Insurance 'not just about price'

Finding the best deal on car, pet or home insurance is not just about finding the cheapest quote, experts have warned.

Consumers are regularly being told to shop around, but many are becoming fixated with how much the annual premium costs.

This could lead to them taking out cover that does not provide the full level of protection they need.

Research company Defaqto is seeking to address this problem by providing a number of insurance websites with its traffic light system, which can alert customers if the level of cover on a certain product is lower.

"We have always emphasised the need for consumers to check out the quality of insurance policies, rather than concentrating just on price," said Brian Brown, head of insight at Defaqto.

"If a policy does not provide the appropriate level of cover, while it may be relatively cheaper than one that does, it could prove very costly if something happened that wasn’t covered or not covered to the right level."

With the economy slowing and inflation rising many Britons will be looking to tighten their belts over the coming weeks and months.

February 12^th 2008

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