Car Insurance Trends - January 2012

This regularly updated section of the HomeApproved web site will cover the latest trends, research, opinion and developments in the UK car insurance sector. 

Predicting the Future: Car Insurance Trends 2012!
So another year has passed and we wave goodbye to 2011. Many motorists in the UK (particularly young drivers) will be looking to the new year with a combination of dread and optimism. Surely car insurance premiums will not continue to rise at the current extraordinary rate?! The optimists amongst us will be keen to see a realignment of premiums and the overdue return of realistic quotes for motor insurance!

The worse case scenario would be a continuation of double-digit rises in car premiums. Their are some analysts who have forecast this for 2012. Let's hope they are incorrect in their predictions and we are not forced to dig deeper into our pockets for the same levels of cover!

Many motorists have questioned, quite rightly, why there seems to be this continued spiralling of car insurance costs. The one word which continually comes back to haunt us is FRAUD. Motor vehicle theft and in particular car insurance scams have seen a massive growth in the UK over the last 5 years. It wouldn't be too far of reality if we suggested that motor insurance fraud tacks on another £100-£200 pounds a year onto your premiums!

The one saving grace for the motorist is the increasing competition between UK car insurers. Companies, aggregators and comparison websites are keen (desperate) for your business. That puts us in an increasingly favourable position to negotiate a better deal. Our forecast is that car insurance pricing will rise in 2012 in the region of 5-7.5%. This is a lot closer to RPI (Retail Price Inflation) than over the last two years!

Motor insurance policies which are related to Telematics (black box car insurance) will continue to grow during 2012. Premiums for policies where your vehicle is fitted with this type of smartbox will better reflect your driver behaviour - thus if you drive more safely then your premiums should (theoretically) be lower!

We expect a number of new products to come forward into the Telematics market in the new year. Expect some new names and companies to appear alongside the bigger insurers who are keen to get onboard with this product. As a point of note Coop smartbox car insurance have a telematics based policy which is aimed at young drivers to deliver a lower quote - reflecting safer driving.

Lastly 2012 should see some Government intervention and new legislation designed to crack down on insurance fraud and thus ease the burden on safe driving, legal and responsible drivers. Never forget however that as hacked off as we may be with the rising cost of car insurance, ultimately safe driving on the roads is the responsibility of one person - YOU, THE PERSON BEHIND THE WHEEL! Happy New Year and DRIVE SAFELY and LEGALLY in 2012.

ENDS

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