Car Insurance

Motorists are shelling out over £150 million a year in speed camera fines and subsequent increases to motor insurance premiums, it has been revealed. The new research, provided by Datamonitor for car insurance provider swiftcover.com, revealed that 2.2 million people are caught speeding every year – a figure that has risen 328 per cent in a decade. The company claims speed cameras create "erratic driving" as drivers speed up and slow down in between the cameras.

However, despite the relatively easy task of simply staying within the speed limit to avoid being caught by a camera, millions of drivers are now getting flashed and receiving fines

and penalty points on their licence. These points can add up, increasing car insurance costs for the motorist and ensuring they find it harder to obtain a cheap car insurance quote. Although speed cameras are designed to slow motorists down and save lives, many drivers still see them simply as another obstacle to overcome on the road. Andrew Blowers, chief executive at swiftcover.com, commented: "The plague of speed cameras on the nation's roads hits the motorist hard in the pocket. "Getting flashed by a camera is of course a double whammy for many as not only are they hit with the fine, but the conviction can lead to an increase in insurance premiums. "However, as our experience shows that drivers with one conviction are just as safe as those with none, Swiftcover does not charge extra for those unfortunate enough to have been caught once."