Are ‘Eco-Friendly’ Cars Cheaper to Insure?

The cost of motoring is going up all the time. The recent Libyan oil crisis has meant the price of fuel has continued to skyrocket, despite protests from consumers. Well fuel prices were always going to go up, it’s a finite resource. The Libyan oil crisis just gave them an extra push, or an easy excuse for the fuel companies to push their prices higher, depending on how cynical you are.

Car insurance is going up as well. In fact if you’re a woman living in the EU it might be going up by a lot, depending on the postponed ruling. Even if you’re not however, the cost of premiums are continuing to rise year on year.  
Essentially, it’s getting more and more expensive to own and drive a car. The solution which many are looking into now, is eco-friendly cars.

Eco-friendliness and fuel efficiency generally go hand-in-hand. The focus of an eco-friendly car is to use less fuel per mile where possible and to reduce the harmful carbon emissions. These cars generally have smaller engines than average as well, which should have an effect on the cost of your insurance premium.

Things are beginning to move this direction, but it isn’t necessarily always the case says onlyinsurance.com. Naturally a smaller engine will mean your car is cheaper to insure than a fuel guzzler, but finding premiums specifically for eco-friendly cars can take a bit of work. The growing consensus, onlyinsurance suggests, is that eco-friendly drivers are also more considerate with their driving and less likely to get involved in an accident. With this in mind some insurers are now offering cheaper premiums.

Don’t confuse these policies with carbon offsetting policies, which ensure a portion of the premium paid by the customer is put into carbon offsetting products. It’s possible that this could be a feature of an eco-friendly car insurance policy, but it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re buying a premium specifically for an eco-friendly car. Life can be so confusing at times.

Buying a fuel-efficient car doesn’t necessarily mean a Prius, if this is what’s concerning. There are a growing number of fuel-efficient models out there, which don’t immediately draw up connotations of daisy-chains and Hands Across America.

Not only that, but the Prius is quite an expensive car to buy, particularly as it’s so new. Thankfully, Webecoist have listed a number of more affordable options, which you can trade your current model in for.

So while eco-friendliness might not automatically mean cheaper car insurance, insurers are starting to treat these cars differently – it’s worth shopping around to see what kind of deals are out there. And, even if you don’t see immediate savings on your premiums, there are plenty of savings to be had on the cost of fuel.

Jennifer is a part of the digital blogging team at alwritenow.com who work with brands like LV =. For more information about me, or to keep up to date with the latest in lifestyle news, check out my posts at alwritenow.com or visit my Twitter account, @awnow

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