New research has revealed the best times of the year to buy car insurance. In addition to this, it shows the average fully comprehensive premium has risen in cost by 16 percent (or £68) since 2013.
The analysis by MoneySuperMarket involved 49 million car insurance quotes from the last seven years, between 2013 and 2019.
It showed that August may be the best month to buy car insurance – being the cheapest, on average, for the past two years. In 2017, February was cheapest, however, and has been three times between 2013 and 2019.
Last year, those who insured their car in August paid £469. On average, that’s a 10 percent (£52) cheaper than December. In 2018, that saving was £43, with the average price being £495, compared with £538 in December. Generally speaking, December is considered the priciest month to buy car insurance.
Insurance is also more expensive than it was in 2013. The average fully comprehensive premium in the fourth quarter of 2013 was £435. That compares to an average of £503 in Q4 2019. As noted, the £68 jump represents an increase of 16 percent.
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“People purchasing a car often wait until December to secure a bargain, as dealers try and lock in sales before the end of the year,” said Emma Garland, data scientist at MoneySuperMarket.
“The only downside, is that it is generally the most expensive time to buy a car insurance policy. Our data shows that February and August are typically the cheapest months to buy car insurance. This could be because fewer cars are bought, due to people holding off for the new vehicle plates that are issued in March and September.”