Car insurance is mandatory in order to legally drive on UK roads, with a minimum of third-party car insurance required on your vehicle. Car insurance renews annually and so it is a good idea to shop around each year to ensure you are getting the best deal. There are numerous factors that can affect how much you pay for your car insurance policy including your age and where you live. Another factor is the type of car that you are wishing to insure.
In this article, we look at the cheapest car to insure in the UK and the best way to buy car insurance.
What are the different types of car insurance?
There are three main types of car insurance; fully comprehensive, third party, fire and theft and third party car insurance. Third party car insurance is the legal minimum required for you to drive your car on UK roads and despite being the least comprehensive car insurance policy it can actually be one of the most expensive. Fully comprehensive car insurance offers the most cover by protecting you against damage to both your vehicle and the other driver's vehicle. We summarise the different types of car insurance premiums and what each covers in our article, 'What are the different types of car insurance?'
How much does car insurance cost?
How much you pay for your car insurance premium varies depending on numerous factors including where you live, your age and your occupation as well as the type of car insurance policy you choose to purchase. The car you drive can also have an impact on the amount you pay for your car insurance as each car is placed into a car insurance group, which helps to determine the cost of your premium. We explain more in our article, 'How much does car insurance cost?'
What are the cheapest cars to insure in 2022?
The amount you will pay for your car insurance premium will vary depending on where you live and your age but also driving a car from a lower insurance group will usually see a lower insurance premium compared to a car in a higher insurance group. Below we have listed some of the cheapest cars to insure for young drivers as well as some of the cars from the lower insurance groups. If you are a new driver and looking to get a vehicle you should consider vehicles in lower insurance groups to try and lower your car insurance premium.
Cheapest cars for young drivers
If you are a new driver your car insurance premium is likely to be high, particularly if you are under the age of 25. In the following table, we share data from Admiral, which lists 10 of the cheapest vehicles for new drivers.
| Car | Average annual premium |
| Austin MINI | £344.20 |
| Rover MINI | £446.43 |
| Kia Stonic | £472.90 |
| Renault KADJAR | £476.35 |
| SEAT Arona | £483.33 |
| Mazda CX-5 | £483.97 |
| Volkswagen T-Cross | £484.89 |
| Volkswagen UP! | £509.96 |
| SEAT Mii | £510.15 |
| Škoda Citigo | £512.18 |
(based on data from May 2021 - May 2022)
Cars in lower insurance groups
If you are over the age of 25 and looking for cheap vehicles to insure you should consider cars from lower car insurance groups. Below we have listed some examples of cars in the lowest car insurance groups but other vehicles may also be cheaper for you depending on numerous other factors such as your driving experience, where you live and your age. More information on the cost of car insurance can be found in our article 'How much does car insurance cost?'
Car insurance group 1
- Chevrolet Spark
- Citroen C1 Airplay/Vibe
- Fiat Panda/Panda Active
- Ford Ka+
- Seat MII
- Skoda Fabia Hatchback
- Skoda Citigo S
- Volkswagen Fox
Car insurance group 2
- Citroen C1 Code
- Fiat Panda
- Fiat Qubo Active
- Ford Ka/Ka+
- Nissan Pixo Acenta
- Peugeot Partner Tepee Urban
- Volkswagen UP!
- Skoda Fabia Blueline
- Smart Fortwo Pure
- Toyota Aygo
- Vauxhall Corsa Hatchback
How to save money on your car insurance
Car insurance can be expensive and as it is a mandatory purchase it is something that you cannot go without. However, there are ways that you can save on your car insurance policy and we list some of these below. For more money-saving tips, read our article 'How to save money on your car insurance'.
Tips to save money on your car insurance policy:
- Buy a car in a low insurance group - As shown above, cars that are in lower insurance groups are cheaper to insure
- Pay your premium annually - Paying your car insurance premium annually can save you money as some insurers will apply an additional credit charge for paying your premium monthly
- Increase the policy excess - Increasing your policy excess can reduce your premium as you are agreeing to contribute more towards the cost of a claim
- Consider telematics insurance - Telematics insurance - also known as 'black box' insurance - can help to reduce your car insurance premium as it tracks your driving and can lower your premium if you are seen to be a safe and careful driver.
- Drive fewer miles - How many miles you drive in your car in a year can affect the cost of your car insurance premium. Using public transport more often and driving fewer miles can help to lower the premium cost. Don't lie about how many miles you actually drive though as you could invalidate your insurance premium.
How to buy car insurance
If you need to purchase a car insurance policy one of the quickest and easiest ways to do so is via a comparison site such as Quotezone*. Comparison sites allow you to compare multiple providers at once to find the cheapest policy for your car. We have partnered with Quotezone* so that you can search and compare quotes from over 110 UK car insurance providers. Not all comparison sites are whole of market though, so you need to ensure you compare multiple providers to get the best deal. Remember not all providers feature on comparison sites either so you may be able to get a better deal elsewhere.
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