Car insurance is up there with the worst drivers of the cost of living crisis. According to data from comparison site Confused.com, the average premium has increased by £284 – or 43% – over the past 12 months, to a whopping £941.
Thankfully, there is still a wide variety of cars that are substantially less costly, as our guide to the cheapest new cars to insure shows.
Each quote is based on a 35-year-old male who lives in Swindon and works as a teacher. He commutes by car, parking it on the street during the day and in residential space overnight, and he drives 8000 miles per year. He has no penalty points on his licence and a full 18 years of no-claims bonus.
Although premiums on the whole have risen significantly over the past year, there is good news on the horizon. The cost of insuring each car in our data set has fallen since we last adjusted our rankings in November 2023, and there are some big savings to be made: if you own a new Fiat Panda, Toyota Aygo X, Hyundai i10 or Volkswagen Polo, insurance is now more than £100 cheaper than it would have been eight months ago.
Top 10 cheapest new cars to insure in the UK
1. Fiat Panda 1.0 Mild Hybrid
Annual insurance premium £337.66 Saving vs November 2023 £137.11 List price £14,775
The cheapest new car to insure in the UK is the venerable Fiat Panda. It's a great option if all you want is a simple car that's cheap to buy and run, but it has fallen behind the standard set by newer rivals such as the Hyundai i10.
2. Toyota Aygo X 1.0 VVT-i Pure manual
Annual insurance premium £366.24 Saving vs November 2023 £114.08 List price £16,140
The Toyota Aygo X is a solid city car, offering a playful interior, great ergonomics and a sophisticated chassis. It is on the expensive side, though, given its small stature, and its 71bhp three-pot engine is almost rather wheezy.
3. Hyundai i10 1.0 Advance automatic
Annual insurance premium £387.78 Saving vs November 2023 £122.40 List price £16,030
This is one of the best new city cars you can buy, thanks to assured handling and a roomy interior with more technology than many rivals. You will have to opt for the underwhelming 66bhp three-pot engine to keep insurance costs down, though.
4. Kia Stonic 1.0 T-GDi 2
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Agreed, this makes no sense. Surely all things being equal there should be a direct correlation between the Group Rating and cost to insure? Otherwise why bother with the rating. This "guide effectively tells us there is no significant difference between any of the cars listed,
Also looking at the insurance groups shows what a nonsense the whole thing is, the picanto is a lower group and cheaper to buy than the 500 yet costs more, surely the lower value and insurance group should make it cheaper, same for the MG, a lower group and cost than the 500 and panda, yet more expensive to insure. What's the point of the groupings? They serve no purpose when a group 1 car is more expensive than a group 10.