Below, we’ll cover the details of our top five picks for car insurance in New Hampshire. We’ll review average costs, satisfaction ratings, pros and cons, and more.
Full-Coverage Auto Insurance Cost: $1,116 per year or $93 per month
Minimum Liability Auto Insurance Cost: $430 per year or $36 per month
New Hampshire Customer Service Rating: 829/1,000
Claims Satisfaction Rating: 891/1,000
State Farm offers minimum-coverage and full-coverage plans with extras like roadside assistance and rental car coverage. It has a good combination of reliable service and affordable rates in New Hampshire. Drivers can also make use of programs like Drive Safe and Save™ along with Steer Clear℠ to save money.
To learn more about the car insurance provider, check out our review of State Farm Auto Insurance.
Full-Coverage Auto Insurance Cost: $711 per year or $59 per month
Minimum Liability Auto Insurance Cost: $228 per year or $19 per month
New Hampshire Customer Service Rating: N/A
Claims Satisfaction Rating: N/A
The Hanover stands out for offering the best rates for full-coverage and minimum-coverage insurance in New Hampshire. While it isn’t large enough to rank on J.D. Power customer service or claims surveys, it maintains an A+ rating with accreditation from the BBB. You can get insurance from The Hanover through local agents in the state.
Full-Coverage Auto Insurance Cost: $1,138 per year or $95 per month
Minimum Liability Auto Insurance Cost: $582 per year or $49 per month
New Hampshire Customer Service Rating: 836/1,000
Claims Satisfaction Rating: 871/1,000
As a national provider, Geico offers all types of coverage with add-ons like mechanical breakdown insurance. It offers decent rates in New Hampshire, as well. You can also take advantage of the company’s 16 discounts for things like bundling coverage, having a good driving record, having good grades, or being a military veteran.
To learn more about the car insurance provider, check out our review of Geico.
Full-Coverage Auto Insurance Cost: $924 per year or $77 per month
Minimum Liability Auto Insurance Cost: $319 per year or $27 per month
New Hampshire Customer Service Rating: 896/1,000
Claims Satisfaction Rating: 900/1,000
USAA consistently maintains high customer satisfaction scores across J.D. Power surveys year after year. It also offers some of the most affordable rates in New Hampshire for minimum-coverage and full-coverage plans. The only drawback is that USAA insurance is only available to active, retired, and separated veterans with an “Honorable” discharge and their eligible family members.
Full-Coverage Auto Insurance Cost: $1,193 per year or $99 per month
Minimum Liability Auto Insurance Cost: $670 per year or $56 per month
New Hampshire Customer Service Rating: 802/1,000
Claims Satisfaction Rating: 870/1,000
We also recommend Progressive when it comes to covering car insurance in New Hampshire. Progressive stands out for its usage-based program, Snapshot, which awards discounts based on current driving habits. The company’s Name Your Price tool makes it easy to find coverage in your budget, as well.
To learn more about the car insurance provider, check out our review of Progressive car insurance.
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Job growth, wage growth and business growth are all lively, and inflation has steeply fallen from its 2022 highs. But consumer sentiment, while improving, is still sour.
One reason may be sticker shock from some highly visible prices — even as overall inflation has calmed. The cost of car insurance is a key example.
Motor vehicle insurance rose 1.4 percent on a monthly basis in January alone and has risen 20.6 percent over the past year, the largest jump since 1976. It has been a huge hit for those driving the roughly 272 million private and commercial vehicles registered in the country. And it has played a part in dampening the “mission accomplished” mood on inflation that was bubbling up in markets at the beginning of the year.
According to a recent private-sector estimate, the average annual premium for full-coverage car insurance in 2024 is $2,543, compared with $2,014 in 2023 and $1,771 in 2022.
That spike has a variety of causes, but the central one is straightforward: Cars and trucks are pricier now, so insurance for them is, too.
The cost of buying and owning a vehicle constitutes a substantial chunk (about 10 percent) of the entire Consumer Price Index used to track U.S. inflation. From January 2020 to January 2024, the cost of a new vehicle rose more than 20 percent, and the cost of used cars was up even more, while vehicle repair overall increased 32 percent. Shortages of computer chips and other supply-chain issues had a brutal impact on auto production and created bottlenecks that drove up purchase prices, which in many cases haven’t gone down.
