Drivers urged to shop around for car insurance

More than a third of motorists have faced increased car insurance premiums despite growing competition in the market, research showed today.Around 35% of drivers said last time they renewed their motor cover their premium was higher, rising by an average of 8.9%.A further 17% said their premiums had stayed the same, while only 24% had seen a reduction.But Sainsbury’s Bank claims the majority could see the cost of their insurance fall if they shopped around, particularly if they looked beyond traditional providers.It estimates that motorists could reduce their premiums by an average of £90 each by scouring the market for the most competitive deal, a collective saving of more than £2 billion.Joanne Mallon, car insurance manager at Sainsbury’s Bank, said: “Competition has increased in the car insurance marketplace, which is good news for motorists if they are prepared to shop around for cover. They can increase the quality of their insurance and also reduce their premiums.”People living in the Midlands are most likely to have faced a hike in their premiums when they came to renew their cover, with 48% saying the cost of their insurance had gone up, followed by 43% of people in the North West, Wales and the West.Motorists in the North East and Yorkshire and Humberside were most likely to have seen the cost of insuring their car fall at 31%, while just over a quarter of drivers in London, the South East and East Anglia had also seen reductions.TNS questioned 1,005 people between July 30 and August 1.