Cheap car insurance – but at what cost?

With the recession hitting hard, motorists in the UK are trying to save money. With rising fuel prices, expensive road tax and maintenance costs, it is possible to save by cutting back your car insurance – but doing so could have far reaching implications for safety and finances in the event of an accident. Fortunately, while UK motorists are looking to save on their car insurance premiums, they are tending not to cut back on their car insurance cover, fortunately.

Surveys done recently reveal that fewer than 13 in every hundred drivers had considered trying to get lower car insurance premiums by adding to the insurance excess they might have to pay or by lowering the total amount of car insurance they asked for. An even smaller proportion – fewer than one in five car drivers – would consider switching from fully comprehensive car insurance to third party fire and theft insurance because of the lower premiums.

Instead, UK based drivers are much more likely to try to reduce their car insurance costs by shopping around, getting quotes on online car insurance comparison sites and by challenging their own car insurance company for a better price. Only about 10% of drivers just let their car insurance carry on by renewing it by passively ignoring the renewal notice. Getting fresh car insurance quotes each year is definitely the name of the game and over a third of British drivers now regularly use comparison sites to get the cheapest car insurance they can.

But are we opting for a cheaper car insurance policy at the cost of lower benefits? Possibly, with some car insurance companies. The accepted advice is to use comparison sites, hunt down several quotes for cheap car insurance but then compare the details of each policy very carefully. Check that the insurer is offering the cover that you need – not just the price that you want.

Subscribe to Motor Trade Insider by Email