In that context, the increase in vehicle insurance premiums of about 40 percent since December 2019 “appears reasonable,” said Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.
Insurers are for-profit firms in the business of covering the cost of a wide array of incidents. So when their potential liabilities spike, companies say premiums need to rise as well so expenses do not outstrip their revenues.
As recently as the fourth quarter of 2022, large underwriting losses brought Allstate a net loss of $310 million, even though it had increased premiums.
“The classic example is that, you know, a bumper used to be a cheap replacement part, and it’s no longer that way because you have advanced sensors in there — that makes it quite an expensive proposition,” said R.J. Lehmann, a senior fellow at the International Center for Law and Economics, a nonpartisan research center.
Companies have also reported more accidents, and more severe ones, which lead to greater bodily injury and property damage as well as higher medical payments — all of which insurers can be liable to cover based on the breadth of the policy, hurting net income margins.
“Insurers are coming to terms with this,” said Sonu Varghese, the macroeconomic strategist at Carson Group, a financial firm. “I’m sure there’s some good old-fashioned margin protection going on, too.”
Another force that prompted insurers to raise premiums was the rapid increase in interest rates that the Federal Reserve began in 2022. To smooth returns and cash flow, insurers often reinvest their proceeds. In 2021, insurers were holding loads of assets that would lose value if short-term interest rates rose. When those interest rates more than quadrupled, the balance sheets of many insurers were bloodied. (Now, however, these insurers have the benefit of reinvesting leftover cash at new, higher rates.)
In recent months, trading moves on Wall Street and the estimates of industry analysts indicate that the big insurers have fully turned things around.
Shares of Travelers and Allstate hit record highs after the companies announced another round of premium increases that are expected to cover billions of dollars more than the annual claims it expects to pay. Shares of Progressive, known for its commercials with the fictional saleswoman Flo, have soared nearly 20 percent since the beginning of January, driven by a similarly anticipated improvement in profit margins.
Many economists are not worried that auto insurance alone could play a leading role in any reigniting of overall inflation, but it was a major reason that price increases slowed less than analysts expected last month. (Motor vehicle insurance most recently contributed more than half a percentage point to the inflation index. Excluding it would have put overall inflation only half a percentage point away from the Federal Reserve’s desired 2 percent pace.)
Samuel Rines, a market economist and author who closely tracks the balance sheets and pricing decisions of large firms, called the jump in premiums “legit cost-covering,” in line with most analysts. Yet he noted that it had come “with a lag” behind most corporate price increases.
That lag has frustrated people who have already navigated a battery of price shocks. And it has attracted the attention of consumer watchdogs who view the recent spikes as an opportunistic and especially aggressive use of run-of-the-mill “cost-plus” pricing models.
Critics like Hal Singer, an economist at the University of Utah, who calls the recent run-up in premiums “ridiculous,” note that consumers are legally required to buy car insurance and are limited in their ability to shop around for the best plan when all major providers are lifting premiums around the same time, and telegraphing more to come.
According to one estimate by Insurify, an insurance comparison shopping website, the cost of car insurance will go up an additional 7 percent this year.
In a quarterly earnings call, Allstate executives said that they were not done with premium increases in several states, but that they were sensitive to pushing customers too far — and potentially losing them to competitors that may pause first on the escalation in rates.
“As more states get into the right zone from a margin perspective, we would expect the amount of rate we need to take in those states to diminish,” Mario Rizzo, president of property and liability, said on the call. “But having to take less rate is a good thing from a retention perspective, and we’ll continue to focus on that.”
Several leading voices at major banks are telling clients that although the inflation waves ahead will be choppy, an overall disinflationary trend is still in place — with relief around the corner for consumers and those hoping that the Fed will lower rates sometime this year.
“While some further outsized insurance increases are likely ahead of us, a sharp drop in the year-over-year increase would seem to be inevitable,” David Kelly, the chief global strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, said in a recent note.
“Once it starts,” Mr. Kelly added, “it should turn into the gift that keeps giving.”
