Mr Money: car insurance is still too expensive It is young adults who, through no fault of their own, are of the "wrong" age and live in the "wrong" city who suffer most. Seventeen- to 20-year-olds paid an average of £2,499 in the first quarter of 2012, while those aged 66 and over typically paid £438. But since the year end, premiums for 17- to 20-years olds have fallen by £92 and those aged 66 and over by £13," says Towers Watson. But, inexplicably, many youngsters in Britain are still being charged considerably more for cover than their usually modest, ageing cars are worth, the company effectively concedes. Male drivers 17-20 living in Manchester/Merseyside face the most expensive premiums in the UK, paying an average of £5,530 for comprehensive cover, while the cheapest comprehensive cover of £212 is enjoyed by female drivers aged 66-70 in the Scottish Highlands. At postcode level, drivers in Oldham, Uxbridge and Bradford have seen the biggest percentage annual increases for comprehensive cover - the maximum increase being 7.1 per cent. So how come I - a driver who's not based in or even remotely near to any of the above insurance hot spots - face a 10 per cent-plus increase, which is way beyond the quoted "maximum" of 7.1 per cent? Another company, Confused, reckons that policy prices have increased by more than 50 per cent during the last three years, although my guess is that the true figure could be even higher. Shopping around is more essential than ever. And due to the liberties some insurers take by trying to overcharge their loyal, long-standing customers, my advice couldn't be simpler, or clearer - under no circumstances allow your insurer to renew your policy until you have scanned the marketplace in search of a more reasonable-priced policy. And yes, you will almost certainly find one. The fact that as recently as 2011 some insurers hit certain customers with annual increases as high as 57 per cent underlines the fact that meeting the cost of the annual car insurance bill can be more financially painful than the annual cost of fuel. Drivers still in their youth but legally old enough to own and drive cars can end up paying £8,000 a year for their insurance, according to Young Marmalade, which specialises in cover for adults in their late teens or early 20s. When well over 1,000 were questioned, 96 per cent felt that they are being priced off the road. And they're not wrong. "Results surrounding high-priced car insurance for young drivers increases great concern as more of them are taking risks and driving without car insurance," concedes the company, which uses black box data to calculate premiums. If the box detects a bad driver, initial premiums will be subjected to a £250 and £500 increase or Young Marmalade will cancel the policy. Conversely, if a car is driven well and the on-board technology picks up on good driver behaviour, the lower the premiums will become for the youngster - or, more likely, his or her parents or grandparents. Increasingly it is they who are forced to pick up the insurance tab on behalf of their children or grandchildren. Even the Institute of Advanced Motorists is getting involved in the car insurance debate, insisting that more has to be done to help young drivers stay safe and obtain affordable cover. "As a first step, insurers must reduce the cost of learning to drive in the family car," the Institute demands. But I'm not convinced it's correct when it says "learner drivers are as safe as any other group on the road." Are they sure that somebody who's inexperienced and unqualified is no more dangerous than a fellow road user who holds a full licence and, more importantly, has many years of exeprience. The House of Commons Transplant Select Committee hinted that there would be some exciting car insurance-related news from in and around Parliament last week, but when it came it was mostly procedural and of little consequence to the consumer. The last word on insurance goes to Mazda, which has just announced that it's launching a promotion whereby customers can buy cover at a 50 per cent reduction - but only if they finance their new car purchases via Mazda Financial Services. Assuming that interest charges will be reasonable, this half price insurance offer could be good for many drivers - in particular, youngsters. With plenty of credible, world class small/city cars costing under £8,000 Fiat's 500 Twinair at £12,760 is priced far too optimistically. Some official dealers are already knocking hundreds off and offering low rate (1.4 per cent APR) loans, too. But that's not enough. Buyers can buy two Suzuki Altos (see below) for the price of one 500 Twinair. Lots of delivery mileage-only Mercedes B-class MPVs seem to be up for grabs this month, with prices starting from about £17,000. Not bad considering that officially the range starts at £21,000-plus. Also, remember that a new A-class is due in Britain within months, although the word is that prices will start at £18,500 - far too high for a small- to mid-sized rival to the class-leading VW Golf. But at least it's not an ugly duckling, as all previous versions of the A-class were. Auto Express says the most frequent complaint it gets from readers is that they're not getting anywhere near the economy they were expecting from their cars. Honest John's postbag indicates that readers of The Daily Telegraph have the same concerns. "That's down to the existing tests that are totally unrealistic and bear no relation to the sort of driving we do on UK roads," the mag rightly points out. A new system is desperately needed to produce real-world economy figures people can rely on. I couldn't agree more. Discussions on drawing up the new system - to be called the Worldwide Light-duty vehicle Test Cycle (WLTC) - are now underway. The plan is a joint venture between the European Commission and the United Nations, and would create a global standard for setting fuel economy and exhaust emissions figures. Until the new system is introduced, don't be surprised if your car does 10-30 per cent fewer miles to the gallon than the manufacturer says it should - because it is only allowed to quote the results of the official EU tests which simply don't replicate real-world driving conditions.