Motorists Intend to Cut Back on Car Cover in 2011 but Will They Get Stung by a 'Scorpion' Insurer?

LONDON, February 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Your Cover (http://www.yourcoverinsurance.co.uk/), the new online-only insurance offering from Allianz, is asking the 1 in 10 motorists who intend to cut back on their car insurance ( http://www.yourcoverinsurance.co.uk/en/products/car_insurance.html) cover in 2011 to check and see if they can keep the same level of cover AND save money!

A recent independent survey carried out for Your Cover ( http://www.yourcoverinsurance.co.uk/), revealed that in an effort to save money in these difficult financial times, 10 percent of motorists intend to cut back on their insurance expenditure in 2011. Car owners said they intended to:

     
    - Remove legal protection or courtesy cars from their policy (9.0%)
    - Increase their voluntary excess (7.0%)

In many cases, these additional extras are automatically included in insurance packages, so customers don't even get to choose whether they want to pay for them or not.

Your Cover is asking motorists to shop around to see how flexible some insurers can be with their products and who knows, they may be able to maintain their level of cover and save money at the same time, IF they choose the right provider. But beware of the choices you make says Andy James, head of direct customer marketing. He said:

"We would advise motorists to think carefully about the kind of car insurance policy they want in terms of cover and to avoid insuring themselves with a 'Scorpion' insurer i.e., there's a 'sting in the tail'. For example, a policy may seem cheap, but there is a wide variation in the level of charges imposed by insurers for things like mid-term adjustments, cancellation fees and paying by direct debit. These can all make a policy much more expensive in the long-run.

"51% of the people in our survey said that shopping around online had made it easier to find cheaper insurance. Motor insurance is one area where it is possible to save money and there is a lot of choice out there. What Your Cover does is allow motorists to build their policy themselves, adding on additional extras such as Legal expenses only if it suits their individual budget and lifestyle needs. ."

Other results from the survey include:

    
    - 35.0% said they intended to review their outgoings and make
      cuts where possible
    - 22.0% intend to spend less on luxury items
    - 12.0% said "I am going to have to make large cuts to our
      outgoings"

Media Notes:

1. Allianz Insurance is one of the largest general insurers in the UK and part of the Allianz SE Group, the largest property and casualty insurer worldwide. Reassuringly in these uncertain financial times, in July 2010 the Standard and Poor's rating for Allianz Insurance was reaffirmed as AA- with a stable outlook and the rating of Allianz SE was also reaffirmed as AA with a stable outlook. Also in July 2010, Allianz Insurance won the General Insurer of the Year title at the prestigious British Insurance Awards, the third time the Company has won the award in the last six years.

2. Allianz Retail provides a wide range of personal lines products distributed through brokers, retailers, affinity partners, veterinary practices and direct marketing. For more information please visit to http://www.allianzretail.co.uk.

3. *A survey of 4,000 motorists aged 18+ living in the UK was carried out by the research company OnePoll in October 2010.

4. Your Cover quotes are available online at http://www.yourcoverinsurance.co.uk.