Insurance Companies Accelerate Exploration of "Vehicle-Battery Separation" Model in Auto Insurance

Recently, under policy guidance and efforts from insurance companies, the exploration of the “vehicle-electrification separation” model for auto commercial insurance (hereinafter referred to as “‘vehicle-electrification separation’ model insurance”) has accelerated.

Industry insiders believe that in specific scenarios, the “vehicle-electrification separation” model insurance helps reduce the purchase and insurance costs for new energy vehicle consumers. However, this model also places higher demands on insurers’ risk identification, pricing, and claims capabilities. Moving from pilot programs to full-scale promotion still requires time. In the future, the new energy vehicle insurance market may feature a dual pattern of “integrated vehicle-electrification” and “separated vehicle-electrification” models.

Significant Premium Reduction Effect

The core of the “vehicle-electrification separation” model is to separate ownership and usage rights of the new energy vehicle and its battery. Consumers can lease batteries or use battery swapping services, allowing professional institutions to manage and maintain the batteries, while retaining ownership of the vehicle body and enjoying the right to use the battery.

Based on this, the “vehicle-electrification separation” model insurance splits coverage responsibilities: insurance for the vehicle body remains consistent with traditional fuel vehicle damage insurance, while the batteries are insured by suppliers to cover risks such as battery degradation and damage.

Relevant innovations have received clear policy support. Early last year, the National Financial Regulatory Administration, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and other four departments issued the “Guiding Opinions on Deepening Reform, Strengthening Supervision, and Promoting High-Quality Development of New Energy Vehicle Insurance,” which proposed to innovate and optimize the supply of new energy vehicle insurance. They also encouraged research and exploration of “vehicle-electrification separation” model auto commercial insurance products to provide scientific and reasonable insurance protection for related new energy vehicles.

At the local level, efforts are also accelerating. Recently, the Shenzhen Municipal Financial Regulatory Bureau and three other departments issued the “Action Plan for Insurance Industry Supporting Technological Innovation and Industrial Development (2026-2028),” which explicitly proposes exploring “vehicle-electrification separation” model auto commercial insurance products in specific scenarios such as urban transportation.

Currently, there are already large-scale practical cases of “vehicle-electrification separation” model insurance. For example, Chongqing Qiantu Logistics recently implemented the first batch of 10 new energy trucks with a “vehicle-electrification separation” insurance policy. Compared to traditional procurement methods, this approach reduces initial investment costs by 30% to 50%, and insurance premiums are also lowered by about 30%.

Long Ge, Deputy Director of the Innovation and Risk Management Research Center at the University of International Business and Economics, told Securities Daily that the “vehicle-electrification separation” model insurance separates battery and vehicle body risks, enabling precise risk matching. This can help alleviate the burden on vehicle owners, and pilot practices have already shown a decrease in premiums. The “vehicle-electrification separation” model is expected to become an important way to address pain points in new energy vehicle insurance.

Some property insurance companies have increased research efforts into “vehicle-electrification separation” model insurance. For example, recently, Sunshine Insurance’s Shenzhen branch established a dedicated new energy project team to conduct forward-looking research on this model; China United Property & Casualty Insurance Co., Ltd. Shenzhen branch has also formed a related research group.

A vehicle insurance manager from a property insurance company told Securities Daily that since the lifespan of a vehicle and its power battery differ, the “vehicle-electrification separation” model insurance is expected to solve this problem by accurately pricing and categorizing risks for the vehicle body and batteries separately, which has high potential for exploration and promotion.

First Implementation in Operational Fields

Wang Hao, founder and CEO of Copora Automotive Consulting Services (Qingdao), told Securities Daily that some new energy vehicle manufacturers have early on introduced ownership separation of vehicle and battery, offering flexible leasing or sale options, and separate insurance for vehicles and batteries. For ride-hailing, logistics, and other operational enterprises, this model offers low initial investment, high battery swapping efficiency, and significant overall cost advantages.

The above-mentioned property insurance company executive believes that under the “vehicle-electrification separation” model, batteries are centrally, professionally, and scientifically maintained at swapping stations, which helps extend battery life and maximize resource utilization and savings. In the future, the “vehicle-electrification separation” insurance model is expected to be scaled first in ride-hailing, logistics, and public transportation sectors.

Additionally, industry insiders believe that for insurers, the “vehicle-electrification separation” model also presents some challenges. Long noted that the key difficulty lies in the frequent circulation of batteries, making their health status and responsibilities hard to track in real-time, which complicates risk assessment, precise pricing, and accident liability determination. Meanwhile, rapid technological iteration and dispersed data on batteries require complex multi-party coordination for claims, and the long-term sustainable profitability of this model remains to be tested by the market.

Overall, industry perspectives suggest that the future of the new energy vehicle insurance market will not simply move toward a single model. Instead, “integrated vehicle-electrification” insurance and “separated vehicle-electrification” insurance will coexist and complement each other over the long term. The former is suitable for mainstream private car markets, while the latter focuses on operational fleets and professional scenarios, jointly forming a multi-layered protection system.