Cost of driving 'up 20% since 2007'
Wednesday, 07 April 2010 10:43
By myfinances.co.uk staff
The cost of driving has risen by 20% in the past three years and is up 8.6 per cent compared with just five months ago, according to new research.
Sainsbury's Finance said that "steep" increases in fuel and insurance costs were the main factors in bringing annual motoring costs up to £2,539.
In the past five months, typical car insurance premiums have risen by 11.25% to £612.84 a year, while the prices at the pumps have gone up by 10.41% to take the yearly fuel bill to £1,398, the bank noted.
Over the same period, tax has risen by 3.4 per cent to £173.07 a year, while the average annual cost of servicing a vehicle has climbed by 0.68 per cent to £301.
Compared with 2007, it is now £438 a year more expensive to run a car, the bank added.
Sainsbury's car insurance manager Ben Tyte said: "The cost of driving can be kept better in check by shopping around, particularly for car insurance and servicing."
According to the Department for Transport, there were 27.02 million private cars registered in the UK in 2008.
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