Getting car insurance can be expensive enough – but if you have penalty points on your licence it can make it even more expensive. Some insurers may not even provide quotes if you have 6 penalty points.
Over 4 years ago we took a look at the increased insurance costs for someone having 4 penalty points compared to having none. Surprisingly we found that it often made no difference to the quote. Out of 8 insurers – only 2 would charge more for having 4 penalty points. The biggest difference in price was €107 a year from Aviva
In the latest price comparison on car insurance – quotes were obtained for someone with 2 penalty points and for the same car and driver but with 6 points on their license.
Out of 8 insurers in the comparison – only 2 would give a quote for the driver with 6 penalty points.
The price difference compared to having 2 penalty points was just €44 with FBD. They quoted €406 when the driver had 2 points and €450 when they declared 6 penalty points.
With Axa – the increase was steeper: €606 with 6 penalty points compared to €345 with 2 points.
The lowest quote for someone with just 2 penalty points was from Allianz Insurance – at €253 a year. The highest quote was €504 from Aviva.
So – going from 2 to 6 penalty points could end up costing you at least €200 a year in extra car insurance premiums.
The survey only used direct insurers. You may well get even cheaper prices from online Brokers such as AA Insurance – they will get quotes from several insurance providers.
Prices compared February 2016 by the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission . See www.consumerhelp.ie