The cost of your car insurance depends on many factors. These factors include your age, where you live, the type of car you drive, your driving history and the level of cover you choose. But did you know that your job title also influences how much you pay?
Car insurance comparison website Go Compare has done a study on the most expensive and cheapest job titles for car insurance. The study shows that fast food delivery drivers and taxi drivers face some of the highest car insurance premiums, while retired drivers and occupational therapists pay some of the lowest.
Read on to find out what other professionals are paying for their insurance premiums on average. I’ll also tell you of a job title ‘trick’ you can use that might lower your premium.
[top_pitch]
Which job titles are the most expensive for car insurance?
According to Go Compare, fast food delivery drivers face the most expensive car insurance premiums in the UK. People in this profession pay an average of £1,369.27 per year for their car insurance.
In second place is taxi drivers, whose average insurance premium is £1,010 per year.
Ryan Fulthorpe, Go Compare’s car insurance spokesman, says it’s not surprising that these two are at the top of the list of most expensive job titles for car insurance. Fast food delivery and taxi drivers spend their working lives on the road, meaning they’re understandably seen as riskier by insurers.
The next two professions on the list, however, come as a bit of a surprise because they are roles that are not typically regarded as risky. These are librarians and shopkeepers. The costs for these two job titles are £949 and £919 per year, respectively.
Couriers round off the top five list of most expensive job titles for car insurance at £908.88 per year.
Here is the full list of the 10 most expensive job titles for car insurance:
Occupation |
Average premium |
Fast food delivery driver |
£1,369.27 |
Taxi driver |
£1,010.14 |
Librarian |
£949.08 |
Shopkeeper |
£919.03 |
Courier |
£908.88 |
Computer operator |
£908.02 |
Picker |
£893. 54 |
Cafe owner |
£893.29 |
Delivery courier |
£890.83 |
Barber |
£878.64 |
Which are the cheapest job titles for car insurance?
At the other end of the scale, retired drivers pay the cheapest car insurance premiums in the country, with an average annual cost of £395.18.
Next are occupational therapists, who pay £460.09 per year, and research scientists, who pay £469.72.
Credit controllers and local government officers complete the list of the top five cheapest job titles for car insurance, paying £477.89 and £482.79 respectively.
Other job titles with relatively cheap premiums are:
- Clerical officer – £483.34
- Scientist – £486.81
- College lecturer – £487.98
- Quality engineer – £489.66
- Nursery worker – £490.63
[middle_pitch]
How can drivers in the most expensive professions lower their premiums?
Clearly, your job title can have a big influence on your car insurance quote.
If you are in one of the more expensive job titles for car insurance, it’s possible to bring your costs down without moving into a whole new career. You can do this by tweaking the wording of your job title during the application process.
Fulthorpe says: “If you are getting a quote for your car insurance, it is worth looking at the wording of your job title to see if you can save money on your premiums.”
In other words, try putting in an alternative job title that still matches your role but that might have a lower premium. For example, instead of saying ‘chef,’ you could say ‘caterer’ or ‘kitchen worker’. And instead of a journalist, you say you are a ‘writer’.
Needless to say, any changes to your job title must be reasonable. Do not, for example, state that you are ‘retired’ when you are actually an active fast-food delivery driver. This could void your car insurance policy and lead to charges of insurance fraud.
Ultimately, the best way to save money on your car insurance is to do comparison shopping. To make this easier for you, the Motley Fool has compiled a list of top-rated websites that you can use to compare car insurance and find the best possible deal for your needs.