Drivers 'hit by additional costs'

28/11/11

By Steven Birch

Drivers are forced to pay out around £73 million on top of their car insurance premiums because common claims are not covered by their policies, research has shown.

Sainsbury's car insurance found that over five years, 2.4 million motorists had to pay out more than £368 million for problems such as replacement car keys, transport following an accident and courtesy cars.

Courtesy car costs were highlighted as an expensive factor for drivers, with 61 per cent of basic car insurance deals failing to offer the cover as standard. Results showed that the average paid out for courtesy cars was £170.67.

Problems with lost or stolen car keys were also expensive for drivers, costing £99.33 on average, and child car seat replacements - which are not covered by 74 per cent of car insurance policies - cost around £123.94 on average.

Ben Tyte, head of Sainsbury's car insurance, said: "Getting the most competitive price is important and we'd always urge motorists to shop around, but they need to make sure that this doesn't result in a false economy."