May 26, 2008

OVER ONE THIRD OF MOTORISTS SAY THEIR COMMUTE IS GETTING WORSE

With the current onslaught of petrol prices and ongoing traffic congestion, a recent survey has found that 35 per cent of Australian motorists are enduring longer commuter times.

The survey by leading cheap car insurance provider Budget Direct, with more than 2500 responses nationwide, found that motorists are suffering longer behind the wheel, with 18 per cent now spending an extra 15 minutes getting to work, 8 per cent enduring an extra 30 minutes and 2 per cent loosing an additional 45 minutes of their leisure time to the daily grind, when compared to two years ago.

Of the totals, only 7 per cent of respondents blamed a change of work location as the reason for their prolonged commute.

Associate Director for Budget Direct Jonathan Kerr said that all motorists are already under great pressure due to spiralling petrol prices so the addition of extra time behind the wheel just makes matters worse.

Interestingly, while the results are similar in most states Victorian motorists are faring the worst with 38 per cent claiming to have increased commuter times compared to 37 per cent in Queensland, and a surprisingly low 31 per cent in New South Wales.

“Motorists just seem to be taking one hit after another at the moment. It looks like the only obvious way to keep their current car and reduce the cost of ownership is to shop around for a better deal on their car insurance,” Mr Kerr said.

Budget Direct is a low-cost car insurance provider that offers competitive car insurance to drivers in Australia. Budget Direct is a wholly owned Australian insurance provider and is part of the international Budget Insurance group of companies headquartered in the British Isles. The Budget Insurance group of companies administers more than 3 million policies and more than $1.5 billion in premium. Auto & General Insurance Company Ltd underwrites Budget Direct’s policies.

For more information about cheap car insurance go to www.budgetdirect.com.au