Figures From The AA Show A 15% Increase In Car Insurance Premiums

Car insurance premiums have increased by more than 15% new figures from the AA have revealed.

The figures released by the AA state that the price of the average premium stands at £971.40, showing an annual increase of 15.3% and portraying that the cheaper deals are disappearing from the market.

In the last three months of 2011 prices increased by 5.4% with young people seeing a mammoth 10.91% increase. This means that drivers under the age of 22 will now pay on average around £2497 for their premium.

Young males are the worst hit with under 22s paying approximately £3163 whilst females in the same category pay around £1799, however older drivers have also seen an upsurge in costs.
Male drivers between the ages between the ages of 30 and 39 have seen the largest increase in premium costs as they will now pay around £819 highlighting an increase of 19.19% and females in the 60-69 age bracket will pay at least £424.

Regionally, the cost of car insurance is more for those living in the North West of England and London whilst the cheapest is in Scotland.

Insurance Director for the AA, Simon Douglas said that he was shocked by how much the cost of insurance has risen, stating that he expected much smaller increases especially since there was a small decline in premiums during the third quarter of 2011.

He said: 'The difference shows that the cheaper deals are disappearing. Young drivers seem to be the biggest losers with a higher than average increase for them. It's clear that young drivers continue to be of concern to insurers, while many no longer offer cover to those under 21.'

Anyone who purchases an insurance premium this year is set to see a change in policy upon renewal next year following the decision by the European Court of Justice in 2011 that insurers could not use gender as a factor in the cost of premiums.

Gender was deemed as a discriminatory factor and the ruling will come into effect as of December 2012 meaning that young women especially will see an increase in the price of their premium.