Electric Car Insurance
Find cover to keep your electric car moving with Swinton. Get a quote with our selected panel of insurers and choose the right Electric Car Insurance quote to suit you.
Why choose Swinton Insurance?
- Courtesy car — If your electric car needs to be taken off the road, you'll be entitled to a courtesy car while your vehicle is being repaired.
- Battery cover — Cover for electric and hybrid car batteries that are subject to accidental or malicious damage and theft.
- Charging equipment cover — Cover for all charging equipment, including adaptors and cables.
- Liability cover if someone trips over your charging cable — Cover in case someone trips over your electric vehicle’s charging cable while outside of your property.
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Benefits included as standard
- Cover for repairs — If your car is damaged in an accident or as a result of malicious damage, our Electric Car Insurance will cover the repair cost up to the market value of your vehicle.
- Market-value pay-outs — If your car is damaged or you suffer a loss due to fire or theft, we will pay out up to the market value of your car.
- Decades of experience — We have over 65 years of experience in helping our customers find Car Insurance quotes.
- Award-winning customer care — Winner at the UK Customer Satisfaction Awards 2021.
Some of the most popular electric car models we cover on our Electric Car Insurance policy:
| Make | Model |
|---|---|
| Nissan | Nissan Airya Nissan Leaf |
| Renault | Renault ZOE |
| Hyundai | Hyundai Ioniq 5 |
| Kia | Kia EV6 |
| Skoda | Skoda Enyaq |
| Fiat | Fiat 500 |
| BMW | BMW i4 BMW iX |
| Tesla | Tesla Model 3 Tesla Model S Tesla Model X |
| Volkswagen | Volkswagen ID.3 Volkswagen e-Golf |
| Audi | Audi E-tron GT |
What types of electric cars are covered by Swinton Electric Car Insurance?
- Battery electric vehicle (BEV) — Battery electric vehicles are one of the most popular types of electric car. They have an electric motor, which is powered by batteries. These batteries need to be recharged using a dedicated charge point — whether that’s a domestic socket or a public charging network. BEVs release zero emissions and, therefore, do not have a tailpipe, are quiet when running, and have lower running costs.
- Plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) — Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles have an electric motor, which is powered by batteries, and an engine which requires petrol or diesel to run. You can charge the batteries in a PHEV the same way as a BEV, but they have a lower range. Generally, after the electricity in the motor has depleted, a PHEV will switch to run on the petrol or electric engine so you travel further distances.
- Hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) — Hybrid vehicles are similar to PHEVs because they run on both electricity and a petrol or diesel engine. However, the batteries in a HEV are much smaller and cannot be recharged at a mains point, instead, they self-charge when braking. This means that hybrid vehicles have a significantly lower electric range which often only works at low speeds. The engine is the primary power source so they produce more carbon emissions than BEVs and PHEVs, but less than non-electric vehicles.
- Extended range electric vehicle (E-REV) — E-REVs contain a battery, an electric motor, and a small petrol or diesel generator. The electric motor drives the wheels and the generator works to recharge the battery once it runs out of electricity. E-REVs are no longer sold in the UK as battery technology has since improved and BEVs offer a longer electric range.
What’s included in our comprehensive cover for Electric Car Insurance?
- Car Insurance — Covers loss or damage caused by fire, theft, accident, or malicious damage.
- Windscreen Cover — If your windscreen requires repairs or replacement, your insurer will cover the cost of repairs up to £150 and subject to excess. This increases with other levels of cover.
- Replacement locks — In the event that you need to get the locks on your vehicle replaced as a result of an accident or malicious damage, your insurer will cover the cost up to £300. This increases with other levels of cover.
- Cover for personal belongings — Your insurer will cover you for claims on personal effects and baggage stolen from your electric car, subject to cover.
- Driver’s Legal Protection — Your insurer will cover you for up to £100,000 of legal fees following an accident that wasn’t your fault.
Extras and add-ons (subject to tiers)
- Protected No Claims Bonus – Protecting your no-claim bonus allows you to make a claim without your no-claim bonus being reduced.
- Breakdown Cover – Recovery to the nearest charging point if your battery runs out of electricity in the UK.
- Driver’s Legal Protection – Your insurer will cover you for up to £10,000 of legal fees following an accident that wasn’t your fault.
- Uninsured Driver Cover – Cover for if you are involved in an accident that wasn’t your fault and the person responsible for the accident is not insured.
