Fuel prices drive down running costs
A fall in fuel prices has led to a 22% fall in the average price of running a car, according to research from Sainsbury’s Bank.
It found that the average annual cost of running a car is around £2,197.42, which is £622 less than 2013. The main reason for this is that the cost of fuel has fallen by 37.8%
during this period.
Fuel makes up nearly half of the cost of running a car.
The second biggest expense is insurance (28%), which has risen by 5.2% since 2013. However, a new initiative launched by Sainsbury’s Bank, ‘The Family Finance Report’, reveals that this year 67% of those with car insurance plan to shop around.
Of those that remained with their insurers last year, 49% saw a rise in premiums, with half of those reporting an increase of upward of £40.
Tom Thomson, head of car issurance Sainsbury’s Bank, said, ‘Competition is intense in the car insurance industry so it really pays to keep an eye on the premiums you are paying to ensure that you are still getting a competitive deal. It is essential that you compare like for like policies however to ensure they meet your cover needs.’
Ian Hughes, chief executive of Consumer Intelligence, added, ‘If you invest some time researching different insurance providers, you can make some huge savings. People need to get into the habit more of checking their renewal quotes and always shopping around to see if they can find a better deal.
‘This is especially true at the moment because the cost of cover has increased during the past few months as the Insurance Premium Tax rise from six per cent to 9.5% in November comes into effect, and another rise to 10% will happen from October.’
Sainsbury’s Bank also found that MOT prices had remained at £54.85 from 2013 to 2016, while servicing costs had risen by £32.36 to £301.60.
