Bedford Driving Lessons

Rising petrol prices and insurance premiums led to a 6.3% increase in the average annual cost of owning and running a new car in the past 12 months, taking the total to £5,869 a year. The RAC, in its cost of motoring index, said today that the £346 increase is twice the rate of inflation and equates to £112.87 a week, or 48.91p a mile. The index covers a range of costs associated with owning and running a new car including fuel, insurance, maintenance, road tax, breakdown cover, depreciation and finance. New car running costs (excluding the cost of ownership) have increased by £197 (8.9%) to £2,417, up from £2,219 last year and amounting to a weekly cost of £46.48 – an increase of £3.79 a week. It is marginally cheaper to own and run a used car following a fall in used car market prices from last year’s high. The cost of owning a used car is now £4,441 a year, or £85.41 a week – £1,428 (24%) cheaper than a new vehicle and £18 less than last year. Looking at running costs alone, used cars are £553 more expensive to run than new cars, primarily due to maintenance expenditure because of the added wear and tear. Also, fuel consumption is worse, and the RAC said insurance is more expensive on older vehicles because they tend to have worse safety features, are less reliable, and people do not drive used cars as carefully as newer models. More