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Caught by a speed camera? Cut the expense

There are 4,500 speed cameras in the UK and this number is rising. Motorists caught speeding receive a fine and points on their licence. They will also see their insurance premiums rise. If you are one of the thousands of motorists who has been caught out by a speed camera in the last few years who will insure you and how can you keep your insurance costs down?

Direct car insurer, Admiral has looked at how the cost of insurance rises for a motorist who has points on his or her licence and has some suggestions on how to keep your premiums down if you are caught speeding.

Admiral looked at the cost of insuring a typical driver with 0, 3, 6 and 9 points on his licence through a number of insurance companies. It reveals that some insurers won't cover drivers with convictions, while others increase their premiums by up to 90%

Here is a list of companies who will insure a motorist with a motoring conviction and the cost of insuring a typical driver who has gained points for speeding:

Based on a 30-year-old male bank clerk, living in Sussex, driving a 2003 VW Golf GTI 115BHP 2.0, with 5 years no claims bonus.

Admiral managing director, Jane Stone, said: "Speeding is still a major factor in many road accidents, and people should not be caught speeding. But speed cameras are a reality of life and hundreds of thousands of motorists have been caught by them and as a result have seen their premiums rise. We want to give some advice to motorists with a speeding conviction on how they can keep the cost of their insurance down."

Some companies are reluctant to insure a motorist with points on their licence, for example Esure. Other companies raise their premiums depending on how many points a motorist has. Admiral raises its premiums quite considerably for motorists with three convictions.

Jane Stone, continued: "I think our research reinforces how important it is to shop around for insurance. Different companies view drivers with speeding convictions in different ways. We personally consider a motorist with three convictions as a high risk, but a motorist with one conviction perhaps shouldn't be criminalised."

Admiral's own research reveals that 44% of motorists don't believe speed cameras improve road safety. And only 36% think the police should install more of them. 67,000 of Admiral's 800,000 customers currently have a speeding conviction; equating to 8.4% of them.

So if you have been caught speeding recently, what else can you do to cut your premium when its time to renew your insurance? Here are some suggestions from Admiral:

• Take a voluntary excess. By having a higher excess than the standard, drivers get a reduction in their premium.
  
  
• Keep your mileage low and limit the use. The average mileage is 12,000 miles a year, but very few people drive that far. Tell your insurer if you drive less than the average.
  
  
• Increase the security on your car. Insurers prefer prevention to claims and cars with alarms and immobilisers are less likely to be targeted by thieves.
  
  
• Get a Pass Plus driving qualification. Many insurers offer a discount for drivers who have passed this.
  
  
• If you have an older car consider a Third Party, Fire and Theft policy.
  
  
• Most important of all, shop around.

Issue date: 17-03-04