Motorists gain but home owners feel the pain as costs rise

Taking an average of the cheapest five premiums, the average fully-comprehensive car insurance policy fell 2.9 per cent to £844 in the period July-September 2012 compared with the previous three months, according to AA Insurance.

But after a summer of storms and floods, a similar survey of home buildings insurance revealed an average rise of 2.4 per cent to £181, while home contents insurance rose one per cent to £242.

Over the late-summer period, young male drivers saw their premiums fall 0.7 per cent to £1,603 on average, while those for young women fell 2.2 per cent to £1,127.

All regions of the UK saw average car insurance premiums fall except Anglia, where they rose 1.4 per cent. Scotland remains the cheapest region in which to buy car insurance (averaging £438) while Greater Manchester and Liverpool are the most expensive areas (£1,059).

On home buildings insurance, the AA reported a rise in every region in the UK this late-summer period. The biggest regional increase, of 3.5 per cent to £177, was in Yorkshire and East Anglia, while London and south east England were the regions with the highest average premiums (up 2.9 per cent to £200).

Wales and the West Country had the cheapest home building premiums – up 1.1 per cent to £157.

On home content insurance, the highest premiums were in central England and north west England – up 0.7 per cent to £101. The cheapest regions were Scotland and the West Country, each with £79.

On car insurance, AA Insurance director Simon Douglas said: “Competition is tough in the insurance market, forcing many companies to reduce premiums despite the fact that costs show little sign of abating.”