Motor - Costly Prangs

According to a recent survey carried out by the Motor Insurance Repair Research Centre, claims involving the replacement of bumpers after minor accidents are on the rise in the UK.

Drivers are paying out a combined £2 billion per year in order to cover the cost of damage to bumpers.

With a wider range of companies now offering cheap car insurance, drivers now have more variety when it comes to choosing a policy that suits them.

But whilst the price of a premium may be cheap in some cases, the costs of replacing bumpers after small prangs and scrapes can prove costly for the policyholder.

The study found that some of the UK's top selling cars could sustain significant damage from the smallest of impacts - even at speeds as low as six miles per hour.

The centre carried out tests on 20 bumpers, of which 18 failed to make the grade. As a result, insurance claims are set to remain at a high level due to the numbers of people having to make claims for minor incidents simply because of the expenses involved in fixing bumper damage.

The results of these prangs are proving costly to the world of car insurance. The numbers of claims continues to rise as a result of the repair bills from claims which involve the smallest of prangs.

The centre believes that the vast majority of these particular repairs could be avoided if manufacturers fitted reinforced bumper beams, which could lead to a reduction in car insurance claims.