The largest insurer in the UK, Norwich Union, has suspended what had been described as a ground breaking form of car insurance that used a black box to track every journey.
The idea was to set premiums based on the risks faced by drivers. This would mean that drivers avoiding rush hour or late night driving would pay less for their car insurance. Norwich Union cited a slow take up of the idea and too few customers as the key factors for withdrawing the car insurance scheme.
There has also been a certain amount of mistrust from drivers regarding the black box. Having every journey monitored is not what Britain is about and there could be situations where a drivers Norwich Union car insurance policy could be negated if a vehicle was seen to be speeding at any time, or even have the data passed to the police. All in all most people feel the withdrawal of the black box idea is a good result and hope that it will not see the light of day again.
It comes as little surprise to anyone that the young drivers on our roads today are being charged much more for their car insurance than their older counterparts. The differences though are considerable.
A study has been carried out by an independent body, looking at the typical premiums being paid to car insurance companies such as Swinton Insurance and others like them. The research has found a difference of 115 percent between the national average car insurance cost and that paid by young drivers. The average figure for the nation is GBP439, while young drivers are paying GBP989. This works out for the young driver at nearly 70 percent of their cars value.
Could this be the reason some young drivers go without insurance it has been asked. In fact some young drivers have even had insurance declined simply because of their age, though Swinton are not understood to be one of the insurers that has done this.
Technology is not always right is the message being sent out by car insurance companies such as Direct Line, suggesting drivers should not take the advice of the system blindly.
There have been many occasions when drivers have followed the route given to them by a sat-nav system only to find themselves heading down narrow farm tracks and through deep water. They carry on regardless though feeling that the satellite navigation system cannot be wrong. A big mistake say Direct Line since they have seen an increase in claims because of situations just like these.
If the situation continues then car insurance premiums are sure to rise, a scenario no one wants to see. Direct Line and other car insurance providers have to increase the premiums because of the extra costs they face so it is down to the drivers to make sure they use sat nav as an aid, trusting their own driving knowledge first and foremost.
