higher insurance group cheaper to insure

[nick9one1]

I'm thinking of changing my car and was quite shocked to how insurance varies;

At the moment I have a Z4 35i remapped to 400bhp and I pay about £350 a year.
I live in an A rated postcode area and have no claims/convictions etc. 14 yrs NCB.

these are quotes I've had for other cars;

435D - £940 (insurance group 42)
440i - £700 (insurance group 37)
640D - £780 (insurance group 50)

I can't understand how the 640d is cheaper than the 435d with it a considerably higher insurance group.

[Beethree]

What’s the value of the 6 series vs the 4 series?
Also, insurance group doesn’t take into account the likelihood of being stolen or metrics on how many actual get crashed/damaged.

[charltjr]

640d less likely to be stolen or crashed in your specific area, it will be that simple. Insurance groups don’t mean all that much, they’re only an “if everything else is equal” guide.

[nick9one1]

I think that must be it.

I imagine the 4 series attracts younger less experienced driver meaning crash figures are much higher.

[Missy Charm]

charltjr said:

640d less likely to be stolen or crashed in your specific area, it will be that simple. Insurance groups don’t mean all that much, they’re only an “if everything else is equal” guide.

Almost that simple. Insurance companies also account for projected costs of repair for individual car models - some are cheaper to put back together than others - parts availability and the likelihood of write-off. They also consider what, if any, safety features and collision-mitigation devices are present. It's all fairly sophisticated.

Incidentally, I've found that the choice of car itself to be one of the least significant factors when it has come to variables affecting my own insurance premiums. Obviously a very high performance car would be a different kettle of fish, but I do remember swapping a diesel Citroen for a V6 Mondeo with getting on for twice the power and paying nothing more when the insurance was changed.

[fflump]

I got a refund when swapping my former Cayenne for my current Bentley. To say that was a surprise is an understatement

[Missy Charm]

fflump said:

I got a refund when swapping my former Cayenne for my current Bentley. To say that was a surprise is an understatement

Why? I'd imagine a 12" sweeping brush (https://www.peaseofgarforth.co.uk/housewares/sweeping-brushes/bentley-brushes) presents somewhat less risk to yourself and others than a jar of quite powerful spice.

[scorcher]

My Saab 9-3 2.0t aero convertible was cheaper to insure than an older cheaper 1.9 VW Bora with 100bhp by about 30%. Which was nice.

[Mr Tidy]

Insurance groups don't seem to count for much these days, it's broken down far more than that with statistics for each make and model that will take into account their propensity for theft and likelihood of being involved in accidents.

I swapped my Z4 30.Si Coupe in 2019 for an M Coupe which was actually cheaper to insure.

Not cheaper for anything else though!

[fflump]

Missy Charm said:

fflump said:

I got a refund when swapping my former Cayenne for my current Bentley. To say that was a surprise is an understatement

Why? I'd imagine a 12" sweeping brush (https://www.peaseofgarforth.co.uk/housewares/sweeping-brushes/bentley-brushes) presents somewhat less risk to yourself and others than a jar of quite powerful spice.

You what?!

[sixor8]

I believe it was a gentle prod at the habit people have of dropping the manufacturer name

Cayenne - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cayenne_pepper

Bentley - https://www.screwfix.com/p/charles-bentley-complet...

[Whataguy]

New model Honda Jazz hybrid was more expensive to insure for me than a VW Polo gti with nearly double the power.

Both cars 2021 models and worth the same £22k.

It’s due to risk profile, so you can get bargains having something powerful that’s not popular or crashed that often.