"Separation of vehicle and electric insurance" is coming! Shenzhen will explore new models in specific scenarios, with insurance companies already following up with research and planning.

Financial Daily Reporter | Yuan Yuan Financial Daily Editor | Wei Wenyí

In recent years, new energy vehicle insurance has faced many challenges during its development. How to effectively respond to risks through innovative approaches has become an urgent issue for the insurance industry. The “vehicle-electric separation” model of auto commercial insurance is regarded by the industry as a key innovative solution to systematically address the core conflicts in new energy vehicle insurance, such as “owner value preservation anxiety” and “complex claims assessment by insurers.”

On February 28, the Shenzhen Local Financial Supervision Bureau and three other departments jointly issued the “Action Plan for Supporting Technological Innovation and Industrial Development in the Insurance Industry (2026–2028)” (hereinafter referred to as the “Plan”), which clearly states the exploration of “vehicle-electric separation” models for auto commercial insurance products in specific scenarios like urban transportation. This move provides a practical pathway for the development of the “vehicle-electric separation” model, offering insurers actionable business tools and promoting the systemic redesign of product design, pricing models, and claims processes through scenario-based pilot programs.

The Daily Economic News (hereinafter “D.E.N.”) reporter has learned that some property insurance companies’ Shenzhen branches have established special working groups focused on new energy, closely following and researching the possibilities related to “vehicle-electric separation.” An industry insider told D.E.N. that exploring insurance products under the “vehicle-electric separation” model requires overcoming challenges in risk assessment, accident determination, data barriers, and other dimensions. If successful, this model could help alleviate the difficulties in insuring new energy vehicles.

Image source: Shenzhen Local Financial Supervision Bureau website

Shenzhen Breakthrough: Targeted Scenario Testing of “Vehicle-Electric Separation” Insurance

Driven by the booming new energy vehicle industry, the premium scale of new energy vehicle insurance has grown rapidly in recent years. However, alongside premium growth, issues such as difficulty in insuring and high premiums have increasingly attracted market attention.

In January 2025, multiple ministries and commissions jointly issued the “Guiding Opinions on Deepening Reform, Strengthening Supervision, and Promoting High-Quality Development of New Energy Vehicle Insurance,” proposing to explore “vehicle-electric separation” models for auto commercial insurance products to provide scientific and reasonable insurance coverage for relevant new energy vehicles. This outlined a development direction for new energy vehicle insurance, though specific details at local and departmental levels remain unclear.

The “Plan” issued by the four Shenzhen departments creates potential for the implementation of “vehicle-electric separation” auto insurance products. It explicitly states that in specific scenarios such as urban transportation, the exploration of “vehicle-electric separation” models will be conducted. This indicates that Shenzhen is expected to pilot and explore this model within three years.

An industry insider said, “‘Vehicle-electric separation’ is regarded by the industry as a key innovative approach to systematically solve the core conflicts in new energy vehicle insurance, such as owner value preservation anxiety and complex claims assessment by insurers. Its goal is to clarify risk ownership and achieve precise matching of assets and risks, providing more scientific insurance solutions to the market.”

According to D.E.N., Sunshine Insurance’s Shenzhen branch has established a dedicated new energy working group to closely follow and research the possibilities of “vehicle-electric separation.” “The true implementation of this innovative model depends on industry-wide collaboration, especially long-term risk data accumulation, scientific actuarial model development, and the establishment of cross-industry cooperation mechanisms,” said Sunshine Insurance Shenzhen. The company is actively building professional capabilities and engaging with industry partners such as battery asset companies and vehicle manufacturers to prepare for future industry pilot programs.

Zhou Jin, Partner at Tianzhi International Financial Industry Consulting, told D.E.N. that exploring the “vehicle-electric separation” model in new energy vehicle insurance provides valuable pilot experience for battery swapping modes. Given the separation of power battery ownership from the vehicle itself, this model can address issues caused by complex ownership and risk responsibility delineation, and help build a “precise risk matching, clear responsibility boundaries, and deep industry linkage” protection system.

Four Major Challenges: Pricing Difficulties, Claim Disputes, Data Silos Await Resolution

It should be noted that although “vehicle-electric separation” is a relatively new term in the insurance field, it is not unfamiliar in the automotive industry.

