THE best day to renew your car insurance has been revealed as premiums soar – and you could save hundreds of pounds.
New research from Confused.com has found the average price of a policy is now £222 (40 per cent) more expensive compared to a year ago.
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The jump is the biggest yearly price increase on record, the price comparison site said.
The average cost of a premium is now £776, with car insurance the third highest household bill in the UK after energy and council tax.
Premiums also soared by £119 – 18 per cent – in just the last three months, the price comparison website found.
The finance wizards at Money Saving Expert say the cheapest time to get a quote is 23 days before it needs to be renewed.
You should get a quote 20-26 days before your current policy runs out and your insurance provider should send you a renewal notice around 28 days beforehand
However, if you get a quote more than 28 days in advance this could push prices upwards.
Analysis of more than 70million quotes from the four biggest price comparison sites Compare the Market, Confused.com, Gocompare and MoneySupermarket – revealed a policy cost an average of £1,198 a year, if done on the renewal day.
However, quotes that were give 23 days earlier had an average of £694 a year, making a sizeable saving of £504.
Jenny Ross, editor of Which? Money, said: “Car insurance premiums reaching record highs comes at the worst possible time for consumers already battling cost pressures in a number of other areas, and motorists may be wondering whether insurers passing on increased costs is justified at this time.
“The Financial Conduct Authority’s new consumer duty will mean that insurers need to be able to demonstrate the products they are selling offer fair value.
“If they can’t justify them, they should face action from the regulator.”
While motorists are urged to check comparison sites not all insurance providers use them.
As the name would suggest, in order to get a quote from Direct Line, you have to contact them directly.
Drivers looking for the best deal should also be aware that insurers can offer different quotes on each comparison site, so it’s best to check as many of them as possible.
Once you’ve got a competitive quote it is worthwhile contacting your current insurer to see if they can match the lower offer.
Anyone with more than one car should also check “multicar” polices although these are not always the cheapest option.
It might be worth installing a black box in your motor as well – it could cut the cost of your premium by £250 a year.
Elsewhere, a motors expert has revealed her top tips for getting value for money when renewing your insurance.
An easy tweak to your policy can save as much as £250.
These are the car insurance rules you need to know about when driving to work.
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