Are car insurance premiums going up in 2026?
Not so far. The Confused.com quote index rose £8 (1%) to £719 in Q2 2026, its first quarterly rise in over two years, but eased back to £713 in Q3 — down £6 on the quarter and £22 (3%) below a year ago. The ABI's average price paid is £566 (Q2 2026, the latest published; up £6 / 1% on the quarter). Insurers forecast roughly +3% rises later in 2026.
Up or down — and by how much?
Flat on the quarter, down on the year. The typical UK comprehensive premium is still lower than a year ago; the quoted index posted its first quarterly rise since 2023 in Q2, then gave most of it back in Q3. The two headline benchmarks tell the same story through different lenses, and it matters which one a headline quotes:
- Confused.com Price Index (quoted prices) — £713 for a new comprehensive policy in Q3 2026, down £6 (0.8%) on the quarter and down £22 (3%) on the year. This is the average premium quoted to shoppers, based on more than 6 million real quotes, so it runs higher and moves faster than what people actually pay.
- ABI “price paid” — £566 in Q2 2026, up £6 (1%) on the previous quarter; broadly stable year on year. This is what motorists actually transacted at, averaged across new and renewing customers, so it is lower and smoother.
The gap between the two (£713 quote-index vs £566 price-paid) is normal: the index captures fresh shopping prices, while the ABI figure blends in loyal renewers and longer policy terms. Both are below their late-2023 peak — the Confused.com index touched a record £995 at the end of 2023, so the market has fallen sharply since. The headline for 2026 is “still cheaper than a year ago, and flat since the spring.”
2026 premium movement at a glance
Source: Confused.com Car Insurance Price Index, Q3 2026 (September 2026) — average premium quoted.
| Measure | 2026 figure | Year-on-year |
|---|---|---|
| Confused.com quote index (new comprehensive) | £713 | −3% |
| ABI average price paid | £566 | ≈ flat |
| 2023 peak (for reference) | £995 | — |
| Insurer forecast for later 2026 (EY) | — | +3% |
Sources: Confused.com Car Insurance Price Index (powered by WTW), Q3 2026 (published September 2026) — average premium quoted; ABI Motor Insurance Premium Tracker Q2 2026 — average premium paid; EY UK motor forecast 2026. Quoted and paid averages measure different things and are not directly comparable.
| Driver group | Typical 2026 premium | Year-on-year |
|---|---|---|
| 18-year-old | £2,083 | not published |
| 17-year-old (new driver) | — | −13% (−£253) |
| 17–20 band | £1,860 | −8% |
| 20–29 | £1,254 | −3% |
| 30–39 | £843 | −4% |
| 40–49 | £689 | −4% |
| 50–59 | £545 | −2% |
| 60–69 | £457 | ≈ flat |
| 70 and over | £480 | +3% |
Sources: Confused.com Car Insurance Price Index, Q3 2026 — average premium quoted, September 2026 against September 2025, every row. Young drivers saw the steepest falls: 17-year-olds paid about £253 (13%) less than a year earlier and the 17–20 band fell 8%, while drivers over 70 paid 3% more. Figures are indicative; your quote depends on car, postcode, mileage and history.
For the full picture by age, region and car, see our UK car insurance cost index. Younger drivers should also read car insurance for 25-year-olds, and anyone whose renewal jumped should check why is my car insurance so expensive?
Why premiums are moving in 2026
Prices fell through 2024 and 2025 as insurers worked off the inflation spike of 2022–23. But the same cost pressures that drove the spike have not gone away — they have simply stopped accelerating. That is why the EY ITEM Club forecasts the market slipping back into an underwriting loss, with a net combined ratio near 111% in 2026 (insurers paying out roughly £1.11 for every £1 of premium) and premiums turning up by about 3% later in the year. The main levers:
- Insurance Premium Tax (IPT) at 12%. A fixed government tax on every policy. It hasn't risen in 2026, but at 12% it still adds roughly £86 to a £713 premium before any claim cost is counted.
- Repair and parts inflation. ABI data shows vehicle-repair claims hitting £1.9bn in Q2 2026, with repair costs still elevated. Garage labour rates are forecast up about 4% and parts 8–10% across 2026, with modern ADAS sensors and cameras pushing even a cracked windscreen past £1,000.
- Electric vehicles. EVs still cost around 25% more to insure than a petrol equivalent (about £707 vs £558) because of battery and high-voltage repair costs — a growing share of the fleet that nudges the average up.
- Theft. Theft payouts hit a record £669m recently, up around 35%, driven by keyless relay attacks on in-demand models.
- Uninsured drivers. More than a million UK motorists drive uninsured. The Motor Insurers' Bureau (MIB) levy that covers their crashes is built into every honest policy — roughly £15 per policy.
None of these is spiking right now, which is why 2026 has been calm. The risk is that any one of them — a parts-cost shock from higher oil, or another theft surge — tips the gentle fall into the forecast 3% rise.
What you can do now
With prices near a multi-year low but expected to firm up, 2026 is a good window to lock in savings before the forecast rises arrive:
- Shop 20–26 days before renewal. The cheapest quotes cluster about three weeks out; quoting on renewal day or buying late costs more.
- Never auto-renew without comparing. The quote index (£713) is the new-customer price — loyal renewers routinely pay more than switchers.
- Pay annually if you can. Monthly instalments carry APR of 20–30%; paying upfront avoids it.
- Telematics for younger drivers. Roughly 78% of 17–20s pay less with a black box, though the discount is earned through your driving score rather than applied automatically (Marmalade, Carrot, Admiral LittleBox, Hastings YouDrive).
- Tune the policy details. Add a named experienced driver, raise the voluntary excess sensibly, drop unused add-ons, and keep mileage and job title accurate.
See the savings playbook in why is my car insurance so expensive? and check your age band against the over-50s and over-70s averages.
Common questions
Our sources
- Confused.com Car Insurance Price Index (powered by WTW), Q3 2026 (published September 2026) — £713 average quoted premium, −£6 (0.8%) on the quarter after Q2's £719, −£22 (3%) YoY, based on 6m+ quotes; age bands (18-year-olds £2,083, 17–20 £1,860, 17-year-olds −£253 / 13% YoY).
- Association of British Insurers (ABI) motor premium tracker, Q2 2026 — £566 price paid, +£6 (1%) QoQ; £1.9bn repair claims.
- EY UK motor insurance forecast 2026 — net combined ratio ~111%, premiums forecast +3%.
- Thatcham Research and MIB — theft payouts (£669m) and uninsured-driver levy.
- gov.uk Insurance Premium Tax (12%).
Reviewed by the Car Insurance Expert editorial team
This tracker compares the two leading UK benchmarks — the Confused.com quote index and the ABI price-paid figure — alongside the forward forecast, so the direction and size of any change is clear. Figures are quarterly and indicative; your own quote depends on car, postcode, mileage and claims history. We refresh this page each quarter as new index data lands.
Last updated: 27 September 2026