Job growth, wage growth and business growth are all lively, and inflation has steeply fallen from its 2022 highs. But consumer sentiment, while improving, is still sour.
One reason may be sticker shock from some highly visible prices — even as overall inflation has calmed. The cost of car insurance is a key example.
Motor vehicle insurance rose 1.4 percent on a monthly basis in January alone and has risen 20.6 percent over the past year, the largest jump since 1976. It has been a huge hit for those driving the roughly 272 million private and commercial vehicles registered in the country. And it has played a part in dampening the “mission accomplished” mood on inflation that was bubbling up in markets at the beginning of the year.
According to a recent private-sector estimate, the average annual premium for full-coverage car insurance in 2024 is $2,543, compared with $2,014 in 2023 and $1,771 in 2022.
That spike has a variety of causes, but the central one is straightforward: Cars and trucks are pricier now, so insurance for them is, too.
The cost of buying and owning a vehicle constitutes a substantial chunk (about 10 percent) of the entire Consumer Price Index used to track U.S. inflation. From January 2020 to January 2024, the cost of a new vehicle rose more than 20 percent, and the cost of used cars was up even more, while vehicle repair overall increased 32 percent. Shortages of computer chips and other supply-chain issues had a brutal impact on auto production and created bottlenecks that drove up purchase prices, which in many cases haven’t gone down.
In that context, the increase in vehicle insurance premiums of about 40 percent since December 2019 “appears reasonable,” said Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.
Insurers are for-profit firms in the business of covering the cost of a wide array of incidents. So when their potential liabilities spike, companies say premiums need to rise as well so expenses do not outstrip their revenues.
As recently as the fourth quarter of 2022, large underwriting losses brought Allstate a net loss of $310 million, even though it had increased premiums.
“The classic example is that, you know, a bumper used to be a cheap replacement part, and it’s no longer that way because you have advanced sensors in there — that makes it quite an expensive proposition,” said R.J. Lehmann, a senior fellow at the International Center for Law and Economics, a nonpartisan research center.
Companies have also reported more accidents, and more severe ones, which lead to greater bodily injury and property damage as well as higher medical payments — all of which insurers can be liable to cover based on the breadth of the policy, hurting net income margins.
“Insurers are coming to terms with this,” said Sonu Varghese, the macroeconomic strategist at Carson Group, a financial firm. “I’m sure there’s some good old-fashioned margin protection going on, too.”
Another force that prompted insurers to raise premiums was the rapid increase in interest rates that the Federal Reserve began in 2022. To smooth returns and cash flow, insurers often reinvest their proceeds. In 2021, insurers were holding loads of assets that would lose value if short-term interest rates rose. When those interest rates more than quadrupled, the balance sheets of many insurers were bloodied. (Now, however, these insurers have the benefit of reinvesting leftover cash at new, higher rates.)
In recent months, trading moves on Wall Street and the estimates of industry analysts indicate that the big insurers have fully turned things around.
Shares of Travelers and Allstate hit record highs after the companies announced another round of premium increases that are expected to cover billions of dollars more than the annual claims it expects to pay. Shares of Progressive, known for its commercials with the fictional saleswoman Flo, have soared nearly 20 percent since the beginning of January, driven by a similarly anticipated improvement in profit margins.
Many economists are not worried that auto insurance alone could play a leading role in any reigniting of overall inflation, but it was a major reason that price increases slowed less than analysts expected last month. (Motor vehicle insurance most recently contributed more than half a percentage point to the inflation index. Excluding it would have put overall inflation only half a percentage point away from the Federal Reserve’s desired 2 percent pace.)
Samuel Rines, a market economist and author who closely tracks the balance sheets and pricing decisions of large firms, called the jump in premiums “legit cost-covering,” in line with most analysts. Yet he noted that it had come “with a lag” behind most corporate price increases.
That lag has frustrated people who have already navigated a battery of price shocks. And it has attracted the attention of consumer watchdogs who view the recent spikes as an opportunistic and especially aggressive use of run-of-the-mill “cost-plus” pricing models.
