Sainsbury’s finance launches new car insurance to help combat spiralling cost of motoring
(PRWEB) June 10, 2011
In the face of increasing motoring costs, Sainsbury’s Finance is launching a new car offering that will see Sainsbury’s shoppers able to save on their car insurance premiums as well as saving on their Sainsbury’s shopping and petrol. The new car insurance products, aimed to help motorists tackle their running costs, will see customers with a Nectar card receive a discount of up to 15% on their premiums, and the opportunity to earn double Nectar points on their shopping for two years – equivalent to an extra 1% off their bills. For those regularly spending £100 a week, the additional saving could be as much as £52 a year which is equivalent to 6.4% of the average car insurance premium(2).
There are two options of Sainsbury’s Car Insurance cover, a standard policy, and a Premier product that offers enhanced features such as a like for like courtesy(3) car for the duration of any repairs – something that only 1.9% of policies in the market offer(4). Both products offer some of the widest range of cover and benefits available in the marketplace.
The supermarket bank’s research reveals that the average annual cost of running a car has increased by around 21.1% since April last year(1). The key factors behind this rise are an increase of 30.7% to average car insurance premiums since April 2010(5), and a typical rise in fuel costs of 22.9% over the same period. The average car owner is now spending around £1,720.69 per year to fuel their vehicle(6) . These alone accounted for £511.93 in additional costs to the typical motorist.
Ben Tyte, Head of Motor Insurance, Sainsbury’s Finance said: “The family car is vital to most of us, and with the majority of us feeling the pinch when it comes to running them, we’re delighted to be able to offer the Sainsbury’s shopper the chance to keep the cost of motoring down with a very attractive discount on their car insurance premiums and the ability to save money on their shopping in store and also their fuel.”
Sainsbury’s Finance research(7) found that just 18% of motorists will not consider switching their car insurance, obtaining no further car insurance quotes at their next renewal. However 2.29 million motorists will obtain over five quotes themselves and 51.2% of motorists will additionally use money aggregator sites. One in three (34%) motorists intend to obtain more quotes than the last time they insured their cars, and only 3% say they will receive less.
Overall, the findings reveal that 30.1 million motorists will try and obtain a better insurance quote for their car at their next renewal. With so many motorists looking to find cheaper car insurance premiums and switch insurer over the next 12 months this makes it an ideal time for the supermarket bank to launch its new car insurance offering.
Ben Tyte continued: “We believe the quality and uniqueness of our car insurance proposition will prove popular with the Sainsbury’s shopper as they see the savings they can make on their premiums but also their weekly shop.
“We chose RBS Insurance as our new provider of motor insurance due to their in-depth market knowledge and sheer breadth and scale of expertise. They demonstrated a real understanding of our customers which enabled us to develop a bespoke car insurance offer specifically designed for the Sainsbury’s shopper.”
As well as offering competitive premiums, both policies offer a comprehensive range of benefits and cover. For example, the two new Sainsbury’s Car Insurance policies enable all named drivers to earn their own no-claims discounts, which only 15.9% of policies allow(4). Similarly, they both offer a courtesy cars as standard(3). Research from Defaqto shows that only 53.3%(4) of policies across the market offer this (subject to availability).
Cover provided by the Sainsbury’s standard and enhanced car insurance policies Percentage of car insurance policies that provide this
Named drivers can earn their own NCD 15.9%
Full replacement cover in relation to child car seats 26.2%
£1,000 of cover for theft of keys 45.8%
Accident transport cover 40.2%
Courtesy car as standard, subject to availability (or not stated) 53.3%
Defaqto research (May 2011), commissioned by Sainsbury’s Finance.
Sainsbury’s Premier Cover Car Insurance also offers a range of other benefits including a guaranteed like for like courtesy car which means a family’s large seven-seater will be matched with another so that they can carry on as normal for the duration of repairs – only 1.9% of policies offer this. It is also among the 15.9% of policies that guarantee a courtesy car for 21 days or more following a total loss of your vehicle(4).
More / rising cost of motoring
Ben Tyte, Head of Motor Insurance, Sainsbury’s Finance said: “The cost of motoring has soared in recent months as all costs, but particularly fuel prices and insurance premiums, continue to rise. The cost of driving can be kept better in check by shopping around, particularly for fuel and car insurance, and we hope that more Sainsbury’s shoppers will consider us for both.”
Cost of driving
Item Estimated average annual cost per motorist April/May 2011 Estimated average annual cost per motorist in 1st April 2010 Percentage increase
Insurance(5) £814.80 £623.56 30.7%
Fuel(6) £1,720.69 £1,400 22.9%
Servicing(8) £317.25 £301 5.4%
MOT(9) £54.85 £54 1.6%
Tax(9) £181.92 £173.07 5.1%
Total(1) £3,089.51 £2,551.63 21.1%
To find out more about Sainsbury’s new Car Insurance call 0800 210 0247, visit http://www.sainsburysfinance.co.uk or pick up a leaflet in store.
