Nio recently incorporated an insurance brokerage company in Hefei, Anhui Province, where its China headquarters is located.
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Nio has paid service packages for car owners that cover vehicle insurance, but the insurance products come from other insurers. Now, the company appears to be planning to offer its own insurance services.
Nio recently incorporated an insurance brokerage company in Hefei, Anhui province, where it has its China headquarters, with a registered capital of 50 million yuan ($7.9 million), according to information on data provider Tianyancha.
The company, called Nio Insurance Brokers Ltd was founded on January 19 and is legally represented by Stanley Qu, Nio's vice president of finance.
The company's scope of business includes insurance brokerage, insurance agency business and insurance valuation business, and is wholly owned by Nio Holdings.
Nio's move comes after the launch of exclusive insurance for new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China.
On December 27 last year, the Shanghai Insurance Exchange launched a NEV insurance trading platform, offering the first batch of NEV insurance products from 12 insurance companies.
China Securities Journal later cited industry sources as saying that the exclusive insurance is expected to allow nearly 80 percent of NEV owners to see a drop in insurance costs.
However, information shared by Weibo bloggers showed that the amount of insurance premiums that some owners will have to pay has risen significantly.
Nio currently offers owners "Service Free" and "Insurance Free" options, which include commercial insurance.
The company announced in its app on December 29 that the 2021 version of "Service Free" will add coverage for external grid failure, home charger loss and home charger liability, while maintaining the same price.
Pricing for the "Insurance Free" option will continue to be the cost of insurance plus an RMB 1,680 fee for Nio's exclusive services, which will be based on the customer's location, violation history, and past claims history.
Nio was working on the 2022 version of "Service Free" and expects to announce it in March, it said.
On December 29, local media outlet Cailian quoted Nio as saying that it was evaluating the possibility of creating an exclusive insurance product for its vehicles in response to the latest NEV insurance terms. The report did not provide any further details.
In January last year, Xpeng Motors (NYSE: XPEV, HKG: 9868) set up a new company in Tianjin to provide financial and insurance services.
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