Almost two-thirds of motorists complain of insurance premiums rising at least 15%

More than 64% of motorists have seen their motor insurance premiums increase by at least 15% year-on-year, according to a recent AA Ireland poll.

Some 30.48% of the over 3,000 respondents to a survey undertaken by AA Car Insurance stated that at the time of their last renewal their motor insurance premium had increased by between 15% and 30%, with a further 24.82% of those surveyed reporting a year-on-year increase of between 30% and 50%.

Meanwhile, almost a 10th of respondents (9.16%) had seen their premiums rise by more than 50% year-on year.

“While it’s impossible to predict what the future holds for insurance prices, the AA has been highlighting the issue of rising premiums for a long time now and in November 2015 released a set a simple proposals to help tackle this issue,” Conor Faughnan, AA Director of Consumer Affairs stated.

“Thankfully at the start of this year Minister Eoghan Murphy and the Cost of Insurance Working Group released a report, which contained many of the AA’s original proposals such as the expanded use of Automatic Number Plate Recognition by Gardaí to identify uninsured drivers and reduce fraud, outlining steps the government will take in response to the current situation.

“However, what can’t be allowed to happen is that this report winds up collecting dust on a shelf somewhere with no follow up action. With proper legislation and action from government to tackle rising premiums we will wind up with a better insurance industry and, as a result, fairer prices for and treatment of the average motorist.”

While the majority of motorists have seen an increase in their premiums, the AA Motor Insurance survey also found that some motorists have seen no rise in the cost of insurance. A total of 8.33% of those polled stated that the cost of their insurance had stayed approximately the same year on year. Meanwhile, 5.54% of those surveyed had seen a reduction in their motor insurance premiums of at least 5%

“It’s interesting to see that, even in the wider context of rising premiums, quite a sizeable percentage of motorists have seen no increase or a reduction in their premiums,” Faughnan added.

“As with any insurance policy, our advice is to always shop around to ensure that you are getting the best deal.

“Instead of simply accepting a renewal quote from your current provider shop around to find the best option for you, or even call your current insurer and advise them of any circumstances since you originally purchased cover that may have changed which could lower your premium.”

According to the survey, drivers aged between 35 and 46 were the most likely to have seen an increase in their premium, with 87.69% of those within this age bracket reporting a year on year increase in their premium of at least 5%.