Critics like Hal Singer, an economist at the University of Utah, who calls the recent run-up in premiums “ridiculous,” note that consumers are legally required to buy car insurance and are limited in their ability to shop around for the best plan when all major providers are lifting premiums around the same time, and telegraphing more to come.
According to one estimate by Insurify, an insurance comparison shopping website, the cost of car insurance will go up an additional 7 percent this year.
In a quarterly earnings call, Allstate executives said that they were not done with premium increases in several states, but that they were sensitive to pushing customers too far — and potentially losing them to competitors that may pause first on the escalation in rates.
“As more states get into the right zone from a margin perspective, we would expect the amount of rate we need to take in those states to diminish,” Mario Rizzo, president of property and liability, said on the call. “But having to take less rate is a good thing from a retention perspective, and we’ll continue to focus on that.”
Several leading voices at major banks are telling clients that although the inflation waves ahead will be choppy, an overall disinflationary trend is still in place — with relief around the corner for consumers and those hoping that the Fed will lower rates sometime this year.
“While some further outsized insurance increases are likely ahead of us, a sharp drop in the year-over-year increase would seem to be inevitable,” David Kelly, the chief global strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, said in a recent note.
“Once it starts,” Mr. Kelly added, “it should turn into the gift that keeps giving.”
BEIJING — Companies from Nvidia to Huawei are chasing the market for in-vehicle tech as the electric car industry booms, with Ecarx emerging as a new contender.
Since 2017, Chinese car conglomerate Geely's founder and chairman, Eric Li, has been building Ecarx that provides software and chip systems for digital car cockpits and driver-assist.
The company on Wednesday reported its fourth-quarter revenue surged 22% from a year earlier to $263 million. Geely's car brands, such as Lynk and Co, made up 70% of that revenue.
For the same quarter, Nvidia reported automotive revenue fell 4%, year on year, to $281 million, even as CEO Jensen Huang has called the segment the company's "next billion-dollar business."
Nvidia counts Geely's premium electric car brand Zeekr as a customer for its Drive Orin chip, which uses artificial intelligence to power driver-assist capabilities known as "system on a chip." Li Auto, BYD's Denza brand and Xiaomi are among Nvidia's other automotive customers.
Ecarx co-founder and CEO Ziyu Shen told CNBC in an interview this week that Nvidia enjoys an edge when it comes to AI-based autonomous driving systems.
"We can't compete with them in this area," he said, but noted there's still about 70% or 80% of the car market that doesn't need such advanced tech, and can buy simpler driver-assist tech focused on safety.
"Safety will be a very important entry point for us," he said in Mandarin, translated by CNBC.
Ecarx sells its own "system on a chip" Antora 1000 that's used by Lynk and Co.
Shen claimed his company's current products compete directly with Qualcomm's Snapdragon chips, and that new offerings set to be announced on March 20 will be at the same level as Nvidia's Orin X.
So despite conceding Nvidia's current primacy in AI-based tech, Shen is looking at diverse ways to grab more market share in autos.
Ecarx plans to benefit from selling to local Chinese companies that need to buy from domestic firms due to geopolitical reasons, Shen said, adding that the company works with nearly all major automakers except for BYD in China.
He expects the overseas market to be a growing business for the company as well and something that offers it an edge over Chinese competitors such as Huawei.
In the last few months, Huawei has disclosed several agreements to sell its operating system and other car tech to automakers in China but has yet to announce major overseas deals in the sector. The company also sells electric cars through its co-developed brand Aito.
"I think it is very difficult for Huawei to go global because it is a sanctioned company," Shen said. "I think it will be very hard for Western companies to cooperate with them.“
When asked about the impact of U.S. restrictions on Chinese tech, Shen claimed his company has isolated China operations from its overseas business, and follows local compliance requirements pertaining to AI chip-related business in the U.S. as well as intellectual property protection.
Ecarx's website lists offices in the U.S. and Europe, as well as China.
Shen aims Ecarx to grow its overseas sales from around 10% of current revenue to at least 25% next year, and to at least 40% in the next four or five years.
"To be honest, if we can't serve the world's five largest automakers, it's very hard for us to become a big company," he said, "because none of China's [original equipment manufacturers] are among the world's top five."
