52 | SEPTEMBER 2017
Motoring
Read online at www.proinstaller.co.uk
CAR INSURANCE HEADS
FOR RECORD HIGH
Car insurance is on track to surpass
the most expensive prices drivers
have ever seen, as premiums soar by
almost £100 in just four months.
Motorists’ average premi-
ums have risen to £847, according
to Confused.com’s Q2 2017 car
insurance price index, powered
by Willis Towers Watson – the car
insurance price index in the UK
based on more than six million
quotes a quarter. Figures from the
car savings site show this is just
£11 short of the most expensive
premiums on record, six years ago
when the average cost was £858
(Q2 2011).
Prices have accelerated by 8% in
the last quarter – the biggest quar-
terly increase in seven years (since
Q3 2010) – equivalent to a hike of
£66 from £781 at the start of the
year (Q1 2017). The rate of the in-
crease can largely be attributed to
extra pressures recently imposed
upon the industry, including the
Ogden rate cut, which sees insur-
ers potentially paying out more
for personal injury claims, and an
increase in Insurance Premium
Tax (IPT) in June.
These pressures have also caused
the cost of car insurance to rev
up 18% annually, equivalent to a
whopping £132 price rise since this
time last year, which is the biggest
annual monetary increase seen
over a six-year period (since Q2
2011). And, as car insurance costs
shift up a gear, it seems likely driv-
ers will see the average premium
pass the £1,000 mark by 2018.
However, it appears the latest
car insurance price increases are
leaving some drivers more out of
pocket than others. Even though
the rules prohibit insurers from
assessing a driver’s risk based on
their gender, there are other risk
factors at play which lead men
to have poorer claims experience
than women, and this is reflected
in the price of their premiums.
As a result, the gap between
what men and women pay for
their car insurance has widened
even further, with a £120 differ-
ence in price. This is just £1 short
of the pre-EU gender directive
gap in (Q4 2011, £121). However,
this is linked to the fact that men
tend to drive more expensive cars
with larger engines, on average,
so they make higher value claims.
They also have significantly more
convictions than women.
Both male and female motor-
ists have felt the wrath of sharp
quarterly increases, of +9% (£77)
and +7% (£53) respectively. Men
have now broken the £900 barrier
(£901) and are just £7 off paying
their highest ever premiums (£908,
Q2 2011). Women are paying £781
on average and just £14 less than
the most expensive car insurance
they have ever paid (£795, Q2
2011).
https://www.confused.com/
on-the-road/petrol-prices
FOOTBALL TAKES
ON RUGBY IN FIAT
CHALLENGE
Fiat Professional pitted
football against rugby in the Fiat
Fullback Challenge, a series of
strength, accuracy and versatility
tests incorporating the all-new
Fiat Fullback Pick Up truck - the
perfect workman’s vehicle.
Danny Mills (England) and
Jackie McNamara (Scotland) made
up Team Football while Lee Byrne
(Wales) and Geordan Murphy (Ire-
land) made up Team Rugby.
Challenge 1 saw the two teams
pulling the new Fiat Fullback Pick
Up truck, World’s Strongest Man-
style, as far as they could in 15
seconds in a best of three format.
Challenge 2 tested their accuracy
with a football, while Challenge
3 tested their versatility in a cross
sports skills test.
Commenting on the challenge,
the victorious Danny Mills said: “It
was great to get one over on our
rugby counterparts. It was a com-
petitive day – I think we took Lee
and Geordan a little by surprise in
the first round of the Fullback pull
challenge – the look on their faces
said it all. Ultimately the right sport
won. Who would have thought
Scotland and England could come
together to emerge victorious?”
Engineered to meet the broad
needs of business users – both
professional and recreational – the
new Fiat Professional Fullback
offers high levels of flexibility and
dependability.
CARBON-BUSTING FLEET
Lorne Stewart Engineering
upgraded its image while achiev-
ing valuable fuel cost savings and
CO2 reductions after commission-
ing a new fleet of Mercedes-Benz
vans.
The operator undertook a
comprehensive tender exercise
last year. Transflex Vehicle Hire
beat off the challenge of several
competitors to win its prestigious
contract hire business.
In the single biggest ‘roll out’
of new vehicles ever conduct-
ed by the Lorne Stewart Group,
Transflex delivered 210 vans to
its high-profile customer. Most
are by Mercedes-Benz and arrived
via North-East Dealer Bell Truck
and Van, an established supplier
to the fast-growing flexible rental
specialist.
www.lornestewartgroup.com
www.transflexrental.co.uk