Admiral Car Insurance
Admiral provides low cost car insurance for all kinds of people.
Specialising in the sectors for young drivers, performance cars and people living in cities, Admiral Car Insurance will always deliver a competitive and flexible online motor quote.
Standard policy features from this insurer include among others - flexible payment, payment holiday, courtesy car, and first class customer support. Coverage is available for ages 17 to 70.
Car insurance policies purchased through Admiral are underwritten by the insurance carriers listed on your Certificate of Motor Insurance.
How to get the best deal
■ Shop around as premium rates will vary. Check out deals at the Guardian site www.money-deals.co.uk/compare-and-buy-insurance.html.
■ Consider buying a smaller, lower-powered car.
■ Fit an approved immobiliser, as this can often earn you a discount on the standard premium.
■ Consider opting for a higher voluntary excess (the first part of each claim that you pay yourself).
■ If the car is low-value, consider a third party fire and theft policy.
■ Avoid modifications, they can drive up the price.
■ If possible, pay for your premium up front, as spreading the cost over instalments pushes up the price.
■ Parking a car in a driveway or garage is considered safer than leaving it on the roadside and will thus lower premiums.
■ Most insurance providers base their premiums on the amount of miles a person drives in a year, so don't overestimate your mileage. You can always contact your insurer to adjust mileage should you find you're using the car more. than predicted.
Tax and CO2 emissions
Car tax has risen exponentially during the past five years since it was linked to the amount of CO2 that vehicles emit. Owners of the least green cars that fall into the most expensive tax band (M) have experienced a 164% rise in tax since 2005-06, and cars in the band below have faced a 158% rise.
By contrast, tax has fallen dramatically on models of cars that emit less CO2. But the problem with this tiering of tax is that drivers from struggling families who might have been lent or given an older car (with CO2 emissions above 255 grams per kilometre) face an annual vehicle tax bill of £435 compared with just £20 for cars with 101-110g/km in CO2 emissions.
The system of car tax has been designed to promote the idea of green vehicle ownership. But green cars are still very expensive compared with their petrol-fuelled peers, despite many manufacturers reducing prices at a loss to gain market share in what could be a crucial year for the battery electric vehicles market.
The new Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi iMiEV cost about £24,000 (after taking into account the £5,000 government grant), while the greenest Ford Focus ECOnetic diesel car is in the showrooms at about £17,000. By contrast, a typical two-year-old Ford Fiesta with around 50,000 miles on the clock can be found online for £3-4,000 – about 80% cheaper than new green vehicles.
The RAC Foundation says the new limited subsidies of up to £5,000 for purchasers of ultra-low carbon vehicles are a good idea, but need to be followed by more radical incentives such as a so-called "feebate" system under which purchasers of the greenest cars get a significant rebate – potentially several thousand pounds – while buyers of gas-guzzlers pay an extra fee over and above the saleroom price.
Until the green revolution is affordable to all, many motorists think it perverse that only those who are wealthy enough to afford the greenest cars in the first place are given a financial lifeline by the government.
What the government's done
The coalition government argues that motorists became public enemy number one under the previous government and claims it is trying to end the "war".
Earlier this year Hammond and local government secretary Eric Pickles launched a range of initiatives to achieve the coalition's aim: scrapping limits on car spaces for new homes as well as ending rules that allowed councils to levy higher parking fees. Pickles and Hammond also announced their intention to allow charging points for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles to be built on streets and in outdoor car parks without the need for planning permission.
But none of these initiatives will help motorists now who are struggling with the costs associated with excessive taxation, inflation increases and the VAT rise. Given that the government is highly unlikely to lower VAT, most car industry lobbyists claim it should act immediately to cut fuel costs if it is serious about wanting to end the war on motorists.
The coalition increased fuel duty 0.76p in January and another rise – set at 1p above inflation – is scheduled for April, although chancellor George Osborne recently said the government might consider scrapping it.
"Given that each penny increase in fuel duty raises about an extra £500m for the exchequer, it is easy to see why the chancellor is tempted to hike rates," says Prof Stephen Glaister, director of the RAC Foundation. "But if the nation's motorists are pushed too far they will drive less and the Treasury could actually see their tax take fall."
The coalition has also talked about the possible introduction of a "fair fuel stabiliser" which proposes that as global oil prices increase, the tax take is reduced and vice versa, though there is no sign of when this would be introduced.
A Parliamentary Transport Select Committee investigation into insurance costs for young drivers may have also come too late for many households – and there is no guarantee that its outcome will put pennies back into the pockets of younger drivers.
When you buy from a major brand, you can expect reliable car insurance at a competitive rate. It's a good way to get cover that will work out well in a claim.
That's why so many buy direct from a major brand.
If costs continue to rise, lower-income drivers could reach breaking point and protests will follow. Already, motorists have sent petitions to Downing Street and the AA is urging its members to write to their MP – it has published a draft letter on its website. The coalition may have pledged to end the war on drivers but as long as it treats the motorist as a cash cow, it will have a battle on its hands.
The chance to fill up your tank for free – all year
Do you wince every time you drive into a petrol station? Feel your wallet shrinking in anticipation of the pain ahead?
