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Car insurance premium doubles after policyholder moves 175 yards

January 12, 2012 By Paul Roberts Leave a Comment
postcode-lottery

One driver from Shropshire was astonished to find that her car insurance premium more than doubled after her address changed, despite the fact she’d only moved 175 yards away from her previous home, and was still living on the same street.

Hayley Fulton’s car insurance premium stood at £720 for the year prior to moving to a larger property in the same village of Highley in Shropshire with her family. However when the mother-of-two contacted her insurance company to change her home address, with a postcode that was one digit different to her former postcode, her new insurance premium was calculated at £1,600.

Recent Home Office statics revealed that there was a low level of crime throughout the Shropshire village, and no difference at all between the crime rates for both postcodes. However the insurance provider justified the increased premium by stating that the new postcode flagged up on their system as higher risk than the previous postcode Ms Fulton resided at.

Another reason for the increase in price of cover according to the 25-year-old’s insurer, was that the car was kept on the driveway of the family home at the previous address, but at the new home the car would be kept in a gated car park a few yards from the house.

Insurance companies use sophisticated systems to calculate insurance premiums that provide very detailed and specific information on a postcode including levels of fraud, crime and other factors that can affect the cost of a premium. In the case of Ms Fulton, the insurance provider found that the change of postcode and overnight location of the vehicle increased the risk factor of the policy, which resulted in a higher premium cost.

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Female car insurance provider not worried about EU ruling

February 23, 2011 By Dawn Bickford Leave a Comment
sheilas-wheels

Specialist female car insurance provider, Sheila’s Wheels, say they are not worried about the forthcoming European Court of Justice ruling which is expected to bring an end to gender bias in the car insurance industry.

Currently, women enjoy cheaper car insurance premiums than men on the whole, this is especially true in the younger age brackets as young male drivers have been proven to pose a bigger risk to insurers as they have a higher accident rate. However if the expected EU ruling goes ahead, it will then become illegal for insurance providers to calculate insurance rates based on gender.

This could spell bad news for insurance companies, such as Sheila’s Wheels, who specialise in cover for female drivers. However the insurer says they are not worried about the anticipated change. They believe that the change could be beneficial to specialist female insurers as it will attract more drivers to their brand.

Although Sheila’s Wheels do offer insurance policies to men, the overwhelming number of customers are female. Because of this high ratio of women to men holding Sheila’s Wheels policies, premiums will be kept low as women are statistically, less likely to be involved in a serious accident.

Sheila’s Wheels are currently running an advertising campaign on TV and in press publications, however they are not planning to run an ad campaign in light of the expected change to gender discrimination in the insurance industry.

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Car insurance could be about to rise for female drivers

October 19, 2010 By Paul Roberts Leave a Comment
Young-female-driver

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.

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Insurance policies to cover your handbag

August 2, 2010 By Fiona Clarke Leave a Comment
handbag-cover

As a recent survey revealed that more and more women are choosing to splash out on designer handbags, the need for insurance to cover these expensive purchases is more important than ever.

With 1 in 3 women admitting to spending between £150 and £500 on a handbag, plus when you add in the cost of items carried in the bag such as purses, credit cards, money, make-up, mobile phones, personal diaries and music players, the average worth of a handbag could be in the thousands.

Insurance4everyone.co.uk is offering a policy specifically for designer handbags called Boutique which provides cover for up to £2,500 for a handbag and contents, although extra cover is offered for specific items such as expensive mobile phones, and credit cards.

However the advice being given by insurance experts is to check existing insurance policies before taking out a standalone policy for your handbag to avoid paying twice for cover. Some car insurance policies, such as cover offered by Diamond and Sheila’s Wheels, comes with handbag insurance as standard for up to £300.

Selected banks also offer cover for handbags to private customers so it’s worth checking with your bank before signing up to a policy. Natwest, for example, offers its customers handbag cover for up to £500 and £300 towards the theft of an electronic gadget from the bag as well.

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Female motor insurance company branches out into travel

February 1, 2010 By Katrina Campbell Leave a Comment
sheilas-wheels

 

Sheila’s Wheels, the insurance company which specialises in female car cover, has added another branch of insurance to its growing portfolio. 

The company has launched a travel insurance policy for female customers. The cover offers comprehensive insurance as well as a number of value for money features geared specifically towards women. 

One of the new female-friendly features on the new travel insurance policy from Shelia’s Wheels is the “Handbags on holiday” cover. This means customer’s handbags are covered as standard when a baggage policy is taken out. Plus a customer will not be required to pay an excess charge if their bag is forcibly stolen from them. 

A holiday hotline, which is available 24/7, has been set up for the convenience of travel insurance customers. The designated phone number allows policy holders to call up while abroad if they have any queries, or for customer to call to clear up any questions they have before they travel. 

Another great feature of the female-only travel policy is their “By your side pledge” which means that if a customer is forced to stay in foreign country due to a medical problem, the insurance cover will ensure a companion stays with the policyholder until they are fit enough to travel home. 

As an added bonus, customers who book online are entitled to a 10% discount.

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Women only car insurance provider invents key-ring to aid driver’s safety

October 5, 2009 By Samantha Lewis Leave a Comment
A key ring made to look like a cocktail ring has been invented to improve the safefty of women drivers

One of the UK’s leading female only car insurance companies, Sheila’s Wheels, has invented a unique key-ring which they believe will help improve the safety of female drivers.

After conducting research through their customers, Sheila’s Wheels discovered that a third of the women questioned said they felt anxious when they were unable to locate their car keys in their handbag, especially if this occurs at night while alone.

To combat the problem, the company have invented a key-ring made to look like a cocktail ring. This can be worn on the lady’s finger so it is always at hand. By pressing the gemstone on the ring, the car door can be opened thereby allowing the woman to get safely into her car. Once inside she has time to search through her handbag to find her ignition keys without having to feel worried about outside dangers.

The insurance company which pioneered the design is now in the process of contacting a number of manufacturers with a view to getting the device rolled out across the UK.

A personal safety expert agrees that the key-ring could help improve the safety of female motorists as Jenny Fawson, Director of Personal Safety at the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, explains: “If you are distracted from your surroundings because you are chatting on your mobile, listening to an mp3 player or rummaging about in your bag for keys, you will be less likely to see danger approaching and therefore less likely to be able to avoid it.”

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