What's the news?
Irish motorists should be able to breathe a little easier at insurance renewal time this year, as according to the AA, the cost of cover has fallen by around ten per cent. The motoring and roadside recovery organisations's latest survey found that the average cost of running a car for a year has fallen by €178 to €10,671.
The AA's survey, which also drew on data from the Central Statistics Office, showed that fuel prices have gone up by around 0.4 per cent, but that was more than offset by a fall of 10.25 per cent in the cost of insurance premiums. True, those premiums had seen triple-digit percentage increases over the past two years, but any fall is to be welcomed. Mind you, the AA does say that many motorists won't have seen that benefit yet, as their renewal won't have come up.
"Motorists renew their motor insurance once per year so depending on when you pay you may not have seen any fall off in the cost yet." Says Director of Consumer Affairs Conor Faughnan. "The best we can say is that when we compare August of this year to August of last the cost did not get any worse overall.
"Rising motor insurance premiums have been the main issue faced by motorists for over two years now, and something which the AA has highlighted to government since the publication of our 5 point plan to tackle rising insurance costs in November 2015. While it appears some progress is being made in this space, in order for the trend to continue into the future and for motorists to ultimately start seeing their premiums drop it's important that government continues to give this issue the attention it deserves. In the meantime there are some things you can do to lower your costs," Faughnan added. "If you have a spouse or partner then adding them to your insurance policy, as long as they have a clean driver record, can net you a discount of up to 20 per cent and separately it's always worth shopping around. Even if you receive a renewal quote which seems competitive call your current insurer and others to see if anyone can do better for you."
It is, of course, worth pointing out that the AA, as well as its position as a roadside recovery expert, and general motoring advocate, is also itself a provider of car (and other) insurance.
Fuel prices haven't moved much for the Irish consumer, as although the wholesale price has been as volatile as ever, a relatively steady value of the Euro has helped. Average pump prices right now are running at €1.31 for unleaded, and the average cost of fuelling a car for a year stands at €1,561.
"Oil prices have jumped around in the last 12 months, from highs of $57 around the turn of the year to lows of $43 a couple of months ago." Says Faughnan. "Right now though the oil price is just a bit higher than this time last year which is offset by a stronger Euro, so our year-on-year comparison shows only a slight change."