Motorists Waste 1.7bn Pounds Sterling on Automatic Car Insurance Renewals

CHESTER, England, Feb. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- With the new '11' car registration plates out next week (1 March), it is prime season for motorists in need of cheap car insurance. However, drivers are set to waste 270 pounds each, or 1.7 billion pounds collectively, by sticking with their existing insurer and not shopping around, according to moneysupermarket.com.(1)

LOYALTY DOESN'T PAY

Research from Britain's number one comparison site found a fifth of drivers (19 per cent) automatically renew their car insurance with their existing provider, rather than shopping around to find a better deal. Of these, 11 per cent don't think they can find a better deal, and eight per cent, or 2.7 million motorists, say they will automatically renew their insurance because they can't be bothered to see if they can save money.(2) Drivers over 55 are the worst culprits, with a fifth (21 per cent) not shopping around when renewing their insurance policy.

Peter Harrison, car insurance expert at moneysupermarket.com said: "With car insurance renewals season in full swing, it's important that drivers take the time to shop around to take advantage of the savings that can be made by switching. In just a small amount of time, motorists could save themselves 270 pounds a year

"It is more important than ever at the moment to make sure you get the best deal on cover, especially when escalating fuel prices and the rising cost of insurance cover is hitting motorists hard. Our analysis shows car insurance prices increased by 31 per cent in 2010 – or 44p per day.(3)

The research found drivers stay faithful to their provider for an average 2.6 years, with motorists aged 55 and over the most loyal of the age groups; sticking for an average 3.3 years.

Peter Harrison, continued: "When newly insuring a car, providers may lure drivers in with a competitive deal or special discount in the first year which is not ordinarily available to existing policy holders. Rest assured if you don't shop around in the second year, as certain insurers will not hesitate to increase your renewal price – hardly the thanks deserved for being a loyal customer."

"Insurers count on customer apathy to reap the profits, so it is alarming so many motorists are prepared to waste their hard-earned cash by not looking for a better deal. Even if you think your quote can't be beaten, it only takes a few minutes to make sure you really do have the best value policy to suit your needs."

Notes to Editors:

(1) Opinium Research carried out an online poll of 2019 British adults from 11 - 15 February 2011.

Results have been weighted to nationally representative criteria. www.opiniumresearch.com.

According to the DFT, there are 33,481,604 (or 33.4) million drivers in the UK: http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/nts/driving-availability/nts0206.xls (based on 67.6% of the population being the main driver or other driver of a car)

19 per cent of 33.4 million = 6,361,504, or 6.3 million.

Car Insurance - Average saving of 270 pounds with moneysupermarket.com when shopping around for car insurance. Based on online independent research by Consumer Intelligence during.. 270 pounds x 6,361,504 = 1,717,606,080 pounds wasted

(2) Eight per cent of 33.4 million drivers = 2,678,528

(3) The rising cost of car insurance

Over the past year car insurance quotes have increased on average by 31%.  The average moneysupermarket.com quote has gone from 519 pounds to 680 pounds (44p per day). Figure calculated using 21,370,762 enquiries made between 11/01/2010 and 13/01/2011.

SOURCE moneysupermarket.com