Car Insurance Increases

[sproutdreamer]

On my Avensis 1.8 I paid about £250 last year for Comp SD&P which was ok but this year my renewal (LV) has jumped to £351. I know insurances have increased but this seems a big jump. What do others pay on an Avensis. There is some haggling to come as a new customer quote from LV for me is £321 and I need to take this up with them but it would be helpful to know what others pay on similar cars. Full NCD, clean licence wife also extra driver with clean licence? I have looked at comparison sites. 

[frankie406]

I've just done insurance for my dad today at 6.30pm.his last company endsleigh was £360 last year for a 1.2 hyundai i20 se. They had quoted him yesterday for it and was £1487.hmm I think not!! He has a clean licence for 40 odd years or more never had an accident.the very cheek of these companies.the cheapest price I got was £456 with ncb protected.

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

Hi,

Please feel free to give us a try for insurance if you like. If you wanted to PM me some contact details I'd be happy to arrange for one of my quotes team to give you a call back.

Regards,

Dan.

[FROSTYBALLS]

We've renewed my wife's car insurance last week with LV for our Hyundai i20 1.4 SE.

There has been another increase in the Insurance Premium Tax in the past year, so that accounts for part of the increase.

My wife's premium had increased by £53 and I obtained a reduction of £20. Last year's £354, renewed at £387. 79.5% guaranteed NCD, courtesy car, additional personal injury cover, £50 excess. Cover includes Class 1 business use for each of us. Birmingham postcode. Also get free legal cover.

As regards Frank's father,  all insurers have certain groups they provide cover for. For example Saga and RIAS specialise in the over 50's. People may move out of the customer groupings that an insurer may wish to cover - which may be due to age, change in occupation, change of car, change of postcode, etc - so the insurance renewal may be priced to 'persuade' the customer to move on.

[Ant-Rav]

My insurance has just lept up from £240 for past year to £350. On my rav. I know its not an avensis but Similar scenario to ur own - wife etc. Got a quote today for £260 from local insurer - Fully comp. Shop around I guess.

[Cyker]

Random increases seem pretty normal in my experiences; I change insurers pretty much every couple of years in order to keep the cost down as whenever I'm with an insurer for any length of time it inevitably goes up rather than down!

And I am still mad about that 'equality' ruling that made women's insurance go up instead of bring ours down!!

 

[Heidfirst]

This is a good guide to follow for a methodology of comparing many quotes without having to do them all individually. http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/car-insurance/

My insurance renews in September so I am 1/2 way through this year's term but my premium for the basic full comp. policy (i.e. before extras like legal protection etc.) was just under £300 from esure.

This is for full comp., parked in the street (& not in 1 of the best areas) of a major city, £250 excess with max NCD, me only driving & 8,000 miles p.a. .

[Alan1234]

Had a renewal from Sheila's wheels for the wifes avensis 2.2 2012 tourer and they wanted £700 . Went through lloyds in the end £410 fully comp with Buisness use  included car hire etc legal protection . 

[sproutdreamer]

Thanks for replies this helps me see my quote in context. It is possible I am approaching the age where premiums start to go up.  Interestingly on the Money Saving expert comparison site LV comes out as the cheapest so it looks as if my quote is only about £30 more than their new customer quotes, after adjustments for NCD Protection and taking our things I do not want like CC and LP. I am not inclined to want the bother of changing suppliers each year, but I still want a decent deal. Let the haggling commence.

[Alan1234]

Hi I did my insurance through lloyds my bank only because they sent me an email after searching the comparison sites with a extra 10 % off offer . But the weird thing was on the comparison sites they were around the £550 mark .

[mickburkesnr]

Funny story.

I lived in Birmingham and drove a Peugeot 3008 (hateful, hateful car), and my girlfriend lived in Stourbridge and drove my Peugeot 107. I was paying £700 a year for mine with the Co-Op (7 years NCB) and the girlfriend paid about £850 with no NCB with John Lewis.

