How many insurance groups are there in the UK?

How many insurance groups are there in the UK?You may think there’s only a handful of car insurance groups in the UK – and that your car’s group doesn’t matter much – but that’s where you’re wrong.

The car insurance industry – especially the commercial vehicle insurance sector – can sometimes seem Byzantine in its complexity. A labyrinth of different paths can be taken, and it seems hardly any of them lead to any sort of savings when it comes to your van insurance quotes, but at least you don’t have to worry about things such as which insurance group your vehicle fits in, or even how many groups there are, right?

Sorry, but you’re in for a shock

Turns out that what car insurance insurance group your vehicle resides in can make a world of difference when it comes to the overall cost of your cover. Not only that, but there are a total of 50 – yes, 50 – car insurance groups, with each group being more generally expensive to insure than the last!

Car insurance groups, which start at 1 and feature the least expensive to insure vehicles, go all the way up to 50, and feature high-performance sports and luxury cars in the final tier. This makes it incredibly important to not only understand that a lower number is not only better, but that vans and other commercial vehicles are included in these rankings – and insurance companies use these groups when it comes to quoting you a premium price for a specific vehicle.

a powerful tool – in the right hands

Once you’ve learned that there’s a full 50 car insurance groups – and that insurers use them as part of how they determine how much they’re going to charge you, based on what vehicle you’re trying to insure, you’ve gained a major understanding of how a powerful tool works. However, you can do more than just pore over statistics and figures – you can use your knowledge of the tool to make decisions in the future that could have a very strong impact on your ability to pay your premium payments.

One of the best ways to illustrate this is to imagine an example where you’re in the market for a new commercial vehicle, and you’ve decided to go for one particular model of van. Upon discovering that your new choice is classified in a high insurance group – remember, higher numbers are more expensive – you may decide to rethink your decision once you find an alternative van that not only costs less to buy but has a better car insurance group, which will lead you to substantial savings – and in the current economy, you need to save every single penny you can!

Just remember, there are more concerns to take into consideration whenever you’re selecting a new commercial vehicle. Yes, the relative cost to insure such a vehicle is a major factor in keeping costs down – especially if you’re planning to use the vehicle to further your business – but things such as safety records and fuel efficiency are also quite important, considering either you or your driver will be spending countless hours behind the wheel every week.

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Image: 1945 Morris Van 3164cc by grobertson4