Annual cost of running a car soars
Updated on 19 October 2008
The annual cost of running a car has risen by more than 13% in a year and by more than 16% since 2006, it was revealed.
Excluding interest on loans, the annual cost is now around £2,544, according to Sainsbury's Bank.
This compares with a figure of £2,240 for 2007 and £2,189 in 2006, with the price of fuel the main reason for this year's big increase in overall costs.
There have also been significant increases in car servicing and taxes, with servicing rising 17.5% since 2006 and taxes going up 32.54% in the past two years.
Insurance has risen 10.22% since 2006 and the cost of MOT tests has increased 20.27% in the past two years.
Sainsbury's Car Insurance manager Joanne Mallon said: "Motoring is now a very expensive business. Those costs, though, can be kept better in check by shopping around for car insurance and fuel, for example."
She added that motorists could save money by looking at the prices they are prepared to pay for their cars. Sainsbury's research has shown that of those drivers who were planning to buy a brand new car in the six months from September 2008 to March next year, 19% had no intention of haggling on the price, and another 19% only planned to haggle slightly.
This is despite the fact that they could save around £1,500 by haggling, she said.
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