Why Are Electric Car Insurance Premiums Climbing So Fast?
If you’ve shopped for electric car insurance lately, you might have felt a bit of sticker shock. You’re not alone. In the UK, drivers are seeing their premiums for electric vehicles (EVs) rise at a pace that’s outstripping those for petrol or diesel cars. But what’s really driving these increases? The answer, surprisingly, has a lot to do with what happens when an EV battery gets damaged.
Let’s break it down. The battery is the single most expensive part of an electric car—sometimes worth up to 55% of the vehicle’s value when new. As the car ages and depreciates, that percentage only grows. So, when an EV is involved in an accident and the battery is damaged, insurers often face a tough choice: pay for a costly replacement or write the car off entirely. The result? More write-offs, higher claim costs, and ultimately, steeper premiums for everyone.
Can Damaged EV Batteries Actually Be Repaired?
Here’s where things get interesting. While the number of battery repairs is on the rise, it’s still a tiny slice of the pie—just 2% of all EV repairs in the UK, according to Thatcham Research, a respected automotive risk intelligence group. The rest? Many are written off, even if the damage is relatively minor.
Why so few repairs? It’s not that batteries can’t be fixed. The real issue is the lack of a robust repair and refurbishment industry. Most independent garages don’t have the training, tools, or confidence to tackle high-voltage battery work. And without more specialists in the field, insurers are left with little choice but to replace batteries outright or scrap the car.
What’s Being Done to Make Battery Repairs More Common?
There’s good news on the horizon. Industry leaders are starting to invest in battery repair and refurbishment at scale. Take the new centre in Rugby, launched by Cox Automotive and DHL in March. This 35,000-square-foot facility is designed to repair and remanufacture thousands of EV batteries for fleet vehicles each year. It’s a big step toward a circular economy for batteries—where components are reused and recycled instead of tossed out.
Meanwhile, companies like Autocraft Solutions in Grantham are already refurbishing up to 3,000 EV batteries annually. Their approach is practical: restore the battery to the condition it was in just before the failure, not to brand-new specs. That’s important for insurers, who worry about “betterment”—the idea that replacing a battery with a new one could make the car more valuable than it was before the accident, complicating claims and payouts.
How Much Can Repairing a Battery Actually Save?
The savings are significant. Refurbishing a battery can cost around 50% less than buying a new one, though the final bill depends on the complexity of the repair. For insurers, that’s a game-changer. Lower claim costs mean less pressure to hike premiums, and fewer cars get written off unnecessarily.
But there’s another benefit: sustainability. Every battery that’s repaired instead of replaced means less waste and a smaller environmental footprint. Given that the UK’s EV fleet is expected to soar past 1.5 million vehicles in the coming years, the impact could be huge.
What Needs to Happen Next for EV Owners?
For battery repairs to become the norm, a few things need to fall into place. First, more independent repairers need to be trained and equipped to handle high-voltage systems safely. This isn’t just about technical know-how—it’s about building trust with insurers and drivers alike. As Sara Ridley, engineering and quality director at Autocraft, puts it, “Batteries are being prematurely scrapped because people don’t know what’s wrong with them or whether they are safe. We can establish this and fix them. Insurers need that confidence.”
Second, the industry needs clear standards for what counts as a successful repair or refurbishment. Not every battery can (or should) be restored to “as new” condition. Instead, the goal should be to get it back to where it should be for its age and usage. That’s a fairer, more realistic approach for everyone involved.
Is There Light at the End of the Tunnel for EV Insurance Costs?
Absolutely. The shift toward battery repair and refurbishment is already underway, and as more facilities come online and more technicians are trained, the economics of EV ownership will start to look a lot brighter. Insurers will have more options, drivers will see fewer write-offs, and premiums should stabilize—or even fall.
It’s not rocket science—just a matter of building the right skills, infrastructure, and trust. For now, EV owners should keep an eye on developments in battery repair and ask their insurer about how damaged batteries are handled. The more you know, the better positioned you’ll be to navigate the changing landscape of electric car ownership.
The bottom line? As the EV market matures, the ability to repair and refurbish batteries could be the key to keeping insurance affordable and sustainable. It’s a challenge, but one the industry is finally starting to tackle head-on. And for drivers, that’s a reason to feel optimistic about the road ahead.