Insurance and other protection rackets

Buying motor insurance online is not a happy experience for anyone with a vehicle that is more exciting than a very bland Mondeo. In fact, if I go through any more forms only to reach the end and be told to call a number where all the same bloody questions are asked again, I may give up and buy a Mondeo.

There is little doubt that insurers apply the principle that people that buy expensive cars will meekly pay extra for their insurance. Even an aged "posh" motor that cost £30k new but is now worth £5k seems to be rated the same for insurance premium costs as a new one.

It's all part of the process of ratcheting cash out of a compliant populationon when the gross sums involved make the sneaky levies seem insignificant. Much as Estate Agents have traditionally got away with hacking "a meagre 2%" from a £n000k transaction for what is frequently no work at all.

And let's not forget "insurance premium tax". There's a stealthy one if ever there was, it should probably be deemed a covert wealth tax, but since it appears to have been meekly accepted by a supine electorate, there's no chance of any party willingly scrapping it and giving the money back to the punters, is there?