Tag Archives: insurance

Running A Car Gets More Expensive For Young Motorists

Keeping a car on the road has always been a costly thing to do but is particularly expensive for young drivers who tend to be faced with having to pay more for their car insurance than the more mature driver. Research by the price comparison website Compare The Market has revealed some interesting statistics in this respect.

Apparently, as at September 2018, the average annual cost of someone aged 17 to 24 running a car was £2,442. That figure has gone up in the last 6 months by an average of £60 per annum. In the last 2 years it is concerning to read that the average cost of a young motorist running a car has gone up by in excess of £140 per annum.

The average cost of a young driver insuring a car has risen to £1,324 per annum meaning that insurance costs make up over 50% of running a vehicle. Fortunately, car insurance premiums have been falling in recent months –since February 2018 premiums have dropped by an average of not far off £24 per annum.

Another factor that has added to the increase in the cost of running a car is the increase in fuel prices that we have seen at petrol stations here in the UK. In the space of 12 months this has risen by an average of 9.9% to £891 per annum.

Other things taken into account in the average cost of running a car are Road Tax at £115, breakdown cover at £56 and MOT at £54.

The 5 most popular cars owned by young motorists are: –

Vauxhall Corsa
Ford Fiesta
Volkswagen Polo
Renault Clio
Volkswagen Golf

It was found that the cheapest car to insure by a young motorist was the Dacia Sandero at an average of £882 per annum. As you can see, this is significantly lower than the average cost of insurance. This was closely followed by the Fiat 500 at an average of £898 per annum to insure.

It should be borne in mind that the above figures do not take into account young drivers who need to arrange finance to fund the purchase of a vehicle. The monthly outlay in this respect can be quite significant.

The motor insurance market is extremely competitive here in the UK with numerous insurers providing cover ranging from standard car insurance to telematics cover and even pay per mile insurance. Unfortunately, not enough people bother to shop around for their cover such as when they receive their renewal notice from their existing insurance company. If they did then some may find that they could have got the same level of suitable cover but for a lower premium.

So, if you are looking for car insurance either for the first time or if your existing policy is coming up for renewal, why not get in touch with us here at AIB Insurance on 02380 268 351 and speak with a knowledgeable member of our team who will discuss your requirements and obtain a competitive quotation from our extensive panel of insurers for your perusal without any obligation.

The Difference In Rental Paid Between Furnished And Unfurnished Properties

Whether you are a landlord or a tenant, you may be interested to read about some research that has been carried out that looks at the difference charged by landlords for furnished and unfurnished two bedroom flats in different cities in the UK.

There are pros and cons of both types of property lets for both tenants and landlords such as a furnished property may appeal more to a single tenant who is moving around the UK on a very frequent basis as he or she may not want to be bothered with the prospect of having to move their furniture frequently. However, a family looking for a long-term rent may prefer to bring their own furniture with them every time they move. A landlord may find it easier to rent out a furnished property and the additional rental income emanating from a furnished property may far outweigh over a period of time the initial financial outlay of buying the furniture and white goods.

The city in the UK where there was the biggest difference between the rental income charged on furnished and unfurnished two bedroom flats was Sheffield. The difference in that city was an average of 21%. A furnished property was being rented out at an average of £726 per calendar month whereas an unfurnished property was being rented out at an average of £598 per calendar month – a difference of £128 per calendar month.

In London the difference was 9% with this equating to an extra £128 per calendar month.

In Birmingham there was a difference of 20% that, in monetary terms, was an extra £127 per calendar month.

In Manchester there was a difference of 15% that equates to a price difference of £101 per calendar month.

In Cardiff there was a difference of 7% that equates to a price difference of £50 per calendar month.

In Glasgow there was a difference of 13% that equates to a price difference of £86 per calendar month.

Whether you are a landlord looking to arrange buildings and contents cover on either a furnished or unfurnished property or are a tenant looking to arrange cover on your own contents and personal belongings in an unfurnished property then why not make contact with us here at AIB Insurance on 02380 268 351 and speak with a friendly, knowledgeable member of our team. He or she will discuss your requirements and arrange for you to receive a competitive quotation from one of the insurance companies on our extensive panel.

