With stories circulating of car insurance premiums increasing by up to 50 percent, David Kerr from Bonkers.ie joined Newstalk Breakfast to discuss the industry, and to give some advise to motorists who are trying to save money.

Mr Kerr explained that the car insurers say that they suffered losses in 2014 due to the amount of money that they paid out to drivers because there were more accidents, and higher claims were higher than they had expected.

Tips

• Given the complicated nature of the market, motorists are inclined to renew with their current provider, rather than putting the effort into looking elsewhere – but there is a good chance that there is a better deal out there.
• Renewals are where most people get hit with steep premium increase.
• As the renewal date approaches you will be sent a letter quoting a new price - you can almost think of the figure as an “initial offer” – your insurer might not reduce it - but there is a good chance that someone else will give you a better deal.
• The quotes that you get from different insurers can differ greatly – some might be higher than what you are initially offered – different insurers have different criteria.
• Companies can do comparisons for you, Chill.ie will take your details and compare quotes from 14 different insurers.
• Given the increases that are being seen, you will probably end up paying more, but it is a matter of minimising the increase.
• Drivers have options - there are companies in the market who are willing to compete on price to a certain point to attract new business.
• It might sound like a pain, but a bit of effort can lead to significant savings.

Bonker's founding member, Simon Moynihan wrote about his attempts to beat his insurers initial quote in 2014.