Wheeler dealers could be paying more than £9,000 for car insurance
Ever thought that your profession could affect the cost of your car insurance? Research by Confused.com has shown that the extent to which your occupation could affect your premium - and how a simple app could help motorists save money on their car insurance.
Confused.com has compiled a list using their internal data identifying the top five professions which generate the highest average quotations and also the lowest.
The occupation that tops the insurance charts is a ‘Car Salesman', paying a staggering £9,640 on average for their car insurance. As a result of their occupation, they could be paying more than 13 times the average cost of car insurance, which now stands at £736.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, if your profession is a Bursar at a State school it is possible you could be quoted as little as £371 per year to insure your car. This is in stark contrast to a Car Valeter, whose average insurance cost per year is a whopping £4,817. Window Cleaners also get a bad ride, being fixed with quotes above £4,600.
Despite some professions facing huge costs for car insurance, others fare better. It appears that if you are a Head of Personnel you could be paying £351 less than the cost of the average car insurance premium, facing an insurance price of just £384.
The top five professions quoted the highest comprehensive car insurance premium:
Occupation - Average Annual Premium
1 Car Salesman £9,640.33
2 Car Valeter £4,817.37
3 Window Cleaner £4,607.12
4 Professional Footballer Apprentice £4,038.10
5 Car Dealer £2,883.85
Stats obtained from Confused.com Mar 2012-2013
The five professions quoted the lowest comprehensive car insurance premium:
Occupation - Average Annual Premium
1 Bursar State School £372.46
2 Head Of Personnel £384.50
3 Secretary PA £393.30
4 Principal Officer Civil Service £396.30
5 Police Inspector £402.86
Stats obtained from Confused.com Mar 2012-2013
A helping hand...
While the research shows the professions facing the highest premiums, it is worth noting that not all people who work in these occupations have exactly the same driving habits. To overcome this obstacle, Confused.com has come up with a solution in the form of a telematics app: MotorMate by Confused.com.
MotorMate by Confused.com is an easy to use driving app that shows people how good a driver they are at the touch of a button. The app mirrors in-car telematics technology, which is where a black box is fitted to a vehicle to monitor driver performance, potentially allowing good drivers to benefit from cheaper car insurance premiums.
The app takes into account factors such as anticipation, pace, acceleration, braking and cornering and gives a more thorough understanding of the driver's behaviour. This allows drivers to be monitored as individuals and not categorised based on assumptions made around their profession, age or driving history.
Gemma Stanbury, Head of Car Insurance at Confused.com says: "Whilst over the last year we have seen a drop in average car insurance prices by 9.8%, there are still distinguishing factors that can affect the cost of your car premium."
"These factors include the type of car you drive, the area you live in, your age, your profession and your own driving history. However this does not mean that every Bursar, Secretary and Police Inspector will be able to get a cheap deal. Each driver will be quoted on their own data - but your profession can significantly affect your insurance cost."
"However with the emergence of new technologies such as Telematics, motorists who can prove that they are careful behind the wheel can afford themselves discounts on their standard insurance premiums, regardless of their profession. Motorists can try the telematics experience before having to commit to having a black box installed in the vehicle by using an app such as MotorMate by Confused.com. The app allows us to reward our customers for being good drivers and enables them to better understand their driving behaviour, making them safer on the roads."