MSE News: Drivers face soaring car insurance costs

darich

Dan_Smith wrote: »

Glasgow postcodes can be very high risk (depending on where you live). Where do you live now out of interest? I suspect your age and no claim discount helps here too? Have a look on the forum board it's usually people from higher risk areas that have been really affected by huge premium hikes.

This makes an interesting read (unless your English):

"Scottish motorists pay significantly less than their English counterparts for car insurance, according to research published today.

Price comparison website moneysupermarket.com analysed almost 1m motor insurance quotes over 12 months and found that Scotland has seven of the 10 cheapest areas in the UK for car insurance."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2009/dec/04/cheap-car-insurance-scotland

I stayed in East Kilbride - G74.
Now moved a bit further from Glasgow and have a Motherwell postcode - clyde valley area....a the avatar says...near Lanark

Regardless of Scots paying less than English, my premium hasn't increased massively at anytime in my 20 years or so of driving, unless I've made a big change to my car.

bouncydog1

Where I live uninsured drivers receive a mandatory year off the roads for a first offence plus a large fine. You also have to display an insurance disc on your vehicle showing the vehicle reg, insurer and expiry date. Subsequent offences attract longer suspension, higher fines and if involved in an accident whilst uninsured may also receive prison sentence - may be suspended depending on circumstances.

Drink drivers are also subject to sentence depending on excess alcohol in the system e.g. limit is 80 - if someone has a reading of 85 they will get a year and probably £350 fine.

Double the limit is probably 3 years and a bigger fine. Habitual offenders receive a prison sentence.

People may not like it, but they know what the law is so we don't get that many offenders for the size of population.

raskazz

Arg wrote: »

Insurance as it is should be scrapped entirely. As someone said on another forum, the best thing for drivers to do would be to downgrade to a cheaper car and drive uninsured until the government got the message.

So can you confirm a viable alternative?

AHAR

dunstonh wrote: »

How else would you price it then?

Everyone applying for a policy should be subjected to an in-depth behavioural assessment to ascertain how much of a rick they present. The enormous cost of this would have to be passed on in the form of higher premiums for many but at least the premiums would then be fair and everyone would be happy, right?

Or, the insurance companies could just carry on working out premiums based on the evidence they have available to them and price for risk as best as they can.

dacouch

AHAR wrote: »

Everyone applying for a policy should be subjected to an in-depth behavioural assessment to ascertain how much of a rick they present. The enormous cost of this would have to be passed on in the form of higher premiums for many but at least the premiums would then be fair and everyone would be happy, right?

Is that with a silent p ?

AHAR

dacouch wrote: »

Is that with a silent p ?

Oh dear. The lower part of the s I typed appears to have been stolen. OMG I don't have insurance cover for this!

mikey72

bouncyd!!! wrote: »

Where I live uninsured drivers receive a mandatory year off the roads for a first offence plus a large fine. You also have to display an insurance disc on your vehicle showing the vehicle reg, insurer and expiry date. Subsequent offences attract longer suspension, higher fines and if involved in an accident whilst uninsured may also receive prison sentence - may be suspended depending on circumstances.

Drink drivers are also subject to sentence depending on excess alcohol in the system e.g. limit is 80 - if someone has a reading of 85 they will get a year and probably £350 fine.

Double the limit is probably 3 years and a bigger fine. Habitual offenders receive a prison sentence.

People may not like it, but they know what the law is so we don't get that many offenders for the size of population.

So what's the average cost of insurance there. Wherever there is, channel islands maybe, ireland?

Percy1983

I do agree to lower premiums for new drivers would mean rise for others, but right now it is out of balance, why should a sensible first time driver who has gone and bought a little 1.something cheap car pay 8x what a 35 year old pays for a sports car.

Maybe it should be illegal to drive cars above a certain power for the first 2 years of driving, I will admit that if the car I own now was my first car I would be in a ditch right now.

As I say newer drivers may be more of a risk, but they shouldn't be shafted like they are, I would happily welcome a small raise on my policy if it meant new drivers got a fair deal, I say this as I remember what it was like being a new driver and being ripped off and things have got worse since then.

dacouch

How much would you regard as a small increase ? If they implemented your suggestion it would be likely to increase your (and everyone else's) premium by upwards of £60 per year

LilacPixie

Percy1983 wrote: »

I do agree to lower premiums for new drivers would mean rise for others, but right now it is out of balance, why should a sensible first time driver who has gone and bought a little 1.something cheap car pay 8x what a 35 year old pays for a sports car.

Maybe it should be illegal to drive cars above a certain power for the first 2 years of driving, I will admit that if the car I own now was my first car I would be in a ditch right now.

As I say newer drivers may be more of a risk, but they shouldn't be shafted like they are, I would happily welcome a small raise on my policy if it meant new drivers got a fair deal, I say this as I remember what it was like being a new driver and being ripped off and things have got worse since then.

Out of interest when did you pass your test? 2000??

I passed in 1998 1.3l escort FC for under £800 Now I drive something alot more powerful than a 1.3 escort and i'm about a 3rd that and that includes insuring my husband as a named driver as well. experience is everything I guess