The administration fees which are charged to policy holders wishing to make amendments to their cover have come under fire this week after research from Which? found that some companies charge up to £55 for minor changes. Back in 2004, just under fifth of car insurers charged an administration fee for changes to a policy. Now that figure has changed significantly with 70% of motor insurers and 30% of home insurance companies charging for changes to policies such as altering your marital status or changing a name or address on the cover. Which? who carried out the research concluded that the administration fees are too high and are not always made clear to the policyholder as they are sometimes hidden in the small print. The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has defended the use of admin fees by insurance companies. In a statement the ABI say that insurers don’t want to charge customers, but must ask for a fee to be paid if they incur costs in the process of administering the change on the policy. Which? found that the average administration fee charged for a change to a car insurance policy stood at £21 and for a home insurance policy the average amount was £18.