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Confused.com reveals car insurance prices plummeted by 13.6% for drivers under 20

Confused.com has revealed car insurance has plummeted by £360 (13.6%) for drivers aged 17-20, but 2013 could see dramatic price rises after this December’s EU gender ruling. Experts have warned 17-20 year old drivers to take advantage of the current preferential rates and advised young drivers to avoid 2013’s predicted price hikes by shopping around.

Average comprehensive car insurance prices now stand at £757 as of Q3 2012, compared to £843 for Q3 of last year, a significant year-on-year fall of £87 (10.3%).

However, Confused.com’s experts predict this reduction could be short-lived and that the Treasury’s forecasts of 24% rises for young female drivers in the age group 17- 25 may come true for motorists in 2013, catching those who fail to shop around. This predicted insurance price rise could affect female drivers throughout various age groups, according to this Treasury data. 26-30 year old females are forecast an 18% price hike once the gender directive takes effect. 31-35 year old female drivers are expected to suffer a 10% price rise.

Smaller price rises are expected for women aged 36-40 who are predicted to experience a 3% rise, and 41-45 year female drivers are only expected to receive a 1% price rise for their future car insurance policies.

The latest Towers Watson/Confused car insurance price index shows a very different picture to those future predictions. 17-20 year-old women have fared best during Q3 of 2012, with a whopping 17.3% annual decrease in prices. For men it was the 36-40 year olds who experienced the most significant drop, with a 10.7% reduction in annual costs.

For Third Party Fire and Theft cover only, average premiums for Q3 stood at £1,131, showing minor reductions year-on-year of 2.1% and 1.5% quarter-on-quarter.

Quarter 3 of 2012 saw car insurance prices fall for all age groups, particularly young female drivers, but predictions from the Treasury indicate that young female drivers could see rises of up to 24% after the EU gender ruling becomes law on 21 December 2012. After this date women and men cannot be priced differently for insurance meaning women will no longer directly benefit from being statistically less risky drivers as far as insurers are concerned.

Gareth Kloet, Head of Car Insurance at Confused.com said: “We would recommend that young drivers take advantage of these latest price drops if they are able to renew now, but we anticipate that steep price hikes loom with the advent of the EU gender ruling, which means shopping around has never been so key.”

Regionally the biggest annual price falls have been in the Manchester/Merseyside area (prices fell by 12.5%), closely followed by the North East (a drop of 12.4%). By postcode area, Kirkwall saw the biggest price drop in the UK as prices fell by 15.6% and this was closely followed by Darlington, where car insurance prices dropped by 14.6%

Women on average saw their premiums shrink by 11.7% over all in Q3. For spouses of either gender the average premium cost for a joint insurance policy is a lot less than average costs for solo drivers: male drivers insured plus spouse are quoted on average £432, compared to £907 as insured only driver, for women it costs an average of £787 for insured only driver cover, but just £418 for women who have a spouse on their policy.

Via EPR Network
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Standard Life Charitable Trust and Shelter Partner To Help People In Need Of Financial Advice

The Standard Life Charitable Trust is providing funding to housing and homelessness charity Shelter for three telephone advisers at the charity’s housing advice lines in England and Scotland.

Shelter’s housing advice line provides support to those who are in debt and behind with rent and mortgage payments, as well as offering advice on a range of other issues including eviction and repossession. The helpline gave advice to almost 50,000 people across England in 2010 alone.

A recent survey by Shelter* showed that more than one in ten (11%) people face a constant struggle to pay their rent or mortgage. With unemployment high, the cost of living increasing and the possibility of a rise in interest rates ahead, more and more people are contacting the charity for help to manage their finances and stay afloat. In the first three months of this year Shelter saw a 30 per cent increase in calls to its helpline.

The Standard Life Charitable Trust is an independent charity established in 2009 by leading long term savings and investments company, Standard Life, and is focused on supporting people most in need of help managing their finances.

The Trust’s donation will fund three full-time telephone advisers at Shelter’s helplines until May 2012 allowing the charity to reach an additional 7,300 people with housing advice.

Shelter’s chief executive Campbell Robb said: “In these uncertain economic times many people are struggling to make ends meet and more and more are coming to Shelter for help.

“Thanks to this donation from the Standard Life Charitable Trust we will be able to reach even more people. Our advisers can stop things from spiralling out of control and help people get back on their feet.”

Baroness McDonagh, Chair of the Standard Life Charitable Trust said: “The Standard Life Charitable Trust is focused on supporting groups who could benefit most from help and advice to improve their financial capability. We are delighted our donation will fund additional Shelter advisers so they can help more people who are at risk of losing their home, many of whom are experiencing severe financial problems.”

Via EPR Network
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Checking & Savings, Financial, Financial Information, Financial Services, Investment, IRA, Money, Personal Finance, Retirement

Workers Beyond Retirement Age To Double In 10 Years

Prudential has revealed that UK businesses are bracing themselves for a surge in staff looking to delay retirement with around 1.8 million people expected to be working beyond traditional retirement ages in just 10 years.

The findings from new research commissioned by Prudential among finance directors at UK businesses found 24% of companies expect staff to work beyond retirement age in the next 10 years, with the proportion of people in the workforce who are past traditional retirement ages expected to more than double to 1.8 million people.

Larger companies expect to see an even greater proportion of their workforce working beyond retirement, with 39% of finance directors at larger firms expecting to have to accommodate requests from staff to work longer.

UK companies anticipate this will mean around 6.3% of their workforce (equivalent to 1.8 million people across the UK working population) will be made up of people working beyond statutory retirement ages in 10 years, more than double the current proportion of 2.6% of company workers (equivalent to around 752,700 people***) who currently work past retirement.

The study also found that in the past 12 months alone, 7% of finance directors have reported an increase in the number of employees asking to work past traditional retirement ages.

Martyn Bogira, Prudential’s Director of Defined Contribution Solutions, said: “As health and longevity continue to improve and people look to fund a longer life in retirement, it is inevitable that compromises have to be made.

“The statutory retirement age for men and women is due to rise to 68 by 2046, so working longer will be a fact of life for those entering the workforce today but these findings suggest that increasing numbers of pensioners will be forced to work later far sooner than this. Employers have told us that their staff costs could rise as their employees work for longer.

“Workers face the stark choice of either having to save more for their pension from an earlier age or having to work longer if they are to avoid taking a significant drop in their standard of living in retirement. Early pension saving is critical and we strongly encourage people not to delay starting a pension.”

The research also identified a clear North/South divide. Companies in the north of the country expect an average of 16.2% of their staff to work past the statutory retirement age compared with an average of 2.4% in Greater London and the South East.

Via EPR Network
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