Car insurance premiums could be about to get a whole lot more expensive for female drivers if the European Court of Justice rules that gender bias insurance rates are illegal.
Generally speaking, female drivers currently enjoy lower insurance cost compared to their male counterparts. The gap in motor insurance premiums between the sexes is most noticeable in the younger age bracket where young male drivers are hit hardest by costly insurance rates.
Insurance companies offer cheaper rates of cover for female drivers as statistically, women are involved in fewer accidents, and when they do make a claim, it tends to cost less. Because women are deemed to be less of a risk for insurers, they benefit from reduced insurance costs.
However the European Court of Justice is looking into whether this practice of basing car insurance rates on gender, contravenes European Union laws. If the court finds this does conflict with EU laws, insurance companies will be forced to change the way they calculate insurance rates for drivers.
If this happens, it would have a detrimental effect of insurance providers such as Sheila’s Wheels and Diamond who specialise in the provision of motor cover for female motorists.
