The 'Golden Window' for buying car insurance can save you £326
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The price of insuring your car insurance rockets if you wait until the last minute to renew, new research shows.
It proves what many have long suspected, that insurers drive up the cost the more the driver urgently needs cover to to be able to carry on driving legally. Premiums rise to their highest on the day that a driver’s existing policy is due to expire or automatically renew, the Daily Telegraph reports. On renewal day, premiums will cost £685.95 on average, researchers found. Almost 25% of drivers put off renewal until that date and 38% actually buy new insurance on the day of renewal itself or the day before. COULD YOU SAVE MONEY SWITCHING CAR INSURANCE? Compare and save over £200 
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The best time to buy car insurance
The best time to buy cover – when you’ll get the best price – is three weeks before an existing policy is due to expire. At this time, the insurer knows the motorist has time to shop around and they will therefore work harder to win the business by being more competitive on price. But, alarmingly, only 1.5% of motorists buy at this three-week golden window. At this point, the average cost of insurance is £359.40 – the difference between this and renewal day is a staggering £326.55 on average. |
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January is traditionally a cheaper month to buy insurance as insurers launch big marketing pushes as people reconsider their finances and outgoings in particular at the start of a new year.
Even so, premiums are up steeply. The average premium in November was £567.90 – up nearly £100 from November 2014. Prices tend to be at their highest in December – last month an average premium cost £600.73. A Spokesman Said's Fred Isaac commented: “This research proves what we’d suspected, that timing is vital to get the best deal. It’s clear that by leaving some time to shop around, drivers can save some serious money. “But, everyone should remember that the very worst thing you can do is allow your premium to simply auto renew. Luckily, more and more people are getting the message that auto-renewing is a mug’s game.” If you're up for car insurance anytime soon, we urge you to compare policies on A Spokesman Said. It might just save you a fortune. |
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