Car Insurance Premiums Reduce In Q2 2018

Motorists will be pleased to read that premiums for fully comprehensive car insurance have, on average, fallen in the second quarter of 2018 when compared to the same period last year.

According to the Confused.com Car Insurance Price Index that is produced on a quarterly basis the average amount paid for the above level of cover in Q2 of 2018 was £752 per annum. Twelve months ago, the premium was £847 per annum so there has been a drop of £95 with this equating to a fall of 11.2%. That is a significant reduction.

It is interesting to read in the above report that those motorists who merely renewed their car insurance with the same insurance company ended up paying, on average, an extra £49 per annum for their cover when looking at data covering the second quarter of this year. This just goes to show how important it is that motorists should shop around when he or she receives their renewal quotation from their existing insurer to try to get a better price elsewhere for the same level of cover.

As you are probably aware, it tends to be the young, inexperienced driver who pays more for their car insurance than others and that is not surprising. However, it is interesting that the above report reveals 17 year olds have, on average benefitted from quite a drop in the cost of insuring their cars when comparing Q2 of 2018 with Q2 of 2017. They have seen premiums fall by an average of £403 per annum to an average of £1,889 per annum. This is even lower than that being paid by 18 and 19 year olds with the former paying an average of £2,052 per annum and the later an average of £1,893 per annum. A reason for the drop could be due to an increase seen in the number of insurance companies offering telematics (black box) car insurance.

Those premiums are significantly higher than the average paid by older motorists for comprehensive cover: –

34 year old – £664 per annum

51 year old – £647 per annum

68 year old – £496 per annum

On a regional basis, Northern Ireland has seen the biggest fall in premiums with premiums dropping on average from £1,059 per annum to £894 per annum between both quarters. That is a fall of £165 per annum equating to 16%.

On a more local basis, motorists living in Inner London saw their premiums reduce by an average of £179 per annum. That may be good news for many but they are still paying more than an average of £1,000 per annum for their cover with this being the only place in the UK that this is happening.

We are sure motorists would agree that it would be lovely to see the cost of insuring their cars continue to fall.

If your cover is coming up for renewal then why not contact us here at AIB Insurance on 02380 268 351 and we will be pleased to discuss your requirements and obtain a free, competitive quotation from our extensive panel of insurers without any obligation.

Interesting Motor Vehicle Statistics

The RAC Foundation has brought together some interesting facts and figures in relation to motor vehicles here in the UK. We thought we would share some of them with you but more can be found on their website.

How many motor vehicles are located in Great Britain?

There were 37.9 million motor vehicles licensed as at the 31^st March 2018 with 31.3 million being cars. Almost every year since the Second World War ended the number of motor vehicles has risen. The average annual increase since 2012 has been 640,000.

There were 2,540,617 new cars registered in the UK in 2017.

In 2017, there were 8,113,020 used cars that changed ownership.

There were 1,671,166 new cars built here in the UK in 2017.

What make and model of car is the most popular?

It is the Ford Fiesta with 1.5 million being licensed as at the 31^st December 2017, with the Ford Focus in second place at 1.3 million and the Vauxhall Corsa in third place on 1.1 million.

How many driving licenses are there?

There were 48,416,500 driving licenses registered with the DVLA in March 2018. Full driving licenses make up 40,331,643 and provisional driving licenses account for 8,084,857. It should be noted that these figures include licenses for people who have for instance died or emigrated and the DVLA have not been informed.

A more accurate estimate of active holders of driving licenses is produced by the National Traffic Survey with an estimated 32.9 million people in England being in possession of a full car driving license. Men make up 17.3 million and women 15.6 million.

How many English households have access to a car or van?

In the region of 76% in 2017 with this figure having increased substantially over the years – in 1971, the figure was 52%. Between 1971 and 2017, the percentage of households with two or more cars and/or vans rose from 8% to 35%.

What is the average speed a vehicle travels at?

The figures that stand out for 2016 are that, within a 20 mph speed limit area, all vehicles drove, on average, above the speed limit – cars and vans drove at an average free flow speed of 25 mph. In a 30 mph speed limit zone, cars and vans drove at an average free flow speed of 31 mph. It is rather concerning that the speed limits have been broken so frequently. The average free flow speed for cars and vans on single carriageways with the national speed limit was 49 mph and the average free flow speed on motorways was 68 mph for cars and 69 mph for vans.

