Young Driver Insurance

Whether you are learning to drive or you have just passed your test, one of the biggest obstacles facing new drivers is the cost of car insurance. In fact the UK has seen the number of young people learning to drive fall by 19% since 2005 which has been largely accredited to the rise in car insurance costs.

Learning to Drive

Once you have turned 17 you can apply for your provisional licence which will allow you, as long as your with a qualified driver who is at least 21 and held a driving licence for 3 years, to get out on the roads and start learning to drive.

All learner drivers need to be insured on the car they’re driving. If you learn to drive with a professional driving instructor in their car then the price of the lesson will also cover your insurance so you do not need to organise your own. If you are being taught by your parents in their car you will need to make sure the car owner’s insurance covers you. You can do this by having them add you under their policy as a named driver. However, if you’ll be learning to drive in your own car you will need to organise your own insurance.

As you will only have a provisional licence you may find that some insurers are unable to provide you with a quote and even when they can they will normally be absurdly expensive. This is because as you are learning to drive you have little driving experience and therefore are seen, statistically at least, to be more of a high risk driver. The best thing to do when seeking learning insurance is to compare insurance options available to you which will give you a better chance of finding a good deal, rather than just the first company that will give you a quote. It can also be a good idea to ask any friends who are or have passed their driving test what they paid and which provider they went with as this can give you a good idea of what prices are available to new drivers.

Once You’ve Passed

Congratulations on passing your driving test. Now that you can drive on the roads you’ll need insurance to cover yourself should you ever have an accident. As a new driver, especially if you are aged between 17 and 21 you could find the cost of insuring yourself to be more than the cost of your car. As insurance is not optional you’ll have to face the fact that if you want to drive you are going to have to pay and pay big. What you can do is take steps to minimise the cost of insurance where possible to get the cheapest policy available to you. See our guide on Insurance Pricing Factors to see how you can bring down the cost of insurance.

The Pass Plus scheme can really help to bring down the often astronomical price of insurance if you are a new driver. The scheme is designed to expand upon the modules previously covered in your lessons as well as other subjects like motorway driving which you won’t have practised for your driving test (you must hold a full driving license before being able to drive on a motorway). The extra experience and instructed learning gained from Pass Plus implies you’ll be less likely to have an accident, making you less of a risk to insure affording you cheaper insurance. However, not all insurance companies will give you a discount for doing Pass Plus so it’s important to check that you’ll be given credit for the course with the policy you choose.

Insurers that recognise Pass Plus

• BSM
• Churchill
• Co-operative insurance
• Ecclesiastical
• AA Insurance
• i-Kube
• NFU Mutual
• Privilege
• Quinn Direct
• Swinton
• Young Marmalade

Choosing the right car

Your first car will play an important factor in the price you pay for insurance. Choosing a small engine size car with no modifications which is also fitted with a good security system will been seen as less of a risk for insurers to insure resulting in cheaper cover.

A brand new car will push your premiums up as it will be more expensive to repair or replace if damaged. However, a very old car will be more likely to break down and need repairs which makes old cars also expensive to insure. It’s best then to find a happy medium between old and new when buying your fist car.