Quotes for car insurance jumped higher in Wales than many other parts of Britain last year.
Nationally there was a rise of 5.8% over the last quarter of 2016 according to the AA’s latest benchmark British Insurance Premium Index but in Wales drivers shelled out 6.9% more.
The average Shoparound quoted premium for a typical policy increased by nearly £35 to £633.06 over the three months ending 31December, and by more than £66 (11.7%) over the year.
The latest increase has taken the average quoted premium to a four-year high and the most expensive place to get cover is in London while Scotland is cheapest.
Several factors are influencing car insurance premiums, according to Michael Lloyd, the AA’s director of insurance.
“Uninsured driving is rising; partly I believe because of the increases in Insurance Premium Tax (which will rise by another 2% in June), and fraud – particularly whiplash claims – continue to dog the industry.
David Brown, Insurance Partner at KPMG UK, said, “The cost of accidental damage is rising fast – and I believe it’s becoming a much bigger threat to motor policy price inflation than whiplash.
“As of a year ago, insurers were seeing 20% rises in the cost of average repairs for damage to their policyholders’ cars
“I expect that when new figures come out over the next few months, there may be more bad news with costlier accidental damage repairs which may well lead to premiums suffering further upward hikes.”
Some companies have also moved away from third party fire and theft and only provide comprehensive cover, but a look at comparison sites will show it and it can work out cheaper except if you’re younger driver. Steepest rises recorded last year were among 50-59 year olds where they typically saw increased approaching 9%.
Wales | 2016 Q3 | Q4 | Change |
Shoparound price | £539.57 | £576.96 | + 6.9% |