How often do we drive our cars?

You may be surprised to read that the average time we spend driving our cars is a mere 4%. Our cars are parked at home for 80% of the time and are parked at other locations for 16% of the time.

What is the average annual mileage for every car in England?

In 2017, it was 7,800 with this being a drop when compared with 2002 when it was 9,200. Diesel cars averaged 10,100 miles per annum and petrol cars averaged 6,500 miles per annum.

It is estimated that motor vehicles in Great Britain drove 327.1 billion miles on our 246,700 miles of roads in 2017. In 1949, the figure was 28.9 billion.

There were at least 31,483 claims made to councils for damage to vehicles caused by potholes in 2015/16 in Great Britain with the average settlement figure being £306.

We trust that you found the above statistics to be of interest and no doubt some of them were rather surprising to read about.

World’s Oldest Female Solo Skydiver Turns Model

Any one who has participated in skydiving will no doubt tell you that it takes a certain amount of courage to step out of a plane at several thousand feet with only a parachute to help you to land safely on the ground. Well, a lady by the name of Dilys Price has never let that get in her way.

Dilys, an ex-college lecturer from Cardiff, is an 86 year old grandmother who took to the skies when she was 54 years of age and did a skydive for a charity and never looked back. Since then she has jumped solo from aircraft on no less than 1,139 occasions parachuting down to earth completing jumps in various locations around the world.

At the tender age of 80 she was awarded the Guinness World Record for being the world’s oldest female solo parachutist. This is no doubt an award she is tremendously proud of and one that she still holds to this day.

Her latest venture is to appear as a model for the fashion brand called Helmut Lang who asked a number of Welsh ladies to model clothing for its forthcoming autumn and winter collection. As with most things in life, she readily took on the challenge although it was probably not as daunting as when she first took to the skies to participate in skydiving.

Dilys is one of many people who have enjoyed parachuting and skydiving well into their later years whether that be flying solo or in tandem.

Here at AIB Insurance we are able to arrange suitable cover for numerous airsports so why not give us a call on 02380 268 351 to discuss your requirements with one of our friendly members of staff and obtain a no-obligation quotation from our extensive panel of insurers. We look forward to being of assistance to you.

When May It Be Cheapest To Get Your Car Insurance?

With mortgage repayments increasing for many borrowers and the cost of filling up your car with fuel on the forecourt going up, any way that you can possibly save money in other areas has got to be welcomed. So, you may be interested to read about some fascinating research recently carried out by MoneySavingExpert.com that has revealed when it may be the best time to sort out your car insurance to get the cheapest price.

MoneySavingExpert.com looked at millions of quotes from MoneySuperMarket, Compare The Market and Confused.com who you will no doubt be aware are price comparison websites. These quotations covered the period from January 2018 to May 2018.

What the data revealed was that, if you bought your motor insurance 21 days before your policy was due to start, you are possibly going to get the cover for the cheapest price. In fact, on average, you would pay £589 per annum with this being £567 per annum less than if you bought the cover on the day you wanted the policy to commence when you would have paid an average of £1,156 per annum. We are sure that you will agree this is a significant potential saving.

So, why is this? Well, the amount you pay for your motor insurance is based upon many factors such as the make and model of car, where you live, what you do for a living, the level of cover required, the number of miles you drive each year, your age, your driving experience, your claims experience, whether you have any motoring convictions and where you park your car overnight. In addition, some insurance companies believe that you are less of a risk if you buy your cover 21 days before the policy starts as you are perceived to be more organised and are less likely to make a claim on your insurance policy than if you arranged your cover on the day the policy is due to start.

Another interesting statistic is that MoneySavingExpert.com discovered that if you bought your car insurance policy 30 days in advance of the start date then the average amount paid would be £1,120 per annum. That is only an average saving of £36 per annum when compared with buying the cover on the start date of the policy. The reason given for this was that there are not as many insurance companies providing quotes so far in advance.