BYD was by far the largest car company in China last year, followed by Volkswagen's local joint venture with FAW, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association that included fuel-powered vehicles. Geely ranked third.
In new energy vehicles, which include hybrids and battery-powered cars, BYD ranked first, followed by Tesla, GAC's Aion brand and then Geely, according to association data.
Three people were arrested and charged in connection with the armed robbery of an auto parts store in Wethersfield in 2023, police said.
On Dec. 13, 2023, officers responded to O’Reilly Auto Parts at 115 Silas Deane Highway around 10:19 p.m. for the report of an armed robbery, according to the Wethersfield Police Department.
Police allege that two armed individuals entered O’Reilly Auto Parts wearing dark-colored clothing with masks and stole an undetermined amount of money and items before fleeing the store on foot heading toward the intersection of Jordan Lane and Silas Deane Highway.
Members of the Wethersfield Police Department’s Detective Bureau identified three suspects in connection with the robbery and obtained arrest warrants, according to police.
Brian Dindial, 26, of West Hartford was arrested on Feb. 6 and charged with fifth-degree larceny, conspiracy to commit fifth-degree larceny, conspiracy to falsely report an incident, conspiracy to commit misuse of the 911 system, tampering with evidence and conspiracy to commit tampering with evidence, police said.
Dindial was released on a $25,000 bond and is scheduled to appear at New Britain Superior Court on April 11, according to court records.
Devon Francis, 30, of Hartford was arrested on Feb. 15 and charged with fifth-degree larceny, conspiracy to commit fifth-degree larceny, conspiracy to falsely report an incident, conspiracy to commit misuse of the 911 system, tampering with evidence and conspiracy to commit tampering with evidence, police said.
Dindial was released on a $25,000 bond and is scheduled to be arraigned at New Britain Superior Court on March 7, according to court records.
Ismail Yusuf, 33, of New Britain was arrested on Monday and charged with fifth-degree larceny, conspiracy to commit fifth-degree larceny, conspiracy to falsely report an incident, conspiracy to commit misuse of the 911 system, tampering with evidence, conspiracy to commit tampering with evidence and interfering with police, police said. According to police, Yusuf was released on bond and is scheduled to appear at New Britain Superior Court.
Many drivers are stressed about high auto loan and insurance costs. (iStock)
Buying a vehicle is getting more expensive, with one in 10 drivers spending over 30% of their monthly pay on their auto loans, a MarketWatch study found.
The survey looked at 1,000 drivers and asked how their monthly car payments affected their finances and stress levels. About 40% of drivers can’t afford repairs and upgrades needed for their cars, the survey found.
Auto loans also prevent drivers from meeting other financial needs — 40% of drivers said they couldn’t afford basic essentials due to their high car expenses.
To make ends meet, drivers sacrificed spending in numerous other areas. About 25% stopped eating out as much while 13% of those surveyed stopped getting food delivery and directed that money towards car-related expenses.
High auto loans are contributing to more than just financial strain. Twenty-percent of drivers said they were "very" or "extremely" stressed due to overwhelming car costs, reported the MarketWatch study.
While you may not be able to save on your auto loan, you can cut your auto insurance costs by shopping around for different insurance quotes. With Credible, comparing quotes is easy, and takes just minutes.
NEW CAR PURCHASES ARE ON THE RISE, BUT THERE ARE INSURANCE IMPLICATIONS
Auto loans have gotten high enough to the point where some drivers can no longer afford their monthly loan payment. Approximately 7.7% of auto loans became delinquent when annualized, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
"Credit card and auto loan transitions into delinquency are still rising above pre-pandemic levels," Wilbert van der Klaauw, Economic Research Advisor at the New York Fed said. "This signals increased financial stress, especially among younger and lower-income households."
Loan balances rose substantially in 2023, continuing the rising pattern drivers started seeing in 2020. In the last quarter of 2023, auto loan balances rose by $12 billion, making the total outstanding balance $1.61 trillion.
Cutting down on your car insurance costs can save you cash on your car-related expenses. Comparing multiple insurance quotes can potentially save you hundreds of dollars per year. Visit Credible now to compare quotes free of charge.
