Motorists risk lives to save a few pounds
Thursday, 16 June 2011
• Almost one million motorists are skipping their annual car service, putting lives at risk
• 1.5 million motorists switching to six month tax discs, adding £s to annual tax bills
• 20 per cent of motoring pensioners ditching cars for public transport
Almost two thirds (61 per cent) of UK motorists are actively looking to save money on their motoring costs this year, according to online insurer swiftcover.com. Most significantly, more than 750,000 car owners are skipping their annual service in a bid to save money, potentially putting themselves, their passengers and those around them in danger.
The findings also revealed that of those looking to cut back on motor costs (61 per cent), a third (33 per cent) will simply drive less. The highest proportion of those driving less are between 35 and 44 years old – an age at which people are likely to rely on transport for their children or work. Furthermore, 1.5 million motorists are resorting to buying six month tax discs rather than 12, a false economy potentially costing the nation millions of pounds.
It’s not just younger drivers who have to find ways to reduce the cost of living through their driving habits. Pensioners are taking advantage of their free bus passes and leaving their cars at home in a bid to save money on motoring. According to the research by swiftcover.com, one in five (20 per cent) admitted to ditching their car in favour of public transport as part of a saving push being forced on today’s over 65 year olds.
Other ways of reducing the cost of motoring, revealed by swiftcover.com’s research:
• One in five (19 per cent) male drivers will sacrifice speed in a bid to gain better fuel economy and therefore help mitigate the rising prices of petrol
• Three per cent of car owners are washing their cars less often to save a few pounds
• Nine per cent will switch their car insurance to help cut the cost of motoring
Robin Reames, claims director at swiftcover.com, explained: “A well serviced car is less likely to go wrong, so it should go without saying that motorists should ensure that their car is properly serviced. In the long-term, servicing your car is likely to save you money by keeping it running smoothly – no-one wants to hear that their expensive car problems could have been prevented by shelling out a few pounds for a service.
“It’s encouraging to see people are at least trying to service their cars themselves rather than not service their cars at all; however, if it’s the first time you’ve done it, it’s recommended that you get help from someone who is experienced in doing such a task themselves.”
-Ends-
Notes to Editors
Research based on a survey carried out by Lake Market Research during March/April 2011 of more than 1,000 respondents.
For press enquiries please contact:
Luke O’Mahony or Charlotte Sluter
Brazil (PR agency for swiftcover.com)
020 7785 7383
swiftcover@agencybrazil.com
About swiftcover.com:
Based in Cobham, Surrey and employing more than 1,000 people, swiftcover.com started trading in June 2005 and was born out of a desire to revolutionise the general insurance market by making insurance quick and easy to use.
swiftcover.com offers car, home, travel and pet insurance online, and is the only insurer in Britain not to use call centres, which provides cost savings that can be passed directly onto the customer, keeping premiums low. swiftcover.com was named Best Value for Money Car Insurer in the UK in the 2010 Lovemoney.com awards.
This powerful operating model combined with successful marketing and competitive pricing has proven to be a tremendous success. In 2008 swiftcover.com achieved over half a million live policies and in May 2009 sold its millionth policy. swiftcover.com is considered to be one of the fastest-growing insurers in the UK and, as of February 2011, has more than 800,000 policy holders.
In 2007, AXA UK acquired swiftcover.com. It is now a wholly owned subsidiary of AXA Insurance UK PLC which forms part of AXA Group.
About AXA:
AXA Group is a worldwide leader in insurance and asset management, with 216,000 employees serving 93 million clients. In 2010, IFRS revenues amounted to Euro 91 billion and IFRS underlying earnings to Euro 3.9 billion. AXA had Euro 1,104 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2010.
The AXA ordinary share is listed on compartment A of Euronext Paris under the ticker symbol CS (ISNFR 0000120628 – Bloomberg: CS FP – Reuters: AXAF.PA). AXA’s American Depository Shares are also quoted on the OTC QX platform under the ticker symbol AXAHY.
The Group is included in the main international SRI indexes, such as Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) and FTSE4GOOD.
Our previous company performance is not a guide to how we may perform in the future.
Any opinions expressed in this media communication are made as at the date of this publication but are subject to change without notice.
Press Releases Home