So, if your motor insurance policy is coming up for renewal or you are looking for cover to insure your first car then you may wish to take the above into account as you may be able to save some money. Do bear in mind that these figures are average ones and the saving you may be able to make could be different.

Here at AIB Insurance, we have an experienced team who can obtain one or more quotes for you from our extensive panel of insurers so why not give us a call on 02380 268 351 and we will do all that we can to assist you. We look forward to hearing from you.

Young Briton Wins Gold At European Paragliding Championships

Our paragliding clients will be pleased to hear about a young man’s success at the FAI European Paragliding Championships that took place in July in Montalegre, Portugal. His name is Theo Warden and he is only 19 years of age. Apparently, he is one of the youngest people to win a gold medal in the history of this competition.

Around 150 of the best paragliders from 28 European countries took part in the annual event so there was obviously an awful lot of competition. This is the 15^th one of these championships that took place over a 10-day period. There were 8 tasks covering distances ranging from 53km to 93km.

It was a close run thing with Theo Warden accumulating 5,348 points. However, in second place was Torsten Siegal from Germany who finished on 5,346 points – only 2 points behind the winner. The third placed contestant was B iagio Alberto Vitale from Italy who finished with 5,328 points – only 20 points behind Theo Warden.

Apparently, Theo Warden only started paragliding at the age of 14 so he has done remarkably well to have reached the level that he has in the space of 5 years. In 2015, at the British Open in St Andre Les Alpes, France he was ranked 59^th. In 2016, he was ranked in 25^th place at the British Open in Mantelgas, Portugal. In 2017, he was ranked 15^th at the British Open in the Malverns. In 2017, at the World Cup Superfinal in Colombia, he was ranked in 15^th place.

It is also worth mentioning that, along with Lawrie Noctor, it was not too long ago that he broke the UK declared tandem paragliding record having flown a distance of 71km.

Well done to Theo Warden from all of us here at AIB Insurance and we wish him every success in future competitions.

Whether you are an experienced paraglider or are getting into the sport for the first time, why not give us a call on 02380 268 351 and speak with a friendly, knowledgeable member of our staff about arranging suitable, competitive insurance to provide you with complete peace of mind.

Rolls-Royce Planning To Manufacture Flying Taxi

Here in the UK and in many other countries around the world, some of the roads are becoming so congested that it can prove difficult to get from A to B on time in a normal vehicle such as a car. This is a particular inconvenience if you are the owner of a business and need to get to an important meeting by a specific time that could have a negative financial impact if you do not arrive as scheduled.

Unfortunately, not many companies are able to afford to buy a helicopter to transport their senior executives a couple of hundred miles from one city to another or to get them from one side of London to the other for an important meeting with a potential new client. Whilst taxi drivers do the best that they can to get people to their destinations and know many alternative routes, they sometimes cannot avoid the many traffic jams we encounter here in the UK almost on a daily basis.

Well, it sounds like Rolls-Royce that is renowned for building luxury cars and aircraft engines amongst other things is hoping to change all that. This is because the company is looking to build an aircraft that could, amongst other things, be used as a flying taxi.

It is an EVTOL that stands for Electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing aircraft and it is hoped that such a vehicle will be available for commercial use in the early to mid 2020s. The concept has been unveiled at this year’s Farnborough International Airshow.

An M250 gas turbine is utilised to produce electricity that provides the power for six propulsion/lift motors. The wings will be able to rotate 90 degrees to allow for vertical landing and take off as well as forward propulsion. It is estimated that the vehicle could transport up to 5 people a distance of around 500 miles at a speed of up to 250 mph. So, with that sort of range, it could be used for trips in the UK and for getting to other European countries.

Potentially, the EVTOL could have many different uses in addition to providing a taxi service. For instance, it could be used by the military, on a personal basis, and for moving cargo.

We wish Rolls-Royce every success with this project and hope to see the EVTOL take to the skies in the not too distant future. We will keep you updated.

Travel Insurance For Family Holidays – 48% Of Parents Don’t Arrange Cover

The summer school holidays are with us and many families will be finalising their travel plans, packing their bags and excited children will be getting into a taxi with their parents in the early hours of the morning to drive to the airport to board an early morning flight to a sunny climate overseas where they will spend a week or two perhaps around a hotel pool or on a sandy beech. Let us hope that their break is enjoyable and trouble free.

