Points Mean Higher Car Insurance Premiums

Written by Editorial Team

28 August 2007 / by None

According to tiscali.money, more than 1.5 million drivers are likely to receive penalty points on their driving licenses in the next year. “Get caught speeding this year and you will face a fixed fine, penalty points and ultimately an increase in your car insurance premium,” warns the website.

A survey undertaken by yesinsurance.co.uk shows that 80% of UK car drivers break the speed limit on the motorway and that men are worse culprits for this than women.

The research, which involved 4,000 UK motorists, found that 90 per cent of male respondents exceed the 70mph speed limit, with nearly two-thirds saying they had driven at more than 100 miles per hour.

Female drivers appear marginally more careful, although 77 per cent admitted to breaking the speed limit and a third said they had driven at more than 100 mph.

It goes without saying that car accidents also lead to higher insurance prices. Road accident statistics, which are due to be published next month by the Office for National Statistics, show that in 2006 almost 162,000 male car drivers were involved in car accidents in which someone was injured compared with just over 90,000 female drivers.

Furthermore, yesinsurance.co.uk’s study revealed that, although there are just 30 per cent more male drivers than female, men are involved in nearly double the number of accidents. Ironically, 31 per cent of men consider themselves to be better drivers than women.

“The research indicates that female drivers are generally safer than men when driving on motorways,” said company representative Paul Purdy.

“This correlates with scientific research on driving behaviour, which points to the fact that women are generally less likely to undertake risky manoeuvres or drive at high speed,” he added.

As a result, women are usually able to obtain cheaper car insurance deals. However, speeding is likely to earn drivers points on their license as well as increasing the risk of accidents which, in addition to the danger factor, inevitably lead to higher premiums.

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