The true cost of maintaining a car across the UK revealed

Recent data analysis from vehicle finance provider Moneybarn has revealed the true cost of maintaining a car across different UK regions.

Calculating various motoring factors such as cost of commuting, insurance premiums, private parking and road tax, as well as the average monthly wages after tax in each region. Moneybarn is able to see which car owners are paying the most and least for the maintenance of their car.

Motorists living in London are feeling the biggest pinch when it comes to maintaining a car. Londoners spend almost a fifth of their monthly salaries (£404) on their motors.

They also spend the most on monthly insurance premiums and private parking, costing motorists on average an eye-watering £338 combined. Residents in the North East pay the least for private parking at a mere £65 in comparison and those in the South West pay the least for their insurance on average at a more manageable £109 per month.

However, it’s not all doom and gloom as Londoners enjoy a cheaper commute, spending £33 on average for a month’s commute. This is significantly lower than other areas across the UK, with East Anglia motorists spending £51 on average per month commuting. The least expensive for commuting is Wales, costing on average £31 a month.

The South East (£315) and the West Midlands (£307) are the second and third highest regions for car maintenance respectively.

If you’re looking for cheaper car maintenance, you might want to consider moving to the South West or Wales. On average, motorists spend 13.6% of their monthly earnings on their motors, which means from the average take-home pay, they spend £250 and £251 on their car respectively. This is proportionally less than any other region.

Other regions where car maintenance is less costly include the North East (£256) and East Anglia (£274), where residents spend 14% of their monthly earnings respectively.

In the UK, the average cost per litre of fuel is 119.72 pence, with Northern Ireland seeing an average price of 114.15 pence. The area performs particularly well for the price of fuel and is consistently cheaper than every other region of the UK.

This is in sharp contrast to the South East which is the priciest place to buy fuel on average (121.23).

The cost of car maintenance may seem high in the UK, but when inflation is considered the cost has actually gone down over the past decade. It is now £30.20 cheaper on average per month to maintain a car compared with previous years².