New research from Compare the Market has found that drivers could get cheaper car insurance premiums just for turning 26. Based on a series of quotes from brands and products available through Compare the Market, on average, women save $56 and men save $75*.
The difference in price between 25 and 26-year-olds reflects the fact that, statistically, drivers over the age of 25 are less likely to be involved in an incident in road.
However, other factors and changes that may occur could mean that the potential savings get hidden by other costs, such as moving to a higher-risk suburb, modifying the car, or making the insurance claim in the year before.
Price changes differ greatly depending on location
Compare the Market’s used our hypothetical male and female customers to obtain quotes at three different suburban addressed across Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria. The difference in cost for turning 26 varies between the states.
Victoria saw the biggest reduction in premiums, with men saving $120 on average and women saving $80 on average. In Queensland, the difference in price for the different ages was $39 for women and $47 for men, while the averages in NSW were $45 for women and $57 for men.
The difference in price for turning 26 changes between addresses and suburbs. Reservoir, a suburb of Melbourne, had the biggest difference in price for men turning 26 compared to when they were 25. Men had a premium reduction greater than $255 on average. For women, the Victorian suburb of Mount Martha had the biggest difference in premiums. On average, women’s premiums were reduced by $134.
| Victoria | ||||||
| Suburb | 25 yr old female average | 26 yr old female average | Difference for females | 25 yr old male average | 26 yr old male average | Difference for males |
| Reservoir | $2254.69 | $2179.00 | $75.69 | $2478.35 | $2222.87 | $255.47 |
| Mount Martha | $1272.917 | $1138.84 | $134.06 | $1367.91 | $1314.23 | $53.68 |
| Anglesea | $1269.56 | $1231.11 | $38.44 | $1360.32 | $1307.80 | $52.52 |
| Based on indicative comprehensive car insurance quotes with an excess of $900 available through Compare the Market for a silver 4-door 2020 Toyota Corolla automatic sedan driven 10,000 km on average per year. See notes for a list of further criteria relevant to the pricing of the policies. Quotes collected on 17 August 2022. | ||||||
| Queensland | ||||||
| Suburb | 25 yr old female average | 26 yr old female average | Difference for females | 25 yr old male average | 26 yr old male average | Difference for males |
| Marsden | $1258.56 | $1221.55 | $37.00 | $1346.91 | $1296.69 | $50.21 |
| Toowong | $1316.36 | $1262.54 | $53.81 | $1417.24 | $1363.93 | $53.30 |
| Tewantin | $1078.36 | $1049.35 | $29.00 | $1129.52 | $1090.85 | $38.67 |
| Based on indicative comprehensive car insurance quotes with an excess of $900 available through Compare the Market for a silver 4-door 2020 Toyota Corolla automatic sedan driven 10,000 km on average per year. See notes for a list of further criteria relevant to the pricing of the policies. Quotes collected on 17 August 2022. | ||||||
| New South Wales | ||||||
| Suburb | 25 yr old female average | 26 yr old female average | Difference for females | 25 yr old male average | 26 yr old male average | Difference for males |
| Ryde | $1661.842 | $1607.82 | $54.02 | $1775.25 | $1708.18 | $67.06 |
| Belrose | $1495.57 | $1449.12 | $46.44 | $1573.59 | $1516.40 | $57.18 |
| King Creek | $1333.42 | $1297.22 | $36.19 | $1420.43 | $1371.96 | $48.47 |
| Based on indicative comprehensive car insurance quotes with an excess of $900 available through Compare the Market for a silver 4-door 2020 Toyota Corolla automatic sedan driven 10,000 km on average per year. See notes for a list of further criteria relevant to the pricing of the policies. Quotes collected on 17 August 2022. | ||||||
As the data shows, premiums for men reduced more those for women in each example analysed by Compare the Market. Zeller explains that this is because men turning 26 are coming out of a demographic that is overrepresented in road incident numbers.
“Men save more than women just by turning 26 because they face higher car insurance premiums to begin with, so this has the effect of giving them greater savings, though they still pay more than women overall for car insurance based on our data.”
Other savings and benefits to watch out for
Compare the Market’s General Manager of General Insurance, Stephen Zeller, notes that there can be other savings and benefits that might fly under the radar but can really add up for customers.
“Some insurance brands are a part of a supermarket network, like Woolworths Car insurance. Customers who insure their car through Woolies can get a monthly discount on groceries just for having a Woolworths insurance policy,” says Zeller.
Zeller also encourages people to make use of any discounts and vouchers they get for signing up with an insurance provider.
“Reward programs are a great example of potential savings that we often forget about,” Zeller explains, “Many insurance companies provide discounts on food, shopping, movies and other experiences as an incentive, and there’s nothing special customers need to do apart from signing up for a policy.”
“It might not be much, but when we’re all facing higher cost of living pressures, every bonus perk or saving helps.”
*NOTES: Average prices were based on comprehensive car insurance quotes available through Compare the Market for a silver 4-door 2020 Toyota Corolla automatic sedan driven by a hypothetical 25 or 26-year-old male or female who is employed full time, obtained their licence at age 17, has no previous claims and a current no claims rating of 2 and has an age restriction of 25 for all drivers of the car. The car is driven 10,000kms per year and was parked overnight using the following suburbs: Reservoir, Mount Martha, Anglesea, Ryde, Belrose, King Creek, Marsden, Toowong and Tewantin. Only policies with an excess of $900 were used to calculate averages for these different locations and age groups for both the hypothetical male and female drivers.
For more information, please contact:
Chris Ford | 0411 560 116 | [email protected]
James McCay | 07 3327 8559 | [email protected]
Compare the Market is a comparison service that takes the hard work out of shopping around. We make it Simples for Australians to quickly and easily compare and buy insurance, energy, travel and personal finance products from a range of providers. Our easy-to-use comparison tool helps you look for a range of products that may suit your needs and benefit your back pocket.
