(Reuters) - Comprehensive motor insurance policy costs in Britain rose 6% in the first quarter of 2020 from last year as uncertainty in the market continued to drive price fluctuations, an insurance price index released on Monday showed.
The average cost of car insurance rose to 809 pounds, up by 47 pounds, according to the latest index from price comparison site Confused.com in association with insurance broker Willis Towers Watson (O:WLTW).
However, insurance costs were still 1% lower than at the end of last year, with automobile drivers in Central and North Wales reaping the most benefits from the quarterly fall in prices, the index showed, based on price data submitted by customers to insurer Admiral Group 's (L:ADML) Confused.com.
"The index data represents a largely pre-COVID period and does not yet give insights into the market's pricing response to COVID-19," said Graham Wright, UK lead of P&C Personal Lines Pricing at Willis Towers Watson.
More than 2.38 million people around the world have been infected by the novel coronavirus and 164,918 have died so far, according to a Reuters tally, as governments enforce stringent measures to combat its spread and restrict the movement of people.
"While we don't expect insurers to introduce discounts to account for fewer miles being driven, people are looking to make savings at this financially challenging time," said Steve Fletcher, head of data services at Confused.com.
($1 = 0.8013 pounds)