The principles behind
Car Insurance.

Car Insurance. Its more difficult to get insurance once youre elderly.

According to the Institute of Advanced Motoring, there were 550 accidents last year where the driver was over aged 70 and where driver was either killed or seriously hurt. That represents 8% of the national total of 7,035. Thats more serious accidents per mile than any other group.

This view is backed up by the Association of British Insurerswhose research has shown that over 70s drivers are 13% more likely to make a claim than the drivers aged between 40 and 50.

Bearing in mind that the number of elderly drivers will doubleduring the next ten years, this represents a problem for the insurance industry, police and indeed all of the emergency services. Not to mention the drivers and their families! (secured loan)

The response from the insurance industry is predictable.Some insurers already class drivers over 80 as high risk drivers – along with the under 25s - and charge them premiums to match. But some companies are already progressively loading premiums once the driver reaches 60. Then at 70, youll find that insurance companies start to refuse cover.Esure and Norwich Union wont quote after that age and by the time the driver reaches 80, the field has narrowed to just insurers who specialise on elderly drivers. Age Concern and Help the Aged both offer policies that have no upper age limit. Cornhill will only accept new policyholders up to age 84 but if youre already their client, theres no upper age limit. Saga and RIAS are also happy to consider older drivers.

As insurance is priced by risk, a 75 year old male driver can expect to pay 33% more than if he were aged 50, whilst 80 year olds pay boy-racer premiums! So if youre in your early 50s you may be smiling at the lowest premiums in your life - but it wont last for ever! (home insurance)

And women fare even worse. Whilst younger women are safer drivers than their boy friends, men improve with age (where have we heard that before!) and women become more accident prone. Consequently, elderly women drivers pay the highest rates of insurance.

Its a biological fact that reaction times and eyesight deteriorate as you get older (secured loan). And with traffic consistently becoming heavier and road networks ever more complicated, elderly drivers can more easily become confused. Even a delay of a fraction of a second can be the difference between an accident and a miss. This now results in more insurers insisting on a medical before agreeing to insure elderly drivers. Your best plan is to build up a good no claims record and as soon as possible, get No Claims Protection. This will cost you a bit more but its well worth it. Then be sure not to claim for any small bumps. (mortgage deals)

But there are simple steps that older drivers can take to minimise their likelihood of accidents and make themselves more insurable. Its often about those little things and being aware of likely problems. For example, car parks are a perennial problem. If you know that, before you get back in your car, walk round it to see how much clearance youve got. And then edge out carefully making sure that other drivers in the car park arent driving into the area youre pulling or reversing into. Then if age has stiffened you neck all-round visibility is a bit more difficult, take extra care at junctions and when reversing. Remember not only to move you head but also swivel your shoulders, that way youll increase your arc of vision.

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