Van insurance price rises are going into reverse with annual premiums dropping 1.7% in a year to an average £1,240, new analysis from Consumer Intelligence shows.

However, drivers using vans for work are not feeling the full benefit of the price cuts with average annual bills falling 0.9% in the year, while drivers who use vans as a substitute for a car have seen prices drop by 5.5% in the year to July.

Average annual premiums for ‘carriage of own goods’ policies taken out by business users are £1,254 compared with £1,183 for customers who insure under “social, domestic and pleasure, Consumer Intelligence says.

However, the price cuts are very welcome after years of premiums heading higher – average annual bills are still 35.2% higher than they were in April 2014 when Consumer Intelligence first started collecting the data.

The past year has seen the biggest price reductions for younger drivers – those aged 17 to 24 are seeing prices 12.4% lower than a year ago while over-50s have only had price cuts of 0.4% and those aged between 25 and 49 are seeing slightly higher bills with premiums up 0.8%.

However under-25s see an average £4,017 compared with £823 for those aged 25 to 49 and £578 for the over-50s.

Increased competition across the market and no tax rises coupled with the prospect of changes to the Ogden rate governing compensation for major personal injury claims to the benefit of insurers is helping drive down prices in line with the car insurance market.

John Blevins, Consumer Intelligence pricing expert, said: “Insurers are able to reduce prices as there are no major issues driving premiums currently and it’s simply the cost and frequency of claims that is having an impact.

“Drivers using vans for work are more likely to make bigger claims as it’s not just damage to bodywork but lost business and damaged equipment they will be claiming for.

“There are some minor issues of fraudulent claims across the market which potentially has more impact on business users.”

PRICE MOVEMENT	MARKET AVERAGE	AGE 17 TO 24	AGE 25 TO 49	OVER-50s
PAST THREE MONTHS	-0.2%	-2.4%	+0.7%	-2.2%
PAST SIX MONTHS	-1.8%	-5.5%	-1.3%	-0.3%
PAST YEAR	-1.7%	-12.4%	+0.8%	-0.4%
SINCE APRIL 2104	+35.2%	+14.9%	+40.3%	+38.5%