DRIVERS SEE A RETURN OF THE ZERO PERCENT CAR LOAN WITH LONGER TERMS IN Q4: REPORT
On top of high-cost loans, drivers are watching their auto insurance rates increase steadily as well.
The motor vehicle insurance index, tracked by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, increased by 1.5% in December 2023. The month before, it also rose by 1%. Over the entire course of 2023, the index rose by 20.3%.
Insurance costs are rising due to several factors — mainly inflation, supply chain issues and an increase in accidents.
COVID-19 has caused rising inflation over the last few years, causing the price of repairs to rise. Tack on supply chain issues due to labor shortages, and repair costs rise even higher.
When customers make claims and require these costly repairs, insurers pass on the cost in the form of higher monthly premiums, State Farm explains.
COVID also led to fewer drivers on the road, but now that more people have returned to work, accidents have increased. About 56% of drivers use video chat or record videos. This has led to an increase in accidents, which leads to an increase in claims.
Additionally, more than half of the respondents from another State Farm survey admitted to reading or sending texts while driving, also adding to the increase in accidents.
Already have good car insurance but want to make sure you are alerted when you can get a better deal? Credible can send you free quotes if they find you a better rate.
AUTO INSURANCE PREMIUMS RISE AS CAR THEFTS AND FALSE INSURANCE CLAIMS INCREASE
Have a finance-related question, but don't know who to ask? Email The Credible Money Expert at moneyexpert@credible.com and your question might be answered by Credible in our Money Expert column.
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China's Li Auto Stands Apart — Talking Markets The Wall Street Journal
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (KHQA) — New legislation aimed to prevent insurance companies from outside data affecting their auto rates.
Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias has drafted legislation hoping to end discriminatory auto insurance rates across the state with House Bill 4611.
The purpose of auto insurance is to protect motorists while they drive; therefore, an individual’s driving record should serve as the primary factor that’s analyzed when setting rates, Giannoulias said.
Under current state law, insurance companies can use third-party site data from sources like social media to charge higher insurance premiums based on race, ethnic origin, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, or disability.
According to the Secretary of State, companies have based rates on who an individual follows and likes on social media as well as poor credit.
According to a consumer reports analysis, an Illinois driver with a clean driving record but poor credit will pay $862 more annually for car insurance than a driver with excellent credit and a conviction of driving while intoxicated compared to the national average of $421, said Giannoulias
House Bill 4611 would ensure the data used by insurance companies is accurate and used properly, holding them accountable and preventing systemic biases.
The bill also prohibits any insurance company from canceling or refusing to renew the policy of a licensed driver when they reach the age of 65.
February car sales will see a slight rebound from January, but new vehicles sales will still remain low, S&P Global Mobility says.
With volume for the month projected at 1.22 million units, February U.S. auto sales are estimated to translate to an estimated 2024 sales pace of 15.5 million units.
This would be a step up from the 15 million unit pace of January, and reflective of the volatile nature of the current auto demand environment.
"While pricing, inventory and incentive trends are seemingly moving in the correct directions, respectively, to promote new vehicle sales growth, high interest rates and uncertain economic conditions continue to push against any consistent upshift for demand levels," says Chris Hopson, principal analyst at S&P Global Mobility.
In the February 1-25 period, Nio was at 5,100, Xpeng at 3,000, Li Auto at 16,200, BYD at 81,000 and Tesla at 24,300.
Most of the major automakers saw their electric vehicle (EV) insurance registrations in China rebound last week, as the Chinese population returned to work from the Lunar New Year holiday.
For the week of February 19-25, Nio (NYSE: NIO) saw 2,300 insurance registrations of its vehicles in China, according to figures shared today by its local peer Li Auto (NASDAQ: LI).
Li Auto has routinely shared these numbers on Tuesday afternoons since May 2023.
February 10-17 is the Chinese New Year holiday, which created a major disruption to car deliveries at the beginning of this month. Last year the holiday was January 21-27, 2023.
During the two weeks in which the holiday fell -- February 5-18 -- EV insurance registrations were significantly lower for the major car companies, with Nio at 1,500 units.
During the February 1-25 period, Nio had 5,100 insurance registrations.