“Vehicle-electric separation” refers to separating the ownership of the electric vehicle’s body and the battery. When purchasing an electric vehicle, consumers do not buy the battery pack outright but instead lease the battery, obtaining usage rights while the battery ownership remains with the provider. The vehicle’s sales invoice price excludes the battery cost, reducing purchase costs and maintaining vehicle value. In April 2020, the Ministry of Finance and three other departments jointly issued the “Notice on Improving Fiscal Subsidy Policies for the Promotion and Application of New Energy Vehicles,” explicitly supporting the development of new business models like “vehicle-electric separation.” In January 2021, the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration jointly issued the “Implementation Opinions on Further Enhancing Charging Infrastructure Service Capabilities,” emphasizing technological innovation and standard support for charging and swapping, and accelerating the promotion of the “vehicle-electric separation” model.

In the insurance industry, from the perspective of the vehicle’s power battery itself, “vehicle-electric separation” is not new. Its novelty lies in the new scenarios it creates and the new applications under these scenarios, such as insurance opportunities across different battery lifecycle stages.

Specifically, the circulation of batteries is the most critical aspect of the “vehicle-electric separation” model. During production, transportation, storage, and use, various static and dynamic risks arise. Therefore, under this model, electric vehicles become commodities rather than just transportation tools, leading to increased demand for insurance covering the entire battery lifecycle beyond traditional auto insurance.

This “newness” also introduces new challenges for insurance product design and risk assessment.

“‘Vehicle-electric separation’ presents four main difficulties for insurers: more complex risk assessment, increased difficulty in accident responsibility determination, higher moral hazard during battery swapping, and data barriers affecting policy implementation and promotion,” said Li Wenzhong, Deputy Director of the Rural Insurance Research Institute at Capital University of Economics and Business. He explained that traditional auto insurance pricing models evaluate the vehicle and battery as a whole. Once separated, insurers need to assess them separately. The different influencing factors, rapid technological iteration of batteries, and insufficient historical data pose significant challenges for actuarial pricing.

Industry consensus: “Vehicle-electric separation” helps achieve precise pricing for new energy vehicle insurance

“The challenge of defining battery ownership and risk responsibility among vehicle owners, battery asset owners, and swapping operators complicates claims and affects premiums and the promotion of swapping models. Moreover, power batteries have unique risks like performance degradation and thermal runaway, which differ greatly from other vehicle parts. If these differences are not considered in risk pricing and coverage, risk assessment and policy design will be inadequate,” Zhou Jin told D.E.N. He believes that exploring insurance products under the “vehicle-electric separation” model can help address these issues.

Zhou Jin added that for insurers, developing insurance products based on “vehicle-electric separation” allows for refined pricing, better risk assessment, and mitigation measures, optimizing underwriting and claims standards, controlling payout levels, streamlining customer service processes, and enhancing customer experience. For all parties involved in battery swapping, it can clarify risk and premium sharing responsibilities, achieve precise risk matching, and promote healthy industry development. Additionally, it can reduce overall premium costs, optimize operational vehicle expenses, and effectively improve premiums for low-risk owners.

This is why Shenzhen’s recent “Plan” has attracted market attention regarding the exploration of the “vehicle-electric separation” model.

“Currently, new energy vehicle insurance and the vehicle-electric component are priced together, but because their risk factors differ, accurate pricing is difficult, leading to situations where low-risk owners subsidize high-risk ones. ‘Vehicle-electric separation’ can enable precise pricing, significantly reducing this issue and benefiting low-risk owners,” Li Wenzhong explained. Furthermore, once batteries are insured as independent objects, their premiums will be directly linked to factors such as capacity, cycle count, health status, and remaining lifespan. This means battery premiums can more accurately reflect quality and risk, incentivizing owners to use and maintain batteries more scientifically.

Li Wenzhong stated that after “vehicle-electric separation,” insurers can better identify vehicle usage based on battery data, enabling precise pricing, reducing the insurance burden caused by widespread use of household vehicles for ride-hailing, and effectively alleviating insurance application difficulties.