Overview
- A Carwow comparison of eight models found many Chinese cars drew fewer offers and higher average premiums from ten major UK insurers than comparable European, Korean and Japanese rivals.
- The Skywell BE11 received a single quote from esure at about £2,203, whereas the BYD Seal U averaged roughly £645 with a low of about £490 from Hastings, a gap Carwow put at 242% in its sample.
- For family SUVs, five of ten insurers declined to cover the Jaecoo 7, and the policies offered averaged about £165 more than the Volkswagen Tiguan’s near‑£700 average.
- Carwow reported that major providers Ageas and Axa declined to quote for the tested Chinese models, highlighting restricted insurer participation.
- Industry voices attribute the pricing to limited historical data, unfamiliar specifications and parts availability, as UK sales of Chinese-made cars roughly doubled to about 196,000 in 2025.