Motorists continue to feel the pinch as new research reveals the cost of car insurance has risen by £220 in the past year.
The average cost of comprehensive car insurance now stands at £835 - a rise of £220 in the last 12 months.
But there is some good news for drivers as the quarterly Confused.com/Towers Watson Car Insurance Price Index revealed that price rises are slowing year-on-year.
The annual cost of a comprehensive car insurance policy has risen by 35.7 per cent in the first three months of 2011, compared to 37.8 per cent at the end of 2010 - the first reduction since the middle of 2008.
Gareth Kloet, head of motor at Confused.com said: “Our figures show that despite these rises, there are still good deals to be had.
“For example, younger drivers and particularly younger men using Confused.com experienced much lower than average premium increases during the quarter.”
Third party policies cost more
The quarterly research also revealed that motorists are paying out more for third party, fire and theft policies than for comprehensive cover.
The average annual third party, fire and theft premium stands at £1,121 compared to £835 for comprehensive cover.
Meanwhile, while the cost of car insurance for younger drivers has been the subject of many headlines recently, the Price Index revealed that drivers aged 36 to 45 have faced the biggest price rises.
The average quote for drivers in this age bracket rose by five per cent in the first three months of 2011.
In terms of gender, women aged between 66 and 70 have seen the highest quarterly increase in premiums with a rise of 5.8 per cent over the last three months.
Drivers in North West pay more
Motorists in the Manchester and Merseyside area paid more for car insurance than drivers in the rest of the country with the cost of comprehensive cover rising by 47.1 per cent in the past 12 months.
Bradford remains the postcode with the fastest rising prices over the past 12 months at 54.4 per cent.
Peter Lee of Towers Watson said: “The private car insurance market has had to keep raising prices to counter poor claims experience.
“The fact that the market has been virtually stood on its head so far in 2011 by the real and potential impact of increases in insurance premium tax and VAT, the European Court of Justice ruling preventing the future use of gender in pricing and Government plans for addressing civil litigation costs, makes it hardly surprising that many are taking stock of their position.”
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