Over-25s Car Insurance - Buyers
Guide
As drivers of that age are well aware, under-25s pay much more for their car insurance
as they are at much higher risk of accidents. Over-25s are treated as
lower risk by car insurance companies and the premium reflects this.
It therefore becomes more feasible for the over-25 to apply a slightly
different approach to buying car insurance than a younger driver, that,
by necessity, is very focused on price.
In reality, of course, car
insurance prices have seen major increases, reducing opportunities
to go for more inclusive policies. A balance, then, needs to be struck
between cost and level of cover, but, the more budget you go, the more
that you expose yourself to financial risk if you do need to claim.
Indeed, the British Insurance Brokers Association (BIBA) has reported
that 57% took out less inclusive
cover last year amid rising car insurance costs and they have
warned against compromising on cover to save money.
While price comparison sites remain ever-popular, and most over-25s
will use them to find car insurance, it is easy to get drawn in by an
attractive price and to de-prioritise the inclusion of sensible policy
features (like inclusion of a courtesy car) in the process.
Many overlook that the most important aspect of using a price
comparison site is not finding a low price - that's easy - it's
building in quality control. This is left entirely to the consumer as
the price comparison site's focus on low price is also a focus on low
quality.
Some price comparison sites do provide some help with comparison of
policy features but it is left to the consumer to 'do his homework' and
to not buy a car insurance policy that, objectively, is inadequate for
his needs.
Because this quality-control issue is significant when using price
comparison sites, it's worth looking at the alternative, that is, going
direct to a leading car insurance provider instead. On the basis of
quality it's hard to argue against this approach. Leading car insurance
companies offer excellent cover with their standard policies.
Effectively quality is built in if you go direct to a market-leading
company.
The concern, of course, is that by doing this, you pay more than you
need to. Actually, this is a misunderstanding of normal market forces.
Large car insurance providers watch their competitors' pricing closely
and as a result, for like policies prices are very close. For all
practical purposes, the consumer can afford to choose on the basis of
the car insurance company that offers him the most attractive policy
features, allowing the competitive car insurance market to effectively
eliminate the need for any pricing concerns. That is not to say that
this approach leads to the cheapest policy - you get what you pay for -
but it is a more prudent approach to acquiring the kind of cover that
will serve you well in an accident.
In particular, with the cost of cover dropping for those over 25
compared to younger drivers, this does provide an opportunity to be
less focused on price and more focused on sensible cover.
A final warning note. While taking out legal expenses
cover may cost an extra £20, it
is now unwise not to get it owing to legislative
changes (as a result of the Jackson
Report recommendations) that are on their way in 2012-13 and will
change how legal
costs are paid if you need to claim and could lead to a loss
of £100,000 in the absence of legal cover if you fail to take
it out with your car
insurance.
The resources below will help you to find the cover you need.
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