For New Drivers

By tradition, car insurance companies have been rather cautious about new drivers. If you are a new driver, then statistically you’re also likely to be young and you may have already experienced the nervous tone in the voice of some insurance companies when you’ve contacted them for a quote. Very possibly you also feel aggrieved that car insurance companies tend to view you suspiciously and as someone they expect to make a claim - just because you’re a new and younger driver.


Well, in fairness, it’s not their fault. New drivers, particularly young drivers, are often involved in more accidents than older more experienced drivers – with excessive speed often being a contributing factor.

It could also be that new and younger drivers lack real experience of the roads and so may not always see dangers in advance and react accordingly. So, being realistic, you may just have to be prepared to pay more for your car insurance until your experience grows. Having said that, it’s not all bad news and you shouldn’t give up on finding cheap car insurance because there are steps you can take to help reduce your insurance premiums.

Firstly, it may be possible to drive a vehicle based upon someone else’s insurance policy – a good example would be driving a vehicle as a ‘named driver’ on the policy of a parent. Assuming the other party is happy with the arrangement and you do both actually drive the vehicle, it certainly could reduce your car insurance costs. However, it does have the disadvantage that you are not building up your own ‘no claims discount’ entitlement.

You do have to be careful though in this instance otherwise you could be accused of ‘fronting’ and any claim you make could be rejected. "Fronting" is when a young motorist has a vehicle that is in their name, but they tell the insurer that their parent is the main driver in order to save premiums. If you are in any doubt as to whether you could be accused of ‘fronting’, then speak to your insurer.
Follow-up training

Another possible route open to you is to undertake some follow-up training. This is available through recognised centres one of which is probably reasonably close to you. In fact, your Local Authority may offer some sort sponsorship with some of the organisations that provide this type of training and may contribute to some of your costs. Once you have got through and passed this training then many insurance companies will take this into account and offer a reduction on their premium.

It’s also worth checking around the various suppliers of insurance to search out a deal. That’s because there are companies that specialise in offering car insurance policies to new and young drivers and they may be able to offer you an attractive deal.
As a final thought, remember that one thing that’s extremely likely to frighten insurers and therefore push up your premium is a combination of new driver plus ‘supercar’ vehicle. Yes, when first on the road many of us want to show our independence by getting that head-turning vehicle but remember that big engines and fast cars can equate to higher premiums and this is even more so if you’re a new, young driver.

Boring as it may sound, that conservative and staid looking vehicle with a top-class reputation for safety (if only 1/10 for panache) may be more suitable for your circumstances if you’re looking to keep your premiums down. If you can bear it, put out of your head those lightening fast super-tuned models – at least until you’ve secured a few years experience and associated no-claims bonus!