What's the story with car finance? It's hardly news that in a competitive market such as motor insurance, quotes can differ wildly. It may be something of a shock, however, to learn that canny drivers who put in the legwork can save almost €4,000 a year.

According to a survey released today by the financial regulator, a 22-year-old male driver of a modified Honda Civic from Co Clare can save up to €3,875 by making a few calls. And it's not just the boy racers who can make big savings. A female driver of the same age looking for insurance for a similar car could save up to €2,803, the survey has found.

As well as a cost survey focusing on motor insurance, the regulator is also publishing a second survey which examines personal loans and car finance arrangements.

Both are part of a new pack from the consumer wing of the regulator's office concentrating on the cost of car ownership. Anyone in the market for a new car should pick up one of the packs which provide clear, concise information on almost every aspect of financing your car.

"The motor insurance cost surveys continue to be the one of our more popular surveys," the consumer director at the financial regulator, Mary O'Dea, told The Irish Times. "People can look at the survey and see who are the real players in the market, who are actively competing and hopefully save some money off their insurance."

O'Dea says that the purpose of the motor insurance survey is not to point people in the direction of individual companies but to show people how much they can save by phoning around or by going online in search of a the best product. "We don't engage in any product regulation. Our role is very much to say 'do you understand what you are entering into with this product'," she says.

The second survey, dealing with personal loans versus car finance is an area where people might do well to be less concerned about the actual cost and more focused on whether the product in question meets their needs. The survey shows that interest rates for car finance and personal loans are broadly similar and while there are choices to be made when it comes to price, they are not as drastic as people might think.

But thinking is often one of the first critical faculties to go when a prospective buyer finds him or herself standing on a forecourt with the smell of new car in their nose. They might be perfectly happy to spend months meticulously researching the car they want to buy, looking into every detail from the hubcaps to the speakers. Then the blood rushes to the head and they spend less than a minute before buying into the forecourt finance deal on offer, even if it is more costly than a regular bank loan and totally unsuited to their needs.

The instant finance deals offered by car showrooms have obvious attractions. There's no need to approach a bank or a credit union for a loan. Forecourt financing can be arranged in minutes, leaving the impatient with a brand new set of shiny wheels which they can drive off the forecourt.

Mind you, they don't own these shiny wheels and won't own them until the last payment is made - but that's just a detail. Unless, that is, they experience a change in personal circumstances and can't afford the repayments, in which case the repo man might come calling.

While hire purchase deals will suit some people, everyone needs to understand that unlike a car funded with a personal loan, until the very last payment is made they don't own the car. They can't resell it and even if they decide to clear the balance of the money owed ahead of schedule they might incur fairly swingeing penalties.

Then there is the danger that the car could be repossessed if payments are not made. Until 30 per cent of the full total has been paid off, this can even be done without a court order.

"The real problem with hire purchase is if something in your circumstances changes and you have to stop making your payments or if you crash the car," says O'Dea. "Most people are so absolutely focused on buying the car that they don't spend two minutes thinking about the finance," O'Dea says. "Would you buy a car from a bank?"

The publication of this booklet today reinforces why the regulator is a very useful resource for Irish consumers who can easily find themselves snowed under by the blizzard of confusing information laid before them by financial institutions. Even for the regulator, making sense of the information the banks supply can be a challenge.

"The first time we did a current account cost survey three years ago we were really surprised at how complicated it was and a current account is one of the more basic products," O'Dea recalls.

After ploughing through all the permutations and publishing the survey, the regulator talked to those in the industry and insisted there had to be an easier way of doing business. Since then the processes and charge schedules in most banks have been simplified. "Our job now is to point out that okay there may be no transaction fees here, but watch out for other charges," she says.

The regulator handles 4,000 requests from consumers each week, over the phone, on its website and in person. The nature of the queries has evolved and the regulator is handling fewer complaints and dealing more with people looking for information and being "steered through the maze" of financial jargon.

And there is more work ahead. Earlier this year the final draft of the regulator's consumer protection code was introduced. It came in the wake of a reimbursement programme totalling €118 million over the two years following overcharging by banks and insurance companies.

While the code offers consumers protection from unscrupulous banks dangling loans among other things, in front of them, basic banking products, such as current accounts, overdrafts and some deposit accounts are excluded from many of the regulations.

This final draft of the code came in for some criticism this summer with the Irish Brokers Association accusing the regulator of supporting retail banks. O'Dea stoutly rejects this and remains convinced that the code will deliver a better deal for consumers.

"The huge significance is that for the very first time we have a code that now applies across all products in the financial market," she says. She accepts that it has changed since the first draft, "But I have never produced any consultation document that hasn't changed. That is the whole point of consultation.

"In my view it would be absolutely wrong to introduce a whole lot of extra requirements for selling basic banking products because it would reduce competition," she says.

The regulator's booklets are available from 1890 77 77 77, www.itsyourmoney.ie, and its offices at Dame Street, Dublin 2