Sheilas' Wheels
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sheilas' Wheels is a British car insurance company that is targeted at selling insurance to women, although it does also sell to men. Despite its Australian-sounding name, it is in fact a division of the esure insurance company, which is part of the HBOS group. The group also consists of the Halifax standalone bank, IF internet bank and the Australian bank BankWest.
The company was founded in 2005, after research during the European directive proposed by the Commissioner Anna Diamantopoulou banning sexual discrimination in the insurance market, which would mean that women would pay more for car insurance despite women claiming to have more lower-claim accidents than men[citation needed]. Ironically the company has caused much outrage amongst male drivers because it sexually discriminates against them, offering lower insurance rates for women purely on the basis of sex, but there are an increasingly large number of "male-only" insurers appearing on the market, these include "One Call" and "Bell Direct". Its main competitors are Aviva's Diamond [1] and Quoteline Direct's Lady Insure [2].
The company has sponsored the ITV1 programmes, Loose Women and Loose @ 530 and the late-night programming on Living TV.
[edit] Goofs
The television advert features an array of bad driving habits, such as driving without having both (or any!) hands on the wheel and, most amusingly, driving backwards.
This is not to be viewed in any serious light, owing to the nature of the advert's main campaign being the song and dance routine.
[edit] Jingle
The company is probably best known for its advertising jingle on its television advertisements, sung in a mock mixture of Australian and British accent. The lyrics to the jingle are as follows...
For ladies who insure their cars,
Sheilas' Wheels are superstars,
Girls are bored beyond endurance,
Payin' too much for car insurance,
For bonzer car insurance deals,
Girls get onto Sheilas' Wheels.
Women make the safest drivers,
We could save a bunch of fivers,
For bonzer car insurance deals,
Girls get onto Sheilas' Wheels!
The jingle was parodied by the Amateur Transplants, who altered the lyrics to make women drivers seem dangerous.
[edit] External links
- Sheilas' Wheels website
- Amateur Transplants cover
- Sheilas' Wheels - independent guide on Sheilas' Wheels
- Lady Insure Lady Insure
Banking: Bank of Scotland | Halifax | Intelligent Finance | Birmingham Midshires | Sainsbury's Bank | St. James's Place Bank | BankWest | Banco Halifax Hispania | Bank of Scotland International | Halifax Ireland | Bank of Scotland (Netherlands) |
Insurance and Property: esure | First Alternative | Clerical Medical | rightmove.co.uk | The Mortgage Business | Sheilas' Wheels |
Annual Group Revenue: £10.2 billion GBP (14.3% FY 2004) | Employees: | Stock Symbol: LSE: HBOS | Website: www.hbosplc.com |