A new survey of 2057 people from Go.Compare has discovered that around 6% of UK drivers have not switched car insurance in the past decade or more.

And given that premiums shot up 8% in the last quarter of 2022, to an average of £470, this could mean that those motorists are wasting hundreds of pounds.

The findings also revealed that the older generation are less likely to switch, with 12% of those aged 65 or more admitting that they have been with the same car insurer for more than 10 years.

When asked why they were so faithful, a quarter (26%) claimed that it was due to loyalty. For those aged 65 and over, nearly half (47%) said loyalty was the reason they stuck with their insurer.

Nearly one in five drivers who auto renewed their cover said that switching was a hassle or difficult to do and so they stuck with the same provider, with those aged 35 to 44 the age group most likely (27%) to say this was their reason for renewing.

Losing out on financial savings

Ryan Fulthorpe, car insurance expert at Go.Compare, said: “Those 2.1 million people could be losing out not only on financial savings, but also on improvements to their insurance cover.”

“It only takes a few minutes to fill in an online form and compare over 100 insurance policies, all of which will offer varying cover levels allowing you to pick and choose what you want and need, and at a price you can afford.

“Although the General Insurance Pricing Practices brought in last year are now in place, they only protect the price that a driver would have from the same provider, by ensuring that a renewal price is the same price that a new customer with the  same risks would receive.

“By not shopping around, drivers aren’t allowing other insurers to assess their risks and offer an insurance policy.”

Related: Eight ways to cut the cost of car and home insurance and Revealed: The top-rated car insurance providers