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The launch of the new highly acclaimed Golf GTI has re-ignited the hot hatch market, but the thought of soaring insurance costs can frighten drivers away from buying one. However, leading insurer Admiral has found that the cost of insuring a hot hatch isn't as high as you may think.
Admiral compared three of the hottest hatches on the market, namely the Volkswagen Golf GTI, Vauxhall Astra SRI 197 and Honda Civic Type-R. Their vital statistics are strikingly similar; brake horsepower figures of 197, top speeds of 138, 136 and 133 miles per hour, and 0 to 60 times of 7.8, 8.3 and 7.6 seconds respectively.
However, when comparing insurance costs, Admiral found a sizeable range in premiums:
- £468.30 to £1,039.99 for the Golf,
- £506.10 to £1041.60 for the Astra,
- £655.20 to £1316.00 for the Civic.
Admiral Managing Director, Jane Stone, commented, "Hot hatches have always been popular, but the re-emergence of the Golf has really given possible buyers a selection headache. Although it is the most expensive of the cars we investigated, it is the cheapest for us to insure."
"Surprisingly the Honda Civic, which is almost £4,000 less to buy than the Golf, is the most expensive for us to insure, which could be down to its popularity with car thieves."
So how do quotes compare? The example below compares the prices for a 30 year old male Marketing Manager living in W11 (Notting Hill, London):
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Volkswagen Golf 2.0 FSI GTI 3dr (£19,995) |
Vauxhall Astra 2.0T SRI 197 5dr (£18,445) |
Honda Civic 2.0 16V Type-R 3dr (£16,250) |
| Admiral |
£468.30 |
£506.10 |
£655.20 |
| Direct Line |
£722.40 |
£684.60 |
£791.70 |
| Churchill |
£1,023.75 |
£1,041.60 |
£1,077.30 |
| Norwich Union |
£1,039.99 |
£916.00 |
£1,316.00 |
Issue date: 01-03-05
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