Nio delivered 10,055 vehicles in January, up 18.21 percent from 8,506 a year ago, but down 44.18 percent from 18,012 in December.
Nio currently sells the ES8, ES7, ES6, EC7, EC6, ET7, ET5, and ET5 Touring, the first five of which are SUVs and the last three are sedans.
The company announced on January 17 that it would begin deliveries of 2024 models in early March, with discounts available for the purchase of the 2,023 models.
On February 22, Nio began accepting customer orders for its 2024 models, except for the ET7 sedan, which will be updated slightly later.
Deliveries of the updated ES8, EC7, ES6, EC6, and ET5 Touring will begin in March, the ET5 in April, and the ES7 in May, according to a statement from Nio last week.
The 2024 ET7 will be released and begin taking orders in April, Nio said.
Nio will report unaudited financial results for the fourth quarter and full year 2023 on Tuesday, March 5, before the US stock market opens. It delivered 50,045 vehicles in the fourth quarter, exceeding the upper end of its previous guidance range of 47,000 to 49,000 vehicles.
Xpeng (NYSE: XPEV) had 1,200 insurance registrations last week, up from the 1,000 it had from February 5-18, according to figures shared today by Li Auto.
For the February 1-25 period, Xpeng had 3,000 insurance registrations.
Xpeng delivered 8,250 vehicles in January, up 58.11 percent year-on-year but down 58.99 percent from December.
Xpeng announced on January 26 that it started an upgrade project at its Zhaoqing plant in Guangdong province, which would last about 20 days, with overall production line commissioning completed by the end of February.
Xpeng will release its unaudited fourth quarter and fiscal 2023 reports on Tuesday, March 19, before the US market opens. It delivered a record 60,158 vehicles in the fourth quarter, within its previous guidance range of 59,500 to 63,500 vehicles.
During the week of February 19-25, Li Auto had 6,200 insurance registrations, lower than the 7,000 it had during the two-week period of February 5-18, placing it second among the new car makers.
For the February 1-25 period, Li Auto had 16,200 insurance registrations.
Li Auto guided for first-quarter deliveries to be between 100,000 and 103,000 units, up 90.2 percent to 95.9 percent from the first quarter of 2023, in its fourth quarter 2023 earnings report released yesterday.
The guidance implies that Li Auto expects its combined deliveries in February and March to be in the range of 68,835 to 71,835 units, considering that it delivered 31,165 vehicles in January.
Huawei-backed Aito topped the list shared by Li Auto with 7,200 insurance registrations last week, up from 5,500 in the February 5-18 period.
Between February 1-25, Aito had 17,000 insurance registrations.
Aito delivered a record 32,973 vehicles in January, with 24 days in the month seeing single-day deliveries of more than 1,000 units, it previously said.
On September 12, 2023, Huawei launched the refreshed Aito M7, allowing for a significant price reduction while allowing for upgraded features. The move led to a flood of orders for the new M7, making capacity a bottleneck for deliveries.
Since its launch in September 2023, the new Aito M7 had accumulated more than 140,000 firm orders, the brand said on February 1.
Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) vehicles saw 10,800 insurance registrations in China in the week of February 19-25, up from 8,200 in the February 5-18 period.
For the February 1-25 period, Tesla had that number at 24,300 units.
Tesla sold 71,447 China-made vehicles in January, including 39,881 sold in China and 31,566 exported from its Shanghai factory, according to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
Tesla has a factory in Shanghai that produces the Model 3 sedan and Model Y crossover, and with a current annual production capacity of more than 950,000 vehicles, Tesla's largest in the world.
Tesla cut the prices of the Model 3 and Model Y in China on January 12.
BYD (OTCMKTS: BYDDF) brand vehicle had 31,600 insurance registrations for the week of February 19-25, slightly up from 30,600 for the February 5-18 period.
For the February 1-25 period, the BYD brand had that figure at 81,000 units.
BYD, including its other sub-brands, sold 201,493 new energy vehicles (NEVs) in January, including battery electric vehicles (BEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). That was up 33.14 percent year-on-year, but down 40.92 percent from December.
