The surprising job titles that could bump up your car insurance

Healthcare assistants, warehouse workers and unemployed drivers are facing the steepest car insurance premiums this year, according to new industry data.

New analysis from Quotezone reveals the job titles most commonly flagged as high-risk by insurers – leading to annual premiums that can be nearly double the national average.

While the typical UK driver pays around £664 per year for car insurance in 2025, unemployed drivers are quoted almost twice as much on average at £1,265.

Healthcare assistants and warehouse workers also face premiums above £1,000, putting them around 60% higher than the UK average.

Other job titles seeing above-average costs include accountants (£1,041), delivery drivers (£1,013), company directors (£1,004), and chefs (£952).

Many of these roles involve long hours, high stress or shift work – all factors that insurers could associate with higher claims risk.

But compared to last year’s data, some of these high-risk job titles are actually seeing notable drops in their premiums, including warehouse workers (down £308), healthcare assistants (down £277) and chefs (down £328).

Despite these reductions, these career choices still sit far above the UK average, meaning they remain among the most expensive to insure.

Retired drivers, who have traditionally enjoyed the lowest premiums, have also seen a sharp increase rising from £492 last year to £733 this year – almost a 50% increase – noted as the largest surge this year from all top 20 jobs. Possibly because older driver premiums normally start to escalate from 70 years of age onwards, given the increase in medical conditions, incidents on the road and the fact that this age group are more vulnerable to serious injuries.

The car insurance experts at Quotezone say slight changes in job title wording can also impact insurance pricing, as providers can categorise roles differently.

For example, someone describing themselves as a “Healthcare Assistant” might receive a different quote by selecting “Care Assistant” or “Care Worker” instead. As long as the title remains accurate, it could reduce premiums.

At the other end of the scale, teachers, civil servants and HGV drivers benefit from some of the lowest car insurance premiums in the country – in some cases more than 25% below average. These include civil servants (£495), teachers (£532), HGV drivers (£556), nurses (£668), and admin assistants (£663).

Teachers and civil servants are often viewed as low-risk drivers due to the nature of their work, as they’re associated with more structured roles and regular working hours, which can translate to fewer accidents and claims.

But it might come as a surprise that HGV drivers, who spend long hours on the road in large vehicles, enjoy lower car insurance premiums. These specialist drivers often undergo high levels of training and certification to operate HGVs, and have extensive driving experience, all factors which could reduce risk and therefore premium costs.

Many of these drivers also spend their working hours in their company vehicle rather than their personal car, which further reduces their personal driving risk profile.

Greg Wilson, car insurance expert  and CEO of Quotezone.co.uk, said: “Our latest data highlights how much your job title could impact your car insurance premium – and while it’s still good news for teachers, civil servants and HGV drivers in 2025, it’s clear that some professions continue to be hit with high costs.

“Worryingly, unemployed drivers are now the most expensive to insure, with premiums over £1,200 on average – this could be because unemployment statistics in the UK tend to be made up of younger age groups, who are normally the most expensive to insure, given their additional risks and lack of experience.

“However, we’ve seen some encouraging shifts over the past 12 months, with premiums dropping by more than £300 for chefs, warehouse workers and healthcare assistants. That said, these job titles still remain among the most expensive to insure, with costs sitting well above the UK average.

“One thing drivers can do is explore how they word their job title when reviewing quotes. As long as the description remains accurate and honest, variations in an individual’s job title could help bring the cost down. For people who are currently unemployed, it might be worth adding another more experienced driver to the policy, just be careful that the main driver indicated is actually the person who uses the vehicle the most or it could be seen as fronting, which is illegal.”

The data sample uses over 100,000 car insurance policies in 2025, filtered to the top 20 most popular jobs, looking at 25-55-year-olds with no claims or convictions, then compared year on year with the 2024 statistics, found here.

Quotezone helps all drivers hunt for savings on their car insurance, from young driver to older driver and from classic car to truck insurance – helping over 4 million customers every year.