Londoners pay the most for car insurance
It has been found that people living in London pay some of the highest car insurance rates in the country, an average of £500 per year compared to a nationwide average of £369. The EC postal region pays the most, with car owners paying £700 a year on average to insure their cars.
There are a number of reasons Londoners pay so much for their car insurance, reasons associated with many cities; high crime rates, living near to a tube or railway station, and street parking. However, the main reason that Londoners pay above average insurance is their postcode.
The first part of a person’s postcode has a huge effect on car insurance. Even people living in a quiet residential area with a low crime rate and high average wealth can get a large car insurance bill because of sharing a postcode with a higher crime rate area. This is a particular problem for Londoners since high crime and low crime areas are inextricably intermingled.
Calls have been made for car insurance to follow in the footsteps of home insurance, with the full postal code being taken into account when insurance is being calculated. Although this may help somewhat for people living in the middle of a low crime area, people who live close to, but not in, a high crime area are still likely to have to pay above average.