similar characteristics. Remember that the insurance group is a key metric used in calculating your premium, but it isn’t the only factor. An example of how the system works can be seen from the example below:
• Basic VW Polo model group 3
• Citroen Saxo 1.6i VTR is group 7
• BMW 3 series (base model) rating 11
• Aston Martin’s are group 20
Note how the ratings number rises according to relevant engine size, and performance of the car. We can deduce then that the higher the group, the more relatively expensive it is likely to be to insure the vehicle. (1 is low, 20 is high). Their are obviously other factors which are inputted to accurately reflect the correct grouping for a particular make and model of car i.e. vehicle security level, age, is the car an import etc?
Further concise information can be found on the Parkers website. Ratings are established and devised by The Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre at Thatcham in conjunction with the Association of British Insurers (ABI). In fact, Thatcham provide 70% of the information used to establish the Insurance Group of every private motor car registered in the UK. The relevant bands of private cars and light commercial vehicles can be seen on the Association of British Insurers web site. On their pages you can clearly establish and most importantly understand how the system works!
Motor Manufacturers
See the following pages for information and the option to get a quote for the motor manufacturer you drive or are looking to get covered for – A-N Manufacturers; O-Z Manufacturers.
See below for information resources – Website Address (copy and paste into your browser bar):
• www.parkers.co.uk/cars/insurance/car-insurance-groups/
• www.whatcar.com/car-advice/running/insurance-groups-for-cars/3487409
