Cheap car insurance for women

Statistically, women are considered to be safer drivers than men, according to insurers. However, while this previously meant women could enjoy cheaper car insurance, this all changed in 2012. In December of that year, the European Court of Justice made it illegal for insurers to use gender as a consideration when calculating insurance premiums. And as a result, insurers can no longer base their quotes on whether a driver is male or female.

But the good news is, there are still plenty of ways for women to save money on car insurance. This guide explains all you need to know about car insurance for women.

Up until 2012, women could benefit from cheaper car insurance premiums than men because they are generally considered safer drivers by insurance providers. Women tend to make fewer claims than men and when they do claim, the value of those claims is usually lower. 

But, since the Gender Directive was passed by the European Court of Justice, gender can no longer have an impact on the cost of someone’s car insurance premiums. This rule also applies to other forms of insurance, such as life insurance.

While women can no longer be offered lower insurance premiums based on their gender, there are several factors that affect the cost of car insurance and ways women can save money on their premiums. When calculating your car insurance premium, providers will consider factors, such as the type of car you drive, whether your car has any modifications, how secure your car is, your job title and your driving history. Because men tend to have higher risk jobs, such as construction workers or delivery drivers, their car insurance premiums can still end up being higher than women’s. Men are also more likely to have points on their licence and drive a more powerful car with modifications, and these factors can push up the cost of premiums too. According to insurer Admiral’s Car Insurance Price Index, in August 2023 men paid 14 per cent more for their car insurance premiums than women. Men paid an average of £1,150.79, while women paid an average of £1,003.87.

The three most common types of car insurance for women include:

• Fully comprehensive: This is the highest level of car insurance available. It covers you for damage caused to someone else or their car or property, and will also cover damage to your own car, as well as any injuries sustained by you or your passengers in an accident. Some policies also offer cover for vandalism and legal expenses. 
• Third party, fire and theft: This type of policy provides cover for other people, their vehicles and property, and will also cover your car if it’s damaged by fire or stolen. 
• Third party: This is the minimum legal requirement for drivers and the most basic level of cover. You’ll be covered for injuries to other people or damage to their property, but your own vehicle or any injuries you suffer as a result of a car accident won’t be covered.

Tactics for cheaper women’s car insurance deals

Women’s car insurance premiums are an annual average of £1,003. However, there are several steps you can take to reduce the cost of women’s car insurance. Take a look at the tips below to get started: 

• Choose a car in a lower insurance group: All cars are put into one of 50 car insurance groups. If you’re buying a new car and want to reduce your premium, try to choose one in a lower group as these tend to be safer to drive and cheaper to repair, which means they are also cheaper to insure. Those in high groups tend to be high performance vehicles and prestigious brands, which is why they cost more to insure.
• Reduce your mileage: The fewer miles you drive, the less chance there is of being in an accident, which means your car insurance premiums will be cheaper. However, it’s important that you remain honest when estimating your annual mileage on your car insurance application, otherwise you risk invalidating your policy.
• Invest in safety features: If your car doesn’t already have them, it’s worth investing in an industry-approved immobiliser or tracker to reduce the chance of your car being stolen – or if it is stolen, there’s more chance of you getting it back. 
• Park safely: If you can, park your car in a garage or on the driveway overnight, rather than on the street, where it is more likely to be damaged. 
• Add a named driver to your policy: If you’re relatively new to driving, it could be worth adding a more experienced driver, such as a parent, to your policy as a named driver. This can reduce premiums as the risk of a car accident is lowered if the younger driver is behind the wheel less often. Just make sure the named driver uses the car less often than the main driver.
• Pay for your car insurance annually: Paying for your car insurance in one go each year will be cheaper than paying in monthly instalments, when interest is often added. However, it does mean you’ll need to have enough cash available to foot the bill each year. 
• Consider telematics: Choosing telematics or black box insurance means a black box tracker will be fitted to your car to monitor your driving habits. Insurers will be tracking your speed, how sharply you brake, what time of day or night you drive, where you drive and how far you drive. They then use this data to adjust your insurance premium. If you always stick to the speed limit and drive on quieter roads in the daylight, you’re likely to pay less compared to someone driving too fast on busy roads. 
• Increase your excess: If you need to make a car insurance claim, you’ll need to pay both a compulsory excess and a voluntary excess. The compulsory excess is fixed by your insurer, but you can select how much you want to pay for your voluntary excess. Choosing a higher voluntary excess is one way to lower your insurance premiums, but you must be sure you could still afford to pay it if you had to claim. 
• Drive carefully: Driving sensibly will help reduce your risk of being involved in an accident and making a claim. Each year you don’t claim, you can build up a no claims bonus (NCB) which will reduce your premiums when you renew. Driving carefully will also lower the chances of you getting points on your licence or even being disqualified from driving, which can make it harder to get cheap car insurance in the future. 
• Think about your job title: If an insurer classifies your occupation as higher risk than others – if you’re regularly on the road, for example – you’re likely to pay more for your car insurance premiums. But, while you can’t lie about your occupation (you risk invalidating your cover if you do), you can alter the job title slightly when you run a quote to see what impact it has. For example, a journalist could describe themselves as a ‘writer’ or ‘editor’ to see if this reduces their premiums. 
• Shop around: Use a price comparison website each year to find the best car insurance deal for you. Don’t simply renew with your existing provider.