Smoking drivers face insurance hike

16 October 2007

Insurance renewals hard to come by for drivers with smoking related penalty

Motorists who are caught smoking while driving face a significant rise in their insurance premiums - with some companies even refusing to cover them, a report claims.

Drivers can now be penalised for driving without due care and attention if they are caught smoking, leading to three points on their licence and a £60 fine, according to Confused.com.

Motorists with a smoking-related penalty could then have trouble renewing their insurance cover, the group said.

Premiums for a 37-year-old man with a three-year no-claims bonus living in Taunton and driving a 1.4 Ford Puma will increase by an average of 9% for the first smoking-related conviction and 33% for the second, the firm said.

And a 21-year-old man with the same profile will see his premiums soar by 21.7% on average for the first conviction, and by 31% for the second, it added.

Research by Confused.com also found that 34% of insurers are unwilling to give a quote for a 21-year-old driver with a smoking-related conviction, while just over half refused to do so for the 37-year-old.