Motorists 'have seen average premiums increase by nearly £200 since 2012'

Average motor insurance premiums have increased by nearly £200 over the past five years, a website has found.

Between September and November 2012, the average motor insurance premium stood at £559, but premiums across the same three months in 2017 reached an average of £758 - a rise of £199.

Comparethemarket.com, which released the findings, said factors pushing car insurance costs upwards in recent years include a string of hikes to insurance premium tax (IPT).

Meanwhile, the gap between cheapest and average premiums widened to £129 in November - the biggest difference on the website's records going back to 2012.

Simon McCulloch, director at comparethemarket.com, said: "Over the past five years, we have seen non-stop cost pressures on British drivers."

The findings were taken from comparethemarket.com's website.

The average price in the index refers to the average of the top five cheapest prices presented to a customer, where someone has clicked through to buy.

Comparethemarket.com said buying from the top five cheapest prices presented represents the majority of car insurance sales.