Massive car premium hike. Why?

lisyloo

Great business model!

You're right that there is a captive market.
The same could be said for producers of break, milk, nappies, sanitary towers etc.

There is also risk, a lot of competition and a lot of regulation to comply with.

Personally I don't think there's a lot of evidence to back up a lot of greed here.

the problem is not the poor law abiding motorists, but the alledged 2 million uninsured on the road who 'we are all paying for'.

This is nearer the mark.
Blame thieves, those who drive without insurance, those who drive drunk and those who are careless.
I'm not saying insurers are benevolent, of course not, but they are a law abiding business. There are plenty of people breaking the law who deserve your contempt.

KMK

Thank you for all the helpful comments on here. It looks like everyone is having the same problem this year.

Uninsured drivers have been cited as reason for premiums rising.I sit on a local Bench. The highest tariff for being uninsured (and magistrates have to follow this guideline) is 6/8 points or disqualification plus a fine of 150% of weekly income. The problem is most, but not all, of the offenders are young men, often on benefits or low wages, who either cannot afford the premiums, have been refused cover or just choose to risk driving uninsured. They cannot be sent to prison for this offence. It is only when they drive while disqualified that custody can be imposed; a maximum of 26 weeks, and that would be in the very serious case of a breach of a ban recently imposed.

We are already advised that custody is a last resort and that is going to be imposed even less frequently with Ken Clarke's recent announcement.

The fact is many drivers drive while uninsured and hope they do not get caught. If they are on JSA, which is about £60 a week, they cannot pay the hefty fines that some people are suggesting here because they just do not have the money to do so.

Sadly, we all pay the price!