Girls' world

By Sarah Modlock

9 November 2005

Girls are said to be made of sugar and spice and all things nice. Our fragrant worlds should be filled with thoughts of nothing more taxing than fluffy kittens. Small wonder then that car insurers are desperate to get our attention with ghastly adverts promoting 'specialist' cover for women. The things you see when you don't have your gun.

Just when I thought the twit from Picture Loan adverts was the most irritating weapon the finance world had to offer, along come three creatures who graduated from the Liberace school of style; the 'chicks' from Sheilas' Wheels .

Launched earlier this year by insurer esure, the company says it is designed for female drivers because it found that 'women claim less, are responsible for far fewer driving convictions and have attitudes towards cars, driving and other road users that are often more considered than those of their male counterparts.'

It's certainly true that figures consistently prove women are safer drivers and have the last laugh when it comes to insurance cover, often paying around 30% less than men.

Of course, it's good news that another insurer has entered the market and provided even greater competition and a dodgy advert matters not if they deliver the right cover at the right price. But don't let the sensory overload of tooth-achingly girly adverts blind you from shopping around.

Insurance companies consider a wide range of factors when calculating premiums. They include sex, age, occupation, postcode, the model, make and age of your vehicle, your previous driving record and your annual mileage. So it's important to contact as many insurers as possible as no one can ever offer the cheapest premium in every situation. This can be a pain but most companies will give you a quote online.

Drive a hard bargain

When I first started shopping around a few years ago I halved my premium so it was well worth the time. Since then, I have been able to reduce it slightly every year and my existing insurer has so far matched the cheaper deals I have found so I have stayed with them.

If you decide to use a price comparison website or tools to search policies for you, make sure the criteria is the same across the results. An unusually cheap premium may have a very large excess hidden in the small print.

'All female motorists should put mainstream insurers on their shopping list and not be fooled by the sugary marketing hype claiming that a company will have the cheapest premiums because it only covers women,' says Allan Burns of Tesco Car Insurance.

'Typically, women-only insurers are not necessarily the great value they claim to be and certainly not necessarily cheaper than mainstream insurers. Indeed, they are often the most expensive,' comments Richard Mason of insuresupermarket.com. The site carried out research based on two female drivers to see who provided the cheapest quote.

The first was a nurse aged 45, living in Chester (CH2), driving a Ford Ka. Licence held for 10 years, with 5 years no claims and car kept on drive. Sheilas' Wheels came in first at £164.37, marginally beating the Post Office and pipping Screentrade, Zurich and Eagle Star to the post. The next best 'specialist' female insurer was Diva in 8th place behind a clutch of mainstream insurers with £176.10. The others languished in 24th place or lower, with Diamond quoting £267.75.

The second quote was for a legal secretary, aged 26, living in Luton (LU4), driving a Ford Ka, licence held for 9 years, with 5 years no claims and car kept on the drive. This time Asda topped the list quoting £285.99, followed by swiftcover, peoples choice, Norwich Union Direct and Screentrade. Diva came in 6th place with £316.05 and Women on Wheels (yes, really) just a couple of pounds dearer. The Sheilas were shunted to 11th place with £322.74 and Girlmotor came bottom quoting a hefty £424.74.

'This proves once again that it's absolutely essential that all drivers shop around for insurance because everyone's circumstances and needs are different. One single insurer will never ever be the cheapest across a whole sector of the public,' Mason says.

Sheilas' Wheels could have marketed itself on value for money alone. But its extras are more confusing than helpful. It prides itself on an all-female management team but who really cares? The idea that something which smacks of positive discrimination makes for a better insurance product is bizarre. This is the same team that created a 'brand' which is as patronising as it is annoying.

It also offers handbag cover. Most car insurers offer £100 cover for personal belongings stolen from a car but Sheilas offers £200 plus an extra £300 to cover the cost of your handbag. Call me cynical but it's hard to imagine why anyone would leave their handbag in the car. Anyway, read the terms and conditions carefully before you sign up - cash, credit cards and documents such as passports are not covered. To be honest, anything else is probably already covered by your home contents insurance anyway.

Finally, Sheilas will ensure that if you do have a fender bender, the grease monkey who fixes your car will be, well, not greasy. A female-friendly code for the garages it uses will mean no Page Three pinups on the walls, a clean waiting area and a clear, polite explanation of the repairs. This has made rival insurers see red. They say that their mechanics are polite and helpful to all policyholders, regardless of gender.

So before you hand over your cash, put your well-honed bargain-hunting skills to work. Compare specialist and mainstream providers and cut through any fluff to find the best deal for you. Remember....women, know your limits - they are much broader than you may think.