- New car replacement – If you’re involved in an accident that results in total loss of your vehicle which is less than 12 months old, we’ll replace it with a new one of the same make, model, and specification.
- Misfuel Cover for Hybrid Vehicles – Your insurer will pay up to £2,500, in addition to the policy excess, to drain and flush your fuel tank and repair any damage caused by misfuelling.
- Excess Insurance – Your insurer will repay your excess fees following a claim that results from damage caused by fire, theft, vandalism, or an accident.
- 14-day hire car – You’ll have access to a hire car for up to 14 days if your car is not driveable or at a total loss, resulting from an insured accident where there is no identifiable third party responsible.
What are the benefits of owning an electric car?
1. No need to pay road tax
Fully electric vehicles are exempt from road tax costs, while hybrid cars are eligible for reduced rates.
2. Free parking
Many local councils offer a number of free, priority, or dedicated parking spaces for electric vehicles.
3. No congestion charges
You won’t have to pay congestion charges in London or Clean Air Zone fees in other areas.
4. More affordable to run
Generally, electric cars cost less to run compared to petrol or diesel-powered cars.
5. More environmentally friendly
Pure electric cars don’t emit any greenhouse gases and hybrids are more environmentally friendly than non-electric vehicles.
Things to consider when buying Electric Car Insurance
Unlike petrol and diesel-engine cars, electric vehicles have some unique features which you should take into consideration when
choosing your policy.
A few things which can affect your insurance premium are the electric range of your vehicle, its charging conditions, and whether you own or have leased the battery of your car. EVs with a shorter electric range
may be more prone to running out of power, while those that require charging cables may need charging equipment cover as extra.
To learn more about electric cars, take a look at our guide to Diesel, Petrol, Electric, and Hybrid vehicles.
Frequently asked questions about Electric Car Insurance
The key difference between a hybrid and electric car is the way that each is powered.
A hybrid car is powered by a traditional petrol or diesel engine as well as an electric motor, whereas a fully electric car only has an electric motor and completely runs off electric energy.
Hybrid cars can be plugged in to charge the batteries that power their electric motors, or they can self-charge through braking and don’t need to be plugged into the mains. Pure electric vehicles must be connected to a mains point to recharge their batteries.
Pure electric vehicles, which don’t require an additional fuel source to run and don’t emit any emissions, are exempt from vehicle tax.
Hybrid electric cars are eligible to pay a reduced rate of vehicle tax as they still use traditional fuel.
No, our standard Car Insurance extends to cover most electric cars.
Our Electric Car Insurance quotes vary depending on a number of factors such as your expected mileage, how many years No Claims Bonus you have, the car that you wish to insure, any optional extras you would like to add on to your policy, and more.
To get Electric Car Insurance, get a quote today.
We take into consideration a range of factors when building your Electric Car Insurance premium. This includes your age, driving history, the type of vehicle you wish to insure, and your predicted mileage. The results of these factors can cause the price of your quote to vary.
Currently, electric vehicles can be more expensive to insure compared to non-electric cars because the technology that powers them is newer.
To be safe, it’s always best to check the details of your policy to make sure your electric car is covered in the event of a breakdown.
Swinton Breakdown Cover will cover your electric vehicle, including help if you're out of charge, roadside assistance, jump-start, as well as recovery to the nearest garage, dealership or home address if necessary.
You can add another named driver to your Swinton Electric Car Insurance policy which will cover them to drive your vehicle. Named drivers must not be the main driver of the vehicle registered in the policy.
To add a named driver to your policy, you can make the changes by logging into My Account.
Electric cars are made with the latest technology and have evolved a lot from the first models that were available on the market. Now, they are more reliable than ever, but it depends on the model that you have and how you plan on using your vehicle.
Typically, an electric motor and battery have fewer moving parts which are less susceptible to going wrong. They also don’t need to be maintained as often as a petrol or diesel engine.
With an at-home charging point, it may cost you around £2 to recharge your vehicle overnight.
Public charging points vary in price depending on their location; a full charge is estimated to be around a quarter of the price of filling up with traditional fuel.
If your charging equipment becomes damaged as a result of an accident, fire, or theft at a garage or at your home, our Electric Car Insurance will cover the cost.
We also offer liability cover as standard, which financially protects you if someone becomes injured from tripping over or damage caused by your charging cable.