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If you’re in the market for a new car, whether you’re buying new or second-hand, you should check out the cost of insurance before you set your heart on a certain make or model.
There are numerous factors that affect the cost of the quotes you receive, such as your age, occupation, driving history and where you live. But one of the biggest influences on whether you can get cheap car insurance or not is the make and model of car you choose. In addition, you’ll also pay differing amounts for insurance depending on the model year, body style and ‘trim’ level.
A car trim is a collection of features bundled together into a package, and then marketed and sold as an upgrade over a car’s standard form.
Some cars are much cheaper to insure than others. So, given that you’ll be paying for insurance every year you own the car, it’s worthwhile researching insurance costs before buying your new set of wheels.
It’s pretty easy to research car insurance costs as each car is placed in an ‘insurance group’ between one and 50. Cars in group one are the cheapest to insure, and group 50 the most expensive.
Essentially, if you are thinking of buying a car that is fast or expensive (or both) then you can usually expect to pay a higher insurance premium. The higher the trim level on the model you choose, the more you will generally pay too.
When calculating your car insurance premium, insurers will look at:
When it comes to your car, the following will impact how much you pay for car insurance:
In general, the bigger engine your car has, the more your insurance will cost. That’s because drivers with powerful high-performance cars are deemed more likely to be involved in an accident. Large, powerful cars are also more expensive to repair or replace. Smaller cars with smaller engines are less likely to be involved in high-speed high-value crashes and will cost less to repair if they are.
Most insurers use industry-standard insurance groups. A vehicle’s insurance group is decided by the Association of British Insurers (ABI) Group Rating Panel, which includes members from ABI and the Lloyds Market Association. The panel uses data from Thatcham research and assigns new car models to an insurance group based on a number of factors.
A modification is any kind of alteration to a vehicle that wasn’t in the manufacturer’s standard specification, or wasn’t fitted as an option when the vehicle was made. Modifications normally aim to make a car go faster or look better. If you significantly increase a car’s power and performance, most insurers will see the vehicle as a higher accident risk and so you’ll pay more for insurance. Other modifications might make a car more tempting for thieves – so, again, you’ll pay more for cover.
Security features such as an alarm, immobiliser or tracking device can both reduce the likelihood that your car will be stolen and boost the chances of it being recovered, and returned to you if it is. Standard security features have got better over the years, with many new cars already having an immobiliser and alarm system fitted.
Every car make and model is put into an insurance group by the ABI Group Rating Panel. This group system makes it easier for buyers to have a general idea of the cost of insuring any car they are thinking of buying. It’s important to note that different models of the same car with a different trim or engine size can be in different groups.
The panel looks at the following factors when assigning new car models to an insurance group:
Here are the top 10 cheapest cars to insure in the UK as rated by CarBuyer.co.uk. How much insurance costs for each individual driver will depend on their age, driving history, where they live and other factors.
New and used prices are estimates from Parkers.co.uk.
Only the VW Polo 1-litre 79bhp petrol engine in Life trim is in group one for insurance. The VW Polo is small and cheap to insure – its lack of power makes it a good option for young drivers whizzing around the city.
| Volkswagen Polo hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.0-litre 79bhp petrol |
| Insurance group | 1 |
| Features | 8-inch touchscreen, LED headlights |
| Safety | AEB |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £20,050 – £31,235/£7,350 – £9,855 |
The Kia Picanto automatic 1-litre 65bhp in ‘2’ trim is in insurance group one. The manual version of the same car is in insurance group three.
The automatic might be the cheapest to insure but it’s a bit slow, taking 16.6 seconds to get from 0-60mph. But it’s a popular car with bold styling and a ‘youthful’ image.
| Kia Picanto hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine size | 1-litre 65bhp petrol automatic |
| Insurance group | 1 |
| Features | Air conditioning and audio controls on steering wheel |
| Safety | Six airbags and driver’s knee bag |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £8,345 / £2,795 – £4,615 |
The Up! 1-litre Move Up three-door 59bhp petrol engine is in insurance group one. It comes with three seats and Parkers describes it as “agile and fun to drive.”
| Volkswagen Up! hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine size | 1-litre 59bhp petrol |
| Insurance group | 1 |
| Features | Air conditioning, Bluetooth, 5-inch infotainment screen |
| Safety | NCAP 3 stars, two ISOFIX points in the rear |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £10,030 / £2,035 – £5,015 |
Very similar to a VW Polo, the SEAT Ibiza 1-litre 79bhp boasts modest performance, going from 0-62mph in 15.3 seconds. It has a spacious interior and Parkers says it offers “fuss-free motoring” with a 1-litre MPI petrol engine.The car falls into insurance group 3 if you opt for sports edition (SE) trim or group 4 if you opt for the sportier formula racing (FR), which has different bumpers and upgraded LED exterior lights.
| SEAT Ibiza hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1-litre MPI 79bhp petrol |
| Insurance group | 3 (SE trim) and 4 (FR trim) |
| Features | 15-inch alloy wheels, air conditioning, 8.25-inch infotainment screen, fatigue warning system |
| Safety | 5-star Euro NCAP score, electronic stability control, ISOFIX child seat points, Front Assist braking |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £18,595 – £24,235 / £6,440 – £23,172 |
Buyers of the Hyundai i10 get a five-year/100,000-mile warranty as well as affordable maintenance costs. The SE Connect trim with an automatic gearbox is in insurance group 3, while the manual version is in group five, as is the 1.2-litre automatic model.