Sainsbury’s new car insurance product provided by RBS Insurance is available to new customers only.
Those shopping at Sainsbury’s with their Nectar card already receive points equivalent to 1% off their shopping. Holding Sainsbury’s Car Insurance or another one of the supermarket bank’s qualifying reward products, doubles this Nectar reward. A customer with a qualifying Sainsbury’s Finance reward product who spends £100 a week in store will therefore receive the equivalent of £52 worth of extra Nectar points a year.
(1) Based on combined analysis of various sources including ConsumerIntelligence.com, Office of National Statistics, AA, and http://www.direct.gov.uk. Comparison was made between the latest figures from these sources and those from April 2010. (Fuel comparison against March 2010)
(2) According to research from ConsumerIntelligence.com, the average car insurance premium in April 2011 was £814.80. £52 as a percentage of this equals 6.38%.
(3) Courtesy car offered as standard on both policies (fully comprehensive). Subject to availability on Sainsbury’s Car Insurance. Like for like guaranteed on Sainsbury’s Premier Cover Car Insurance.
(4) Defaqto research (May 2011),commissioned by Sainsbury’s Finance. Defaqto is an independent financial research company.
(5) Based on ConsumerIntelligence.com average car insurance data for April 2011 and April 2010.
(6) Based on driving 10,000 miles a year in a Ford Focus (one of the UK’s most popular cars) which does on average 37.7 MPG and typical petrol prices at the time of the research.
(7) ICM interviewed a random sample of 2022 adults aged 18+. The interviews were conducted via an online omnibus survey between 13th May – 15th May 2011. Surveys were conducted across the country and the results have been weighted to the profile of all adults. ICM is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules. Further information available at http://www.icmresearch.co.uk
(8) Based on analysis of the latest figures from the Office of National Statistics and RPI statistics. According to the Department of Transport, there are some 27.8 million licensed cars in the UK.
(9) Based on data from http://www.direct.gov.uk
Sainsbury’s Finance:
To view our latest press releases and product information, please visit the Sainsbury’s Finance online media centre at http://www.sainsburysfinance.co.uk/media.
Sainsbury’s was the first major British supermarket to open a bank, commencing trading in February 1997. Benefiting from a fantastic, trusted brand that enables us to combine the shopping experience with personal finance, Sainsbury’s Finance provides a range of quality products including insurances, credit cards, savings and loans. Our proposition is to make shopping more rewarding by offering customers great products at fair prices, while consistently rewarding shoppers for their loyalty and being easy to do business with at all times. Our products consistently top Best Buy tables and regularly win awards for quality, price and service.
Sainsbury’s Finance recent awards include Best Overall Online Provider, Best Direct Personal Loans Provider, Best Online Credit Card Provider, Best Online Life Insurance Provider at the Your Money Awards 2010.
Sainsbury’s Finance is a joint venture between J.Sainsbury plc and Lloyds Banking Group.
For further information and general Sainsbury’s Finance enquiries customers can call the freephone number on 0500 40 50 60 or visit http://www.sainsburysfinance.co.uk
About RBS Insurance
RBS Insurance is the second largest general insurer in the UK1 and is wholly owned by The Royal Bank of Scotland Group. Headquartered in Bromley, Kent, it has operations in the UK, Germany and Italy.
It provides a wide range of general insurance products to consumers through a number of well known brands including; Direct Line, Churchill and Privilege. It also provides insurance services for third party brands, through its UKI Partnerships division. In the commercial sector, its NIG and Direct Line for Business operations provide insurance products for businesses via brokers or direct respectively.
In addition to insurance services, RBS Insurance continues to provide support and reassurance to millions of UK motorists through its Green Flag breakdown recovery service and Tracker stolen vehicle recovery and telematics business.
1Based on policies in force 2010.
About Nectar
Nectar, the United Kingdom’s leading coalition loyalty programme, is owned by Groupe Aeroplan Inc., a global leader in loyalty management.
More than 50 per cent of UK households collect Nectar points when shopping for groceries, doing DIY, booking a holiday, paying household bills, buying petrol and even getting their car serviced. Collectors also earn Nectar points every time they shop online via nectar.com at over 500 leading online retailers.
Since Nectar’s launch in 2002, over £1.5 billion of rewards have been redeemed by its collectors. Rewards include money off shopping, travel and general merchandise. For more information about Nectar, please visit: http://www.nectar.com
###
©Copyright 1997-
, Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.
Vocus, PRWeb, and Publicity Wire are trademarks or registered trademarks of Vocus, Inc. or Vocus PRW Holdings, LLC.