So why, each and every renewal time are any of us surprised to see our premiums go up?
We can curse the insurance companies till we're blue in the face but who is really to blame for our misery and more importantly ,what can any of us do about it?
So what have the insurance industry to say for themselves
Well, according to insurance bigwigs, the blame lies once again, squarely at the motorists feet, or a portion of the motorist community at least.It seems that a few of our brethren have been driving around without any insurance cover.
Another factor; so they say, is the American style compensation culture - "the ambulance chasers," where potential clients are persuaded by law firms to put in a claim for minor injuries such as whiplash with the promise of a wad of cash on a NO WIN-NO FEE basis.
But the biggest contributor, reckoned to be the root of all evil, is the fraudulent claim.
Scams such as the pre staged cash for crash or the induced accident or phantom third party passenger are costing the industry a fortune.
While there are no words to compare what the people involved in such heinous activities are, it seems a tad bit unfair that the majority of law abiding motorists should be punished.
On top of all the strife the insurance companies are feeling at this moment in time, we are also led to believe that the motor vehicle industry has not been profitable for many years and the enormous increases are basically to balance the books.
From a business point of view, this does make some sense. The insurance industry is a business at the end of the day, like the telecoms or utilities industry, with a board of directors and shareholders to please, however, whilst nobody is begruding them a return on their investment, a bit of compassion in these times of austerity, would not go amiss.
The biggest losers
Being the most likeliest to cause or be involved in a road traffic incident, young drivers and those newly passed have been the worst hit with premiums quadrupoling in the last few years. In many cases the cost of thier insurance has been known to far exceed the value of their vehicle.
even female drivers who in the past have been considered to be a safer bet are not likely to escape the hike. And for those who have driving convictions such as for speeding (which is increasing likely given the amount of speed cameras on the road) you are likely to be digging very deep indeed.
What's around the corner?
Well there maybe a light at the end of this tunnel...
It seems the insurance industry has finally rattled the governments chain.
Plans are under way and new legislation is being introduced to combat the causes of insurance fraud. The Government are looking to clamp down on law firms involved in compensation claims by capping payouts and bring in a zero tolerance policy for uninsured drivers.
The Office of Fair Trading are also getting involved and are determined to find out whether the insurance sector is wholly justified in hiking up prices or if they are lining their own pockets
It seems the insurance industry has finally rattled the governments chain.
Plans are under way and new legislation is being introduced to combat the causes of insurance fraud. The Government are looking to clamp down on law firms involved in compensation claims by capping payouts and bring in a zero tolerance policy for uninsured drivers.
The Office of Fair Trading are also getting involved and are determined to find out whether the insurance sector is wholly justified in hiking up prices or if they are lining their own pockets
My personal thoughts
The chances are that the cost of insuring your motor is never going to go down again, well not to the level it was a few years ago anyway.
The best any of us can hope for is a slight reduction depending on how many years of no claims discounts you have built up of course.
The only way I have found of finding cheaper insurance is by using comparison sites.
I myself have used these effectively over the past 3 years and i have also recommended these to many of my colleagues. the likes of GOCompare, Moneysupermarket and Compare the Market are fantastic sites and considerable savings can be made using these sites.
What I tend to do is compare the comparison sites as they all work with different insurance companies and because it only takes a few minutes to use these sites, you can quickly check for the best prices. I am also affiliated to Quotezone which I promote through my website Carinsura.com the sole reason being that most of my colleagues and I have always saved the most money with them.
Now I'm not saying that this will be the case for all of you, but if you have a couple of minutes to kill, it may be worth a shot.
check out http://www.carinsura.com/ for more advice and tips.
The best any of us can hope for is a slight reduction depending on how many years of no claims discounts you have built up of course.
The only way I have found of finding cheaper insurance is by using comparison sites.
I myself have used these effectively over the past 3 years and i have also recommended these to many of my colleagues. the likes of GOCompare, Moneysupermarket and Compare the Market are fantastic sites and considerable savings can be made using these sites.
What I tend to do is compare the comparison sites as they all work with different insurance companies and because it only takes a few minutes to use these sites, you can quickly check for the best prices. I am also affiliated to Quotezone which I promote through my website Carinsura.com the sole reason being that most of my colleagues and I have always saved the most money with them.
Now I'm not saying that this will be the case for all of you, but if you have a couple of minutes to kill, it may be worth a shot.
check out http://www.carinsura.com/ for more advice and tips.