Blurring the lines between city car and supermini, the i10 is slightly bigger than the VW Up!
| Hyundai i10 hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1-litre 66bhp petrol automatic, 1-litre 66bhp petrol manual or 1.2-litre 88bhp petrol automatic |
| Insurance group | 3 (1l auto) and 5 (1.2l auto and man) |
| Features | 16-inch alloy wheels, generous interior space, 8-inch touchscreen |
| Safety | AEB, driver attention alerts, eCell (which automatically calls the emergency services in the event of an accident) |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £8,995 – £14,345 / £2,803 – £13,960 |
The Skoda Fabia won Carbuyer’s best small car 2023 award.
The 1.0 MPI with a 79bhp engine in SE Comfort trim is in insurance group 3 – but other models are in groups 10 and above. With a 0-62mph time of 15.5 seconds, this version is better suited to the town than motorway driving and boasts lane-keeping assistance and blind spot warnings.
| Skoda Fabia hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1-litre MPI 79bhp petrol |
| Insurance group | 3 (SE), 10 |
| Features | 380 litres of boot space, 15-inch alloy wheels and rear parking sensors |
| Safety | ISOFIX child-seat mounting, self-parking devices and Travel Assistant |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £13,485 /£10,870 – £21,395 |
Bigger than the Kia Picanto, the Kia Rio is also cheap to insure. Both the ‘1’ and ‘2’ trim levels are in group 4, with the latter more expensive but having more features such as 15-inch alloy wheels, rear electric windows, a DAB radio and an eight-inch display with a reversing camera and rear parking sensors, along with cruise control and DPi engine.
| Kia Rio hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.25-litre 82bhp DPi petrol |
| Insurance group | 4 |
| Features | 325-litre boot, DAB radio and 15-inch alloy wheels |
| Safety | Reversing camera and rear parking sensors |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £10,095 – £17,595/ £1,324 – £11,541 |
The UK’s best-selling car of all time, the Ford Fiesta was discontinued in 2023 but there are plenty of used cars you can buy. Both the 1.1-litre 74bhp petrol engine and 1-litre EcoBoost 99bhp petrol in Trend and Titanium trims fall into insurance group five. The EcoBoost gets from 0-62mph in 9.9 seconds, making it a quicker small car compared to other cheap models.
| Ford Fiesta hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.1-litre 74bhp or 1-litre EcoBoost 99bhp petrol |
| Insurance group | 5 |
| Features | Apple CarPlay/Android Auto and Ford MyKey |
| Safety | Lane-departure warning and lane-keeping assistance and optional extras including AEB and optional driver assistance pack |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £19,350 – £26,460 / £5,500 – £26,103 |
Cheap and cheerful with a funky interior design, the Panda has a tall roof and a slightly raised driving position, meaning excellent visibility for city driving. However, it’s not ideal for motorway driving.
The Red trim version gets roof bars, a cabin air filter and interior surfaces treated with a biocide substance designed to kill viruses and bacteria. Garmin trim versions get 15-inch matte black alloy wheels and come with a Garmin smartwatch.
| Fiat Panda hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.0-litre 70bhp petrol engine |
| Insurance group | 6 |
| Features | Cabin air filter, roof bars (Red version), 15-inch matte black alloys (Garmin versions) |
| Safety | Optional Active Safety Pack, city braking system |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £13,950/£1,740 – £14,590 |
Budget brand Dacia’s Sandero Stepway is similar to the latest Renault Clio. Its higher ride and slightly more rugged trim on the Stepway, compared with the standard Sandero, will appeal to drivers who live in rural areas. Raised suspension makes it easier to tackle speed bumps and kerbs.
The 1-litre turbo control efficiency (TCe) 90bhp petrol engine with an automatic gearbox and Expression trim is in insurance group 7, with the 1.5 dCi 90 Ambiance five-door in group 10 and the 1.5 dCi 90 Laureate five-door in group 11.
| Dacia Sandero Stepway hatchback | |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.0-litre TCe 90bhp petrol |
| Insurance group | 7 (1l auto), 10 (1.5l Ambiance) and 11 (1.5 Laureate) |
| Features | 8-inch infotainment touchscreen, automatic lights and wipers and air conditioning |
| Safety | Two ISOFIX points in the back, AEB and blindspot warning |
| Price new/used (Parkers) | £15,050 – £19,145 / £10,939 – £18,468 |
When looking at the cheapest cars to insure, there are other factors that you should look at too. These include:
