Martin Lewis advice on getting the cheapest car insurance - and the best time to renew

Martin Lewis has given his tips on how drivers can secure the best car insurance deals as he delivered a “perverse warning” to thrifty viewers.

The average cost of car insurance is down 16 per cent in the year to January, analysis shows, but that doesn’t mean those looking to cut costs should relax. The slight drop follows from a massive spike which began in 2023 and peaked at around £1,000 in 2024.

It is now down to £834 – better, but still far above the £500 average seen in early 2021. But these price fluctuations don’t mean motorists are powerless to make further savings.

The crucial time to act in when your car insurance is up for renewal, Mr Lewis explains. This is typically every 12 months, and most policies will come with auto-renewal unless the provider is told otherwise.

The money expert advises against this, saying better deals can often be found elsewhere. Drivers are “so used to prices going up,” he says, that they are often happy to find out their car insurance bill is just going to remain the same for another year.

But with the market average dropping 16 per cent over the year, a deal at the same price means they will be “paying too much.”

“So my warning is against complacency,” Mr Lewis told viewers of ITV’s The Martin Lewis Money Show.

open image in gallery

Top deals are most easily found on comparison sites, such as the one offered by Mr Lewis’ Money Saving Expert service, which will take into account things like age, mileage and occupation.

And there’s more. Even the date that you choose to get a quote for your car insurance can affect the rate you’ll be offered. Analysing over one million quotes between January and April last year, Money Saving Expert found that 26 days before renewal was the sweet spot to buy.

At this point, the average quote was £906, compared to £1,371 to buy on the day of renewal. This is because insurers assess that “the people who price it at [26 days] are likely to be a lower risk than the people who leave it to the last minute,” Mr Lewis explains.

Get a free fractional share worth up to £100.
Capital at risk.

Terms and conditions apply.

Go to website

Get a free fractional share worth up to £100.
Capital at risk.

Terms and conditions apply.

Go to website

As any point between 20 and 30 days is advisable, it can be a good idea to set a reminder in the diary. This is because many insurers won’t let you know that your insurance is up for renewal until about two weeks before.

“Renewed three weeks early after your tip,” said one social media user, ”It's gone from a renewal price of £108/month to £51/month [saving £684/year]. Checked the comparisons later and it went back to £100. Happy.”

Another wrote: “Just did mine (24 days early) – saved over £690 over my renewal price.”

This is just one of many ways for motorists to save on car insurance, as research from Citizens Advice in December found that 2.6 million people don’t drive as they can’t afford this rising cost.

Finding a good quote can be a trial and error process, with plenty of room for tinkering to see how to secure the best deal for you within the rules. One way can be to add a responsible driver to your policy, especially if you’re a young driver.

This may seem counter-intuitive, but it can actually save hundreds or even thousands on a quote. Insurers will take into account the driving history and age of the person, so the stronger their motoring record the better.

However, the additional driver must be someone who would reasonably drive the vehicle. You should never add someone as the main named driver if they are not, as this can result in criminal conviction for fraud and void the policy.

open image in gallery

Next, even a simple step like tweaking your job title on the application can make a significant difference, so long as it is done legitimately. Research from Money Saving Expert has found that ‘illustrators’ get cheaper quotes than ‘artists’, ‘editors’ cheaper ones than ‘journalists’, and ‘personal assistants’ cheaper ones than ‘secretaries’.

Silly as it sounds, finding a different way to describe your job (whilst remaining accurate) could save some extra cash.

Unfortunately, insurers are still legally allowed to discriminate on employment grounds and so being unemployed perversely means you could face costs up to five times higher for car insurance. For those who are homemakers, this isn’t the case, so if you consider yourself to constitute this role it’s worth adding that to your application.

However, as with all parts of the application, lying here is considered fraudulent and can be prosecutable.

Finally, how you pay for your car insurance can affect the pricing. For the best deals, you’ll generally need to pay annually as a monthly plan effectively works like a high-interest loan.

These range from around 20 per cent to a massive 40, so it’s always best to pay annually to avoid extra costs. For someone with a premium of £1,000, paying monthly at an average APR of 25 per cent would mean an extra £140 in interest alone for the year.

For other motoring news, check the new DVLA rules that came into force in March which will affect all drivers in 2025.

When investing, your capital is at risk and you may get back less than invested. Past performance doesn’t guarantee future results.