The first step towards resolving a problem, it is said, is actually knowing that a problem exists.
In the run-up to July’s General Election, politicians of all persuasions had their antennae switched on to identify issues which might affect their performance at the polls.
One item of common concern which they would have found hard to avoid was the clamour about the affordability of motor insurance.
It was considered so serious by Labour, in fact, that it featured in the party’s manifesto.
Given the desire to honour as many of those pledges as possible, we should not therefore be surprised at the announcement of a new taskforce by the Transport Secretary, Louise Haigh, designed to secure “a fair deal for UK drivers“.
The group is made up of organisations representing consumers, the insurance industry and regulators.
Its brief includes trying to determine the factors which have contributed to a reported 21 per cent increase in average premiums over the last two years.
The Government’s press release about the start of the initiative refers to several elements, such as inflation and theft, which have been blamed already.
Another which warrants a mention – potholes – has been the basis of many claims which I have dealt with on behalf of clients over the entirety of my career.
A succession of recent studies have concluded that things have become even more acute than when the state of Blackburn’s roads helped inspire one of the Beatles’ most memorable songs six decades ago.
In August, the RAC reported that road maintenance had now become the biggest single cause for concern for Britain’s drivers.
It is more than merely an aesthetic consideration. One research body, the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr), calculated in April that poor road conditions were responsible for a cumulative negative impact including vehicle damage of some £14.4 billion a year in England alone.
Keeping track of veritable trenches in the country’s carriageways has prompted an uptake in new technology and even made celebrities of people who regularly lobby local councils and central government for a remedy.
Such individuals believe that they are certainly not busybodies and, with figures from the Association of British Insurers (ABI) outlining a record high in payouts to motor policyholders, you might agree that they have a point.
Of course, whilst the faulty fabric of the UK’s roads might be a frequent source of trouble, it doesn’t affect premiums in itself.
In my experience, the rising cost and difficulty in obtaining replacement parts for vehicles exacerbates is a key difficulty.
The time taken and cost incurred in repairing vehicle damage is one thing but if it takes mechanics more cash and – on occasion – months to lay their hands on components, then the cost of claims is naturally going to be inflated.
To the bill for any work involved can be added things like hire cars to keep policyholders mobile while they wait for their cars to be made road-worthy once again.
In that sense – and despite the advice of various social media commentators – there is little that drivers themselves can do in this regard to influence how much they pay in premiums.
Equally, insurers may do what they can to keep the cost of claims down but they are, to a degree, at the mercy of those garages doing their repairs.
Those garages are, in turn, dependent on the availability of parts for the jobs which they’re presented with.
Instead of confronting the consequences of the pothole problem, it is arguably more helpful in the long run to pursue the kind of road repair schemes which the Transport Secretary herself witnessed at first hand in Blackpool only last month.
I certainly don’t doubt the sincerity of ministers to grasp the thorny motor insurance issue but feel that the answer ultimately lies in tarmac, not talking.
Written by Geraint Jones, Senior Private Clients Executive