Given our current economic troubles, it may come as no surprise to learn that motorists are shunning extras when taking out car insurance. We are all looking for ways to reduce our household budget and motoring expenses are no exception.

According to figures from esure, two such casualties have been no claims discount protection and legal cover. For the former option figures have decreased by 7.2% since last autumn and, for the latter, the reduction for the same period is 8.6%.

Esure, however, have been quick to point out that saving a few pounds by cutting back on optional extras may well turn out to be false economy. For instance, the best way of reducing one’s motor insurance is by building up the maximum no claims discount, which in many instances can reduce premiums by up to 70%. Theft or an accident which may not even be your fault can lead to a substantial increase should you fail to protect your no claims bonus.

If you decide to take the precaution of insuring your no claims discount it is always worth reading the small print on your insurance policy, since in many instances there is a limit to the number of claims that can be made within a given period without affecting the protection. Esure offer a lifetime protection regardless of the number of claims made.

Legal protection is another optional extra well worth paying for. Should you be in an accident which is not your fault and be unable to recover your excess from the other party, legal cover will mean that a solicitor can pursue the case on your behalf, as well as claiming other items such as loss of earnings, should you be unable to work following the accident.

It looks like the UK could do with a few lessons in good driving, according to results released by Sainsbury’s Car Insurance regarding our driving habits. The shocking figures from a survey carried out by the company reveal that two out of every three British drivers admit to doing things that could be dangerous to other drivers whilst on the road.

43% of us admit to having done something dangerous whilst driving in the last month, and Sainsbury’s has revealed that this is 4% up on the figures for the same time last year. It is no surprise which bad habit came top of the list – eating and drinking whilst at the wheel. After this, 32% admitted to driving whilst tired, and 17% admitted to driving over the speed limit.

Another common crime is driving whilst on the phone, with 12% of the population admitting to using their handset when they should be focusing on the road, and a further 11% of people admitting to sending text messages. Less common, but still dangerous, was driving whilst either wearing no shoes or wearing unsuitable footwear such as flip flops. And although it is tempting to read a map when lost, this is also a dangerous habit which many of us admitted to.

Lucy Hunter, the manager of Sainsbury’s Car Insurance, lamented the fact that people “don’t consider the possible consequences of their actions” whilst on the road. With so many of us driving these days, it is a shame that people cannot follow the most simple safety rules which would no doubt lead to a significant drop in accident rates.

At first glance GAP insurance sounds like something you would nag your teenager to sort out before they head off to save the orangutans in Borneo. It is, however, nothing to do with gap year travel insurance but does in fact stand for Guaranteed Asset Protection, sometimes referred to as Car Depreciation Insurance.

Up until very recently it is something which has only been available from a car dealer when purchasing a vehicle but it can now be bought from Confused.com who have joined forces with Future 45 Ltd to offer this to all motorists from only £72.

It is a sad fact of life that the minute you take delivery of your car, whether it be brand spanking new or merely new to you, the vehicle starts losing value. For a new car this can reduce its value to an alarming 30% of the purchase price in just three years.

The good news is that GAP insurance can ensure that you get the original cost back if your car is written off through accident or stolen during the chosen term (up to a maximum of four years). The policy is available for cars which have been owned up to seven years and it does not matter if you are still paying the cost of the car off or even if the car is leased. It is also available to motoring instructors and taxi drivers although it does not apply to black cabs.

Nine different add-ons are also available, for instance “inconvenience” cover of £500, which might come in handy if you have to hire a car or replace goods stolen with the car or ruined in the accident.

With the summer holiday season starting in earnest, advice comes from Aviva (formerly Norwich Union) for travellers planning a driving holiday on the continent. Recent research carried out by the insurance company has revealed that France (a favourite for many of the two million Brits who drive abroad) and Germany are the costliest countries in Europe to have a motoring accident.

The European average for a crash is just under £2,000 (£1,918 to be precise), but in Germany it works out at a staggering £2,940, over one-and-a-half times the European average. The French, meanwhile, have a costly reputation for personal injury claims, with the average being £9,510. The Germans don’t come far behind with the average working out at £9,121.

Aviva’s advice for all drivers going abroad is to ensure that they have good cover for driving on the continent otherwise they may face the hassle of organising repairs and making arrangements for carrying on with their holiday, as well as the pain in the pocket of having to pay for costs whether or not the accident was their fault.

Drivers are also advised to make sure that they are au fait with the relevant rules of the road for the country which they are visiting. For instance, if you wear glasses in Spain you are required by law to carry a spare pair whilst driving. Another common rule is that visibility vests are compulsory in many countries, including France, where anyone leaving the car in the case of an accident must wear one, including passengers.

As the recession bites, we are constantly looking for ways of reducing our outgoings and, given the high costs of running a car, it is no surprise that this is an area which many of us are looking at to make savings.

According to recent research by uSwitch.com, more than a million of us have reduced the level of our motor insurance from fully comprehensive to third party, fire and theft.

Many of us are simply no longer able to afford a comprehensive policy whilst others are prepared to take the risk and make the compromise which a third-party policy entails. 3% of motorists using a price-comparison website say they do not even bother to look at the cost of comprehensive cover.

It is, however, slightly worrying that of the 5 million drivers who have third-party cover, over a third admit that they do not know what they are covered for. Of those who think they do understand, many are wrong. 1.8 million people believe that if they had an accident where they were to blame, they would be covered for damage to their own vehicle. What’s more, a further 1.8 million think that they would be covered for damage to both their own vehicle and the other party’s vehicle.

It may come as a surprise to some drivers to learn that a fully-comprehensive policy is actually only 11% more expensive on average than a third-party policy, and in the case of young drivers this is even less, with the differential only being 7%. Direct Line in fact charges 6% more for a third-party policy than a fully-comprehensive one for drivers aged 18.