August is the cheapest month to buy car insurance

August is the cheapest month of the year to take out a new car insurance policy, according to new data.

The average price of a car insurance quote on comparison site MoneySuperMarket was £496.16 in August 2018, compared with £549.25 in January the same year. This is a £53.09 difference between the cheapest and most expensive month.

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Further data from MoneySuperMarket shows that, in the first half of 2019, the average quote for a fully comprehensive insurance policy remained below £500 for two consecutive quarters for the first time since summer 2015. The average quote was £466 in the first quarter of 2019, rising to £472 in the second quarter.

Analysis of 1.7 million insurance quotes showed motorists in Kirkwall saw their quotes fall the most in the second quarter of 2019 down five per cent from £334.65 to £317.62. Meanwhile, drivers in Durham, Norwich and Galashiels saw premiums drop three per cent, while those in Darlington, Paisley and Lincoln enjoyed a two per cent decrease.

East London remained the most expensive place to insure a car, with a fully comp policy quote coming in at an average of £935.20. In contrast, the Isle of Lewis in Scotland’s Outer Hebrides had the cheapest quotes at just £303.47. London as a whole had an average quote of £668, while Scotland’s figure was £364.

The two youngest age groups have seen quote prices decrease in the last 12 months – down 12 per cent for 17-19 year-olds to £993.61 and five per cent for 20-24 year-olds to £939.72. In addition, female drivers’ average quote fell four per cent £423.36, while men were quoted £516.15 – down five per cent.

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Emma Garland, data scientist at MoneySuperMarket, commented: “It’s good to see premiums staying below £500 for the second quarter running and this can be attributed to two things.

“First, there was a swift drop in the spring last year after the government reduced its calculations for lump sum payments for personal injury claims, which particularly affected younger drivers because they have more accidents.

“The second, longer term trend is the growing availability of black box, or telematics insurance. It is competitively priced and encourages safer driving, so it has helped to keep a ceiling on premiums.”

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