Drivers issue ?561 warning over worrying trend and say ‘it’s insane’

Motorists are being driven to extreme measures amid skyrocketing car insurance premiums.[1] Drivers are having to find ways to cope with the often astronomical car insurance price hikes, according to the Guardian, with drastic measures including giving up their vehicles altogether. One 36-year-old from the Midlands told the newspaper:[2] "I've got a kid on the way, I couldn't afford to spend the difference, so I had to take cheaper cover." The average cover is now GBP561 - a third more than the same time just 12 months ago, according to the latest figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI). A 32-year-old who was quoted GBP600 - up from GBP250 a year previously - told the newspaper: "It's insane - I didn't expect it to have gone up by that much for people who've been driving for a while.

It's all happened at once. With my job it's mandatory that I have a car, so it's something I've got to pay."

And a 52-year-old Audi motorist saw his premium rocket to GBP1,500 from GBP403. "The only affordable option was from Hastings Direct, which, for GBP600 and with an excess of GBP250, requires me to drive with a widget that monitors my driving and scores me," the driver warned.

"It feels weird to drive with something like a speed camera permanently monitoring you, but it seems better than paying extortionate rates. Where we live now it would be very difficult to get by without a car. It was a bit of a shock, because we lived in London for 20 odd years, where we only used the tube.

"But the petrol price combined with the insurance price makes car ownership questionable.

We are yet to be affected by the higher interest rates, and we still don't know how much our mortgage is going to rise."