BYD launched lower-priced Glory variants for the Qin Plus, Chaser 05, and Dolphin last week, and will launch updated versions for the Han and Tang on February 28.
BYD's initial plan for its 2024 sales target is 4 million units, local media outlet 36k reported on February 26.
BYD's premium brand Denza had 1,300 insurance registrations in the week of February 19-25, up from 1,100 in the February 5-18 period.
Denza sold 9,068 units in January, up 98.75 percent year-on-year while 23.98 percent lower than in December.
Zeekr had 2,000 insurance registrations for the week of February 19-25, up from 1,700 for February 5-18.
Leapmotor had 1,300 insurance registrations for the week of February 19-25, down from 1,600 for the February 5-18 two-week period.
Renault unveiled the Renault 5 city car at an automotive show in Switzerland this week, with its latest electric vehicle (EV) being a small, affordable option for European markets.
As expected, the Renault 5 EV was unveiled at the Geneva International Auto Show on Monday, and it can now be seen on the automaker’s website. The vehicle is expected to be roughly €25,000, featuring a range of up to 400 km (250 miles) with the larger of two different battery configuration options. The EV is also the first launch to come from the Ampere group, Renault’s EV subsidiary.
You can watch the Renault 5 reveal video below.
Renault initially detailed plans for the R5 electric city car in 2021 for the first time, and the automaker says it took one less year to develop the EV, compared to its normal four-year development cycles.
The launch also comes at a time when many automakers are looking to debut more affordable models in the years to come, especially smaller EVs targeting the European city car sector, like the Renault 5. The EV will also be produced at
“It’s at the heart of the battle to reinvent European industry against competition coming from the East and the West,” said Renault CEO Luca de Meo ahead of the Geneva show (via Automotive News Europe). “With this vehicle we are proving that production in Europe, in France really is possible.”
Eventually, Renault also plans to re-launch its R5 Turbo as an EV with the 3E reboot, and the company has played a key role in helping to popularize EVs in European markets with its Zoe EV. Nissan also completed a stake sale of about 15 percent of Renault’s shares last November, and the French automaker is aiming for an IPO of Ampere sometime in the first half of this year.
Renault CEO criticizes Tesla’s pricing strategy: “This is destroying value for the customer”
What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us news tips at tips@teslarati.com.
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New cars are expensive. Used cars are expensive. Now the cost of auto insurance is going through the roof.
With insurance premiums spiking, some families are struggling to pay for their commute.
Kimberly Miller is among them. She's had a clean driving record for more than a decade.
"I can't remember the last time I had a speeding ticket," she said.
But like so many other people, rates on her Chevy Equinox have been rising sharply.
"Up and up and up," she said. "Every six months it’s gone up."
Recently her rate jumped from $188 to $210 a month.
Rates for many drivers up sharply this year
Miller isn't the only one seeing these big jumps.
Auto insurance premiums are up 26% compared to 2023, according to Bankrate.com.
Bankrate data shows the average driver is paying more than $2,500 a year for car insurance, 3.4% of their median household income.
Shannon Martin is a licensed insurance agent and an analyst for Bankrate.
"We had COVID, we had inflation, we had an over 10% increase in car crash claims. Insurance companies are trying to get back the money they lost," she said.
She says it’s understandable that consumers are struggling.
"People are going to feel stuck between a rock and a hard place," she said.
Things you can do to lower your rate
So what can you do?
"Start off comparison shopping, looking for discounts," she said.
Before you switch though, talk to your existing provider.
Ask if you're currently getting a loyalty discount.
Next, she says, Look at the value of your car.
"If you're paying more to keep collision coverage than the vehicle is worth, you might want to make a change," she said.
Keep in mind, you can’t actually save money by arguing.
"Insurance is heavily regulated so you cannot negotiate price," Martin said.
She does not recommend switching to a higher deductible plan (where you pay the first $1,000 or $2,000 out of pocket) unless you have enough saved to cover that amount in an emergency.
But as Kimberly Miller learned, increases may be unavoidable, even if you bundle and are loyal to one company.
"The only thing I get for my loyalty," she said, "is first in the line to call."
Shop around, and consider all your options, so you don’t waste your money.
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