Churchill Car Insurance identifies £3bn insurance overspend in the UK

Britons could save a total of £3 billion on their insurance bills, Churchill Insurance has claimed. With the New Year just a few weeks away the insurer recommends that people take stock of their finances to see if they could save money. According to new research Churchill believes individuals could save up to 20 per cent - the equivalent of £150 for most people - by shopping around and buying online.

"The New Year is traditionally the time to make resolutions and to spring clean finances. It's easy for people to make substantial savings on their annual insurance bill by taking a fresh look at their cover," Frances Browning, spokesperson for Churchill Insurance, said.

As well as shopping around, consumers can save themselves money, without reducing their levels of cover, by simply changing the way they pay their bills. Insuresupermarket.com has pointed out that by paying for insurance annually consumers can save up to 30 per cent. Making changes including adding locks to doors, telling your insurer you only use the car at weekends, and giving up smoking can also all produce savings on premiums.

Churchill recommends buying car and home insurance online as the firm offers a ten per cent discount for customers who buy over the internet. Churchill has also announced it will be offering promotional deals on home insurance in January, with up to 20 per cent savings. Additionally, customers who already have a Churchill home or motor insurance policy could save ten per cent when taking out pet cover in the New Year.

Source – www.churchill.com – January 2005

*A replacement car can normally be arranged under one of the following conditions: (1) Comprehensive policyholders – a replacement car may be available under the terms of your insurance policy. Please check your policy details for more information. (2) Non fault accident – where we have the name, car registration number and insurance details of the person who caused the accident, we can supply a replacement car. This is done on a credit hire basis which means the costs for this service will be passed onto the insurance company of the person who caused the accident. We may not be able to arrange a replacement car where we are unable to get an admission of liability from their insurance company, or where the driver is untraceable or uninsured. (3) Repair garage – if your car is booked in for repairs following an accident, the repair garage may be able to provide a replacement car (subject to availability).