However, according to research carried out on behalf of Co-op Insurance, you may be interested to read that 37% of parents had one of their children have an injury or be taken ill whilst away on holiday. That is a worrying statistic but what is also concerning is that the research has revealed that 48% of parents do not bother to arrange travel insurance when taking their family on holiday.

We are sure that you will agree these are worrying statistics especially when you consider that the average travel insurance claim for a child taken ill on holiday is £606. Presumably, there will be a number of claims that could run into many thousands of pounds.

Another interesting statistic that has come out of this research that was carried out in April 2018 with 2,000 parents is that 26% of parents either cancelled the family holiday or considered doing so due to one of their children being taken ill prior to departing on their trip.

The top 5 injuries were cuts (38%), insect bites (31%), bruises (30%), sprained wrist (25%) and a bump to the head (17%).

The top 5 illnesses were stomach bug (24%), flu (22%), chickenpox (17%), food poisoning (12%) and ear infection (12%).

Those parents who had not arranged travel insurance would no doubt have had to find some other way of paying for the medical treatment perhaps either by using a credit card, overdraft facility or savings.

Presumably, some parents made the decision not to take out travel insurance to cover their family due to the cost and/or felt that it was worth taking the risk that none of their party would fall ill or suffer an injury. Hindsight is a wonderful thing but you cannot help but wander how many of those 48% of parents who did not bother to arrange such cover would now do so having digested the above statistics.

So, if you are planning a family holiday or are about to set off on your break and do not have travel insurance, why not give us a call on 02380 268 351 and speak with a knowledgeable member of our staff who will discuss your requirements and be able to provide a competitive quotation.

High Percentage Of Tyre Treads Below Recommended Limit

As a motorist, you will hopefully be aware that the tyres on your car plus the spare wheel must have a tread depth of at least 1.6 mm to make sure that they are legal. However, the recommended minimum tread depth on a tyre is considerably more at 3 mm.

Research shows that the stopping distance increases significantly when comparing a car that only has a tyre tread depth of 1.6 mm than if the tyres had a tread depth of 3 mm.

According to a Road Safety Factsheet published in October 2017 by The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents. Back in 2016, there were 120 serious injuries and 8 deaths due to road traffic accidents believed to have resulted from either under-inflated, defective or illegal tyres.

Well, you may find it of interest to read that some research has been conducted on behalf of the price comparison website Confused.com relating to tyre tread depths between the 27^th March 2018 and the 29^th March 2018 and the information revealed will no doubt concern you.

The research was undertaken in 10 cities in the UK with 100 vehicles being spot checked in each city making a total of 1,000 vehicles. The cities in which this research was carried out were Birmingham, Brighton, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Ipswich, Leeds, London, Manchester and Newcastle.

Of those vehicles inspected, 20.9%, over a fifth, were found to have a minimum of one tyre that had a tread depth of under 3 mm. Even more worrying was that 3% of vehicles checked were found to have at least one tyre with a tread depth of below 1.6 mm.

Edinburgh had the highest number of vehicles that had a minimum of one tyre with a tread depth of less than 3 mm – 27%. Manchester was in second place at 26%. Birmingham was in third place at 23%. Brighton and Newcastle were in joint fourth place at 21%. Bristol was in 6^th place on 20%. Ipswich was in 7^th place on 20%, Cardiff and Ipswich were in joint 8th spot on 19%. In 9^th place was Leeds on 17% and in 10^th spot was London on 16%.

In joint first place for having at least one tyre with a tread depth of less than 1.6 mm were Ipswich and Newcastle on 5%. In joint third place were Edinburg, Leeds, Manchester and Brighton with 4%. In joint seventh spot were Bristol and London on 3%. In ninth place was Cardiff on 2% and in tenth spot was Birmingham with 0%.

You may or may not be aware that there are severe penalties for being caught with a tyre that has a tread depth of below the legal limit of 1.6 mm. You could receive three penalty points on your driving license plus a fine of up to £2,500 for every illegal tyre. This in turn could lead to an increase in your car insurance premiums. So, you may wish to have the tread depth on all your tyres checked to make sure that they are satisfactory.