MOTORISTS BEING RIPPED OFF BY AN AVERAGE OF £715
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has announced the referral of the investigation into the car insurance market to the Competition Commission. This follows worries of malpractice, which is not only unfair on consumers but adds unnecessary costs to drivers’ policies.
Recent figures show accident repairs to be inflated by an average of £155. Replacement car hire is an average of £560 more expensive than necessary. This is adding £255m a year to the cost of car insurance policies. In times where money is tight and insurance price are becoming more frequent, action is needed to prevent further crisis.
Tim Harris, our CEO, comments, “We have known this has been going on for years and always thought it unfair. The fact that many insurers are arranging artificially inflated repairs and car hire charges in return for a high fee is unacceptable. We’re pleased this is finally under investigation.
“It is bad enough to be in an accident, let alone having to pay excessive insurance costs. And it isn’t just the consumer left out of pocket, the garages and repairers are tarred with the same brush.”
Tim concludes, “We’ve been campaigning for years to let consumers know they don’t have to claim on their insurance for minor repairs. It will mean forking out for their excess, and an increase in their insurance premium. We hope this latest report will help make consumers more aware of the alternative options available.”
