The soaring cost of car insurance in Northern Ireland is forcing a growing number of drivers to consider giving up their car.
That is the message from a survey of drivers by comparison website CompareNI.com which found that most drivers are paying higher premiums than a year ago and around one quarter have reconsidered driving altogether.
The survey backs government data from the House of Commons Library which found that motor insurance annual inflation grew by more than 43% in May and anecdotal evidence which suggests Northern Ireland鈥檚 car insurance has been creeping higher in recent years.
Managing Director of CompareNI.com Ian Wilson said the inflationary environment is making driving prohibitively expensive.
鈥淚t鈥檚 shocking to see the rising cost of car insurance in Northern Ireland is actually starting to put people off driving,鈥 he said. 鈥淭he soaring cost of repairs, parts and even hire cars, has all had a knock-on effect on premium price.
鈥淭he volume of claims is also increasing, most likely due to the cost-of-living crisis as drivers struggle to pay for smaller claims themselves. We鈥檝e noticed a surge in the volume of customers to our site since the start of the year, up nearly 50% on this time last year as people hunt for savings.鈥
A total of 82% of people surveyed by CompareNI.com said the cost of their insurance had risen, a quarter of those by more than 拢100 over the last year.
Despite rising costs, Mr Wilson said it鈥檚 important to make sure motor insurance is comprehensive.
鈥淲hile aiming to secure cost-effective insurance, it鈥檚 crucial for drivers to ensure they鈥檙e not compromising on protection in case of accidents or unforeseen circumstances. Often there鈥檚 very little difference in price between third party cover and fully comprehensive, so if you can, it鈥檚 best to safeguard your finances and go fully comprehensive.
