What you need to know about insuring an EV

Electric vehicles (EVs) are quickly catching on in South Africa – they have become highly competitive pricewise, charging-station infrastructure is improving around the country, and with fuel prices skyrocketing they are looking increasingly attractive economically. If you are contemplating buying an EV, you need to know how insuring it differs from insuring conventional cars with internal combustion engines.

Vehicle sales figures reflect the dramatic recent growth in EVs in South Africa. The Automotive Business Council (which still goes under its old acronym, Naamsa), groups EVs and hybrid vehicles under the collective label of “new energy vehicles” (NEVs). There are three sub-categories: traditional hybrid vehicles (HEVs), the newer-generation plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs), and fully electric, battery-powered vehicles (BEVs).

PHEV and BEV sales have soared in the past year. According to Naamsa, over the three quarters to the end of September 2025, 1 784 PHEVs and 802 BEVs were sold in South Africa. This year, sales to the end of September were 8 275 and 3 217 respectively. In other words, sales this year are up 364 percent for PHEVs and 301 percent for BEVs over sales in 2025, according to Naamsa.

How are insurers dealing with EVs?

Local insurance companies have only recently started to insure EVs in significant numbers and do not have the vast claims experience they have accumulated over many years insuring conventional vehicles.

Sumarie Greybe, co-founder of Naked Insurance, says their quotes on EVs have doubled in the past year. “There are very nice EVs now available under R500 000, and we are seeing quite a big increase in quotes on those,” she says.

Greybe says that, while you may pay slightly more in premiums, the price difference between insuring an EV and a normal vehicle is relatively small. “We are all still finding our feet in the insurance market in terms of exactly how to price for the differences in risk. However, you also shouldn’t forget that many things go into the pricing of a car insurance policy, and the type of vehicle is only one of them,” she says.

What are the structural, battery-related risks?

Russell Davis, manager of Aon South Africa’s Broking Centre, says EV batteries have a high energy density, which introduces risks, including fire risks.

“Physical damage, overheating, manufacturing defects, overcharging or other failures can, under certain circumstances, potentially result in a fire. This does not mean that EVs are inherently unsafe – modern EVs incorporate sophisticated battery management systems and multiple safety measures. It does, however, mean that an accident involving an EV may require a different approach to assessment, recovery and repair.”

Greybe says batteries constitute the biggest cost of an EV, and replacing damaged batteries would rarely be an option for an insurer.

“With EVs, if your battery is damaged in an accident, that battery is a highly disproportionate amount of the total value of your vehicle, and your car is much more likely to be written off,” she says.
 

How would road-side assistance and recovery differ?

“Other things we have to think about is if you have run out of charge on the side of the road – it's not as easy as bringing you some petrol,” Greybe says.

“And if we have to tow your car after an accident, we must make sure that the battery is totally flat before we put it on the flat-bed truck, because of the greater fire risk with these batteries.”
 

What should I know about repairing an EV?

Davis says that if you are in an accident in a conventional vehicle, a visible inspection usually indicates what needs to be repaired. EVs are more complicated.

“An impact may damage components of the battery system where the damage is not immediately obvious. This can mean that a vehicle needs to be assessed by appropriately trained technicians before it is considered safe to repair, recover or return to the road,” he says.

Greybe adds that currently the expertise required for repairing EVs is relatively scarce. “Not all repairers can actually work on these vehicles. At the moment, if we have a damaged EV, it goes to the manufacturer to repair. You can't just send it to a typical panel shop.”
 

Is my home charging station covered?

Your home charging station enables you to charge your car more rapidly than just plugging it into the mains.

“The type of charging station depends on the EV,” Greybe says. ”With some EVs, it is portable – you can pick it up and put in your boot and can sell it with the car. So that would be an extra on your car. But others need to be physically installed in your garage, and this type would need to be covered under your building insurance.”

Davis adds that if your charging station involves an electrical installation in your home, it is important that the installation is compliant with regulatory standards.

What else should I consider?

When insuring an EV, you also need to consider the car’s resale value. Greybe says EVs may lose their value differently than normal cars. “Knowing if your EV depreciates faster or slower than a conventional car can help you understand your insurance costs and ensure your coverage is appropriate,” she says.

One thing EV owners may have less to worry about is their car being stolen, although Greybe says the risk of theft generally is much lower than people think.

“I don't think we have had one EV stolen so far, although our EV book is still small. But actually, the theft frequency in South Africa, contrary to what many people think, is below 0.5 percent. Only one in 200 cars get stolen per year, and it is normally the makes where there is a strong market for the parts – and EVs don't fall into that category as yet,” she says.
 

Check your policy’s terms and conditions

Greybe says your policy wording will include specific conditions that apply to an EV. “For example, if you look at your roadside assistance, it should have a section that deals with EVs. But if you are unsure about anything, the best thing to do is always just reach out to your insurer and ask,” she says.