Analysis of nearly 15 million car insurance enquiries by MoneySuperMarket revealed that men pay £581 on average for their premiums, compared to women who pay £460.

In 2012, insurers were banned from offering drivers different rates based on their sex.

However, other factors such as occupation and make and model of car contribute to higher premiums for men.

The data shows men are 84% more likely than women to work in jobs that result in an average premium of £500 or more.

For example, professional footballers pay some of the highest premiums at £2,166 a year and 96% of people in this profession who enquired about car insurance were male.

When it comes to make and model, men are more than five times as likely to own a car that costs £1,000 or more to insure and are 16% more likely to own a car that costs £500 or more to insure.

In contrast, just under half (46%) of women own cars that cost £499 or less to insure, compared to just 37% of men.

The make and model of a car also determines which insurance group it belongs to, which helps to determine the price of premiums. Each vehicle type is assigned an insurance group, from 1 to 50, with higher premiums associated with the higher number groups.

The data reveals that men are consistently overrepresented in groups at the higher end of the spectrum, with nearly one in five enquiries from men (18%)  classed as being in the top 20 groups compared with just 7% from women.

Dave Merrick, car insurance expert at MoneySuperMarket, said: “No matter your personal circumstances, there are a number of things you can do that may help to reduce the cost of your insurance. For example, parking your car in a secure location, fitting an alarm and reducing your mileage are all ways to bring costs down.

“Shopping around for a better deal can also save you up to £270.”