Insurance warning as crashes rise

Drivers are being warned their vehicle insurance premiums may soon rise after a 17 per cent year-on-year increase in claims and 267,000 people reportedly involved in a collision over the past year.

The latest motor survey from AA Insurance reveals driver distraction was blamed for 34 per cent of those crashes and poor weather conditions for 14 per cent. Reckless or dangerous driving came in third at 11 per cent.

When drivers were asked to identify the source of distractions, other road users came top on 17 per cent, followed by texting or using data on a mobile phone with four per cent, children in a vehicle with three per cent, and good-looking pedestrians, drivers or other passengers also on three per cent.

Beau Paparoa, AA Insurance’s head of motor claims, says drivers aged 18 to 29 were most likely to have a collision resulting from distraction.

“Unfortunately, rising claim volumes will result in increased premiums,” he told Stuff.

“All we can really do is encourage people to minimise distraction and focus on what they’re doing, which is driving.”

Motor claims are also costing insurers more money, with data from the Insurance Council showing the bill for those rose by 25 per cent between 2020 and 2022.

Paparoa says this is in part because of the increasing complexity and price of automotive parts.

“As an insurer, one of the big challenges we have seen since Covid is the cost and availability of parts due to the rapid growth of technology in cars, making these claims increasingly more complex and expensive than in the past,” he explains.

“For example, your car bumper isn't just plastic or metal anymore. New technologies, including rear cameras and sensors attached to bumpers, are making repairs more complex and costs much higher.”