SIR – I had to chuckle at David Rhodes’s response to my letter regarding hikes in car insurance premiums (Letters, May 5) and his suggestion that I forget Shanks’s pony and shop around.

Well, Mr Rhodes, I do most if not all my shopping on Shanks’s pony. Imagine going to the supermarket and being told that I had to pay more than anyone else because of the postcode that I lived in, and that if I but lived in another postcode then the supermarket may be willing to be more competitive.

Of course, there are other supermarkets, but just imagine if they all sang the same tune and from the same hymn sheet – what then? Wouldn’t it turn into a case of ‘like it or lump it’ and get used to paying more than anyone else?

What I find offensive about the current policy of insurance companies is that no-claims bonuses count for nothing in selected postcodes, and a person is charged on the subtle assumption that all Asian people don’t make genuine personal injury claims.

Oh, and wasn’t it only recently that insurance companies got their knuckles rapped in the European courts for gender bias?

So, Mr Rhodes, the reason I am seething is because insurance companies expect me to get used to paying higher insurance premiums that in turn means that they can be more competitive for someone else down the road.

Saeed Butt, White Abbey Road, Bradford