We bought a house in Stourbridge, and when I rang to change the insurance on both cars. Mine went down to £350 so I got a lovely rebate. However - bear in mind that we moved about 5 minutes away from her mom's house (mother in laws, I know) - her insurance went up by £200! I told the woman on the phone that and she said "well it's probably the area you've moved to that's done that". And I said to her "you might be right, we moved to a house opposite a field and I don't like the look of those horses".

Since I stopped with the hateful money pit of a 3008 and got my Corolla, I pay £260 for the year. I've never paid that little for insurance before and it's fully comp for 20,000 miles per annum. The girlfriend is paying £600 for her 107 still, but she needs to build her NCB up after being a named driver on Direct Line. They wouldn't give her any NCB's to use with other insurers. But she doesn't mind.

Worst one I had was when I drove a Honda Civic for all of a year. I can't remember who I called, but they quoted me £3,500. I was like "do you not want my business?".

[FROSTYBALLS]

In the March 2017 edition of Money Which?, there is an article on how insurers work out what to charge customers.

When one searches on-line for an insurance quote, the data one inputs is used to figure your level of risk -  a pre-programmed algorithm will be used to calculate your score, which is then translated into your premium.

Insurers base their decisions on the records of customers who came before you. For example if you're a 55 year old builder, and the 55 year old builders an insurer has dealt with previously, had all crashed their cars, your premium would be based on that risk no matter how careful a driver you are, and will be sky high.

If one has an unusual occupation or live in an area an insurer hasn't had many customers in, they may not have dealt with people like you before. So may decline to quote, or offer an expensive quote. This is because the insurer needs to have a decent capital buffer in place to cover the uncertainty of insuring you.

Conversely, if an insurer has had a lot of customers like you, they may not be keen to have any more in that category, may not be keen to have your business, and will offer a high quote.

Insurers monitor their prices regularly. If they find they are offering a lot of quotes to a certain type of customer, but these aren't being translated into the same customers buying policies, they may adjust their prices to be more competitive. However, if they think they are offering too many policies to a certain type of customer, they may increase their prices, so they are not so exposed to that type of customer.

As well as using the data you provide, insurers will also compare the details against your credit file, check your claims history  against records held by the Claims and Underwriting Exchange, and verify your details with DVLA in the case of car insurance (especially as regards to points on your licence and driving convictions). Some insurers may charge more if you don't provide your driving licence number (which makes it easier for them to check with DVLA).

Insurers also monitor the sales process, even down to the time of day - and some may charge a higher premium if one is searching in the early hours.

How far in advance one buys can also make a difference. Two thirds of the insurers tested by Which? charged more for a policy starting the next day, rather than in three weeks time. 

Making changes to a policy can also affect the risk you are to an insurer. For example removing and then adding a conviction or a dramatically different career change, can make a difference. 

Car insurance repair costs are also increasing due to the increasing amount of technology in cars - built-in sat navs, parking sensors, touch screens, etc. Repair costs have risen 25% in the past three years, and this will impact on insurance premiums.

 

 

[Owdjockey]

I am convinced that the low-lifes who offer car insurance policies operate as a cartel, fixing prices and generally holding the majority of car drivers over a barrel because of the legal requirement to hold car insurance.  My car is worth £50 to £100. Options to have TP or TPFT are governed by the premise that because you are seeking a lower cost insurance then you must be a speeding, drunked up druggie youth, with multiple claims! Instead this tee-total, drug free 64 year old with no claims for 20+ years is charged the earth! I really believe the government should take a look at how car insurance companies operate with a view to tightening up regulation on extravagant price hikes!

[frankie406]

Can the insurer also tell us why someone's career can increase their premium? never understood that.

[FROSTYBALLS]

Just now, frankie406 said:

Can the insurer also tell us why someone's career can increase their premium? never understood that.

The insurer won't disclose why one occupation will have a higher premium than another.

However, according to Money Which?, it is dependent on the experience that insurer has with previous customers in that occupation. My post from Wednesday gives an example.