UPDATE ON INSURANCE EQUALISATION

Following last week’s ruling in Europe that insurers could no longer discriminate based on gender, at least one insurance broker believes there is no basis for women drivers to pay less than men. The judgment in the European Court caused a furore and women can expect their premiums to soar when it is enacted in less than two years’ time.

However, Gerard MacCann of Chrome Insurance told The Sunday Independent a 65-year-old woman learner driver with four penalty points for driving without a licence can still get cheaper car insurance than a 40-year-old man with a full clean driving licence. The man, who drives a 1.6-litre engine car and has no penalty points, will pay €551: the woman driving the same car will pay €549.

Similarly, a 52-year-old woman who made a claim for €10,000 last year following a crash was quoted €1,407 – almost €1,000 less than quote to a 19-year-old man with a two years’ no-claims bonus.

The same young man would pay more than twice as much for his car insurance than a 50-year-old female driver with no driving experience, MacCann said.