UK insurers are more hesitant to cover electric and hybrid vehicles from Chinese brands than those from established manufacturers across European markets, a survey by auto sales platform Carwow showed.
The findings come as Chinese automakers are rapidly growing their presence in British showrooms.
The Jaecoo 7 — a hybrid SUV made by Chery subsidiary Omoda & Jaecoo and nicknamed the “Temu Range Rover” by British consumers — was the UK’s best-selling new vehicle in March, with over 10,000 units registered in the month alone.
BYD, the world’s largest new energy vehicle maker, has more than quintupled its UK sales since entering the market in 2023.
XPeng launched its G6 SUV in the UK in early 2025.
Yet sourcing insurance for these vehicles remains a significant hurdle for buyers.
Half of Quote Requests Declined
In the Carwow survey, conducted in late February, the platform tested eight models across 10 insurers.
The research included four vehicles from Chinese brands — the Jaecoo 7, XPeng G6, BYD Seal U, and Skywell BE11 — and four from established manufacturers — the Volkswagen Tiguan, Kia EV3, Peugeot E-3008, and Toyota RAV4.
Quotes were based on a 27-year-old driver living in Hampshire with no claims or convictions.
The Skywell BE11 proved the most difficult to insure, with nine out of 10 insurers contacted unable to provide a quote.
The single insurer willing to cover the vehicle — Esure — quoted a premium of approximately £2,203 per year (almost $3,000), nearly £1,365 more than the Peugeot E-3008 — which averaged around £838 ($1,100) annually.
For the best-selling Jaecoo 7, half of the insurers declined to quote.
The five that did, offered an average annual premium of about £858 ($1,200) — around £166 more than the Volkswagen Tiguan at £692 ($900).
The XPeng G6 faced similar resistance, with five insurers declining to cover it, while those that did quoted an average premium of approximately £1,102 ($1,500).
The figures represent roughly £275 more than the Kia EV3 at £827 ($1,100).
BYD‘s Seal U fared best among the Chinese models.
Only three out of 10 insurers refused coverage, and the average premium from the remaining seven was £645 ($900).
The insurance cost is actually about £543 cheaper than the Toyota RAV4, which at up to £1,188 ($1,600) per year was the most expensive mainstream model in the survey.
Price Comparison
The insurance gap becomes more notable when considered alongside the vehicles’ list prices.
Chinese models generally undercut their established rivals by a wide margin, yet insurance premiums often narrow or erase that savings.
The Jaecoo 7 starts from £29,105 ($39,100) in the UK, while its survey counterpart, the Volkswagen Tiguan, is priced from approximately £35,105 ($47,100) — a difference of around £6,000.
The model’s lower purchase price is partially offset by its £166 higher annual insurance cost.
XPeng‘s G6, a fully electric SUV, starts at £39,990 ($53,700), compared to £33,055 ($44,400) for the Kia EV3.
BYD‘s Seal U DM-i, a plug-in hybrid SUV, is priced from approximately £33,300 ($44,700) in the UK.
The Toyota RAV4 plug-in hybrid starts from around £44,000 ($59,100).
In this case, the BYD was both cheaper to buy and cheaper to insure.
The Skywell BE11, priced from £31,990, faces the steepest insurance challenge ($43,000).
Its £2,203 annual premium from the sole willing insurer significantly erodes the value proposition against the Peugeot E-3008, which starts from about £45,960 ($61,700).
Repairability, Parts, and Data Gaps
Insurers cited limited claims history, uncertain repair costs, and underdeveloped parts supply chains as key reasons for their caution.
“Each new model is assessed on its individual merits, taking into account factors such as repairability, parts availability, and overall claims history, to ensure we can offer appropriate and sustainable coverage,” an LV= General Insurance spokesperson told Carwow.
Axa, which declined all quotes in the survey, said some Chinese brands are too new to the market and it lacks enough data to price policies.
According to Hastings Direct, some newer brands are still “relatively low-volume in the UK” and their parts supply chains are “still developing.”
The issue is not unique to Chinese manufacturers, however.
Insurers faced similar challenges when Japanese and South Korean brands first entered the UK market decades ago.
Speaking with The Guardian over the weekend, Omoda & Jaecoo‘s Head of Product in the UK Oliver Lowe acknowledged the situation.
“Anything that’s risk-based is slow to change and adapt to new challenges very quickly. That’s completely understandable. It’s [a] risk for them,” he said.
Lowe also admitted that the company has “an expert team that are working on all fronts to reduce those insurance costs.”
Leasing Can Offset the Gap
Despite higher insurance costs, some Chinese models remain more affordable overall when factored into a lease or finance deal.
Carwow noted that a Jaecoo 7 can be leased for approximately £18,600 ($25,000) over four years at 5,000 miles per year, compared to around £22,200 ($29,800) for a comparable Volkswagen Tiguan lease on the same terms — a difference of £3,600 that more than compensates for the higher insurance premium.
BYD‘s Seal U DM-i, which was both cheaper to buy and cheaper to insure than the Toyota RAV4 in the survey, presents one of the stronger value cases among the Chinese models tested.
Growing UK Presence
Vehicle sales in the UK rose nearly 25% in April year over year, according to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Chinese brands — including BYD and Chery‘s Jaecoo & Omoda — posted large increases in registrations during the month.
Chery registered 2,900 vehicles, while its overseas-focused brand listed 3,877 units under the Jaecoo name and 3,275 under Omoda — both more than tripling sales year over year.
For comparison, Tesla sold only 831 vehicles in the UK in April.
BYD sold over 51,000 vehicles in the UK last year, nearly fivefold its 2024 figure, and is planning to add six new models to its UK lineup in 2026.
XPeng is expanding its retail network across the country and plans to launch several new models this year, including its cheaper and domestic best-seller Mona series.
As these brands scale up their presence, the insurance gap is expected to narrow.
“We saw similar concerns when Japanese and Korean brands first arrived in the UK market, and insurance availability and pricing should improve as Chinese manufacturers become more established on British roads,” Jaecoo & Omoda‘s Oliver Lowe said.
The Omoda 5 and Jaecoo 7 models remained in the top 10 best-selling vehicles on the island for April.
In the first four months of the year, a total of 17,668 Jaecoo 7 units were sold in the UK, with the SUV ranking third across all models — under the Kia Sportage and the Ford Puma.
