chrismcd:

The insurers we used was Elephant.co.uk we got a quote through a comparison website and then spoke to them in person. The policy is 10 months but after the 10 months if she has not has an accident she gets a full years no claims discount.

That is what I understand anyway I am waiting to get the paperwork through to check all the small print but even without the rapid bonus scheme this was a good quote. They knew we needed to sort out insurance that night as we had said we were collecting the car the next day and when said we would get back to them they spoke to the supervisor and gave a further discount.

The accelerated bonus is non-transferable and the person will not get proof of a full years bonus after 10 months. Be warned about these types of policies, and especially this insurer come to mention it!

The insurers we used was Elephant.co.uk we got a quote through a comparison website and then spoke to them in person. The policy is 10 months but after the 10 months if she has not has an accident she gets a full years no claims discount.

That is what I understand anyway I am waiting to get the paperwork through to check all the small print but even without the rapid bonus scheme this was a good quote. They knew we needed to sort out insurance that night as we had said we were collecting the car the next day and when said we would get back to them they spoke to the supervisor and gave a further discount.

Googling for "rapid bonus schemes" (with the quotes) didn't find a lot of information but it seems to be a process whereby new drivers can get a one year NCB after 9 months (does that mean that they pay monthly and the payments go down after 9 months?) but any more information would be very helpful. The moderators of these boards do get upset if you place a link to another forum or a similar website but, correct me if I'm wrong, I think it's ok to mention different insurers if they are doing something worthy of mention but obviously not if you just want to get brownie points from your empolyer.

Please tell us more because we get numerous posts on these boards along the lines of insurance being unaffordable for young drivers, even in small old cars.

Red Yulfie

In the past 12 months I have arranged insurance for 4 young family members aged 17-18 (and bought their cars from auction) and have found insurance for all under £900 using price comparison websites and the local broker.

What further research do you suggest i undertake?

Last night we arranged insurance for our 17 year old daughter in a Peugeot 106 which is a 1.1 fully comp on her own insurance for £770 with my husband added as a named driver (sometimes having an older driver on it can bring it down)which we are really pleased with.

Ford Ka's are 1.3's and Corsa's are 1.2 (I think) so this could be the reason why the more money to insure.

If you look on this website under the article "Motor Costs soar for young drivers" then look at the "rapid bonus schemes" we used one of those insurance companies. I don't think I am allowed to name them.

The other thing to know which we only found out yesterday is that this is on her provisional license but when she passes the premium will go up as she will not have an experienced driver supervising her.

Hope this helps

Forum rules dictate otherwise - promotion is prohibited

The 1st year insurance premium under the scheme I mentioned for a 17/18 year old girl is £595. But it is a scheme designed to get young drivers mobile in a safer car with low cost insurance.

Smala01 - whilst I am flattered that you agree with me, I think you need to do a little research before you make such comments.

I have been shopping around for car insurance for my daughter who will be 18 in December. Unfortunately all the quotes are coming out at over £1400, based on a basic Ford KA or Vauxhall Corsa. Please tell me where can you get insurance for £995?

I must agree with Red Yulfie that a young driver can easily get insurance for around £900 if they drive a sensible small car with low engine size. That’s about £20 a week, and I bet a lot teenagers spend more than that on beer on a single night out!

If a 17 year old chooses a "hot hatch" or begins to rack up points then they deserve a high premium. What’s all this talk about new cars? Didn’t we all start on a cheap run about when we were 17 !! If they can afford a new car then they can afforded the premiums.

Smala01

Whether I live in a wealthy area or not has nothing to do with my comments. I deal with young drivers all over the country.

Fact - a 17 year old male can insure a new or nearly new car for a 12 month premium of £995 - fully comprehensive, in their name and earn a 35% no claims bonus. The premium is identical regardless of post code or whether the driver has a full or provisional licence.

It is just a matter of thinking outside the box.

My statement that most young drivers cannot afford insurance is not terribly relevant to young people who do not drive! The fact is, as mentioned in the first post, that it costs several thousand pounds to get valid insurance. Not all will pay £3k. Some may have a very small car, live in a very low risk area and settle for TPF&T cover in which case they could well get cover for closer to £2k. If those figures are affordable for young kids in your area then you must, as I suggesteed, live in a very wealthy suburb.

You were making a statement that is not backed up by any facts. All you are doing is making an unsubstantiated claim that tars most young drivers with the same brush.

The facts are that most young people aged between 17 and 20 do not hold a driving licence and there have been various surveys that have asked the questions. Costs of running a car are a major factor in this decision, adequate public transport is another – also more than 50% of the school population go on to higher education and there is very often little need to have a car until later.

Every year over 400,000 drivers aged between 17-20 pass the practical driving test. The majority of these do have proper insurance in some form or another, whether as a named driver to drive a family car or insurance in their own name, if they want to build up their own no claims bonus.

Kids can and do afford to pay the premiums for insurance, often with the help of parents or other family members. The advice given by Andy Leadbetter is useful but falls way short of outlining all the schemes that are out in the marketplace to bring down premiums for young drivers.

The first point, if you cared to read it, was that most kids can't afford £000s for insurance. I stand by this statement as it is blatantly obvious to anyone outside, perhaps, a few wealthy suburbs.

A rather strange post in which the first point tells us that most young people either don't bother driving or if they do, are unisured. Goverment stats show that in the 90's, 48% of 17-20 year olds held a licence - 10 years later the figure dropped to 26% and has crept up a little ever since. So even if just one driver did not have insurance or their parents fronted the policy it falls into the 'most' category.

The situation regarding untaxed/uninsured cars is improving with ANPR systems. Chances are your neighbour does not have a licence or has a few endorsements that would make it impossible to get an insurance quote in the future. An IN10 - driving without insurance - is a criminal conviction that stays on the licence for a long time. Once people are in that circle it is difficult to do anything. Pray that he does not hit your car and you have to make a claim against the fund that everyone already pays for to cover insured claims.

The biggest payout for the insurance companies is claims, the industry average is over 80% of premium receipts (closer to 100% for young drivers) - reducing the marketing costs and office overheads will not bring the insurance levels down to NZ levels. Your figures are way out. All your proposal will do would significantly increase the costs for drivers of all age groups to help a few more young drivers and end up with poor levels of administration. If you drive well without making any claims you still pay the same as an idiot like your neighbour - don't think that is a good idea and it is better left on the other side of the world.

Most kids in their late teens or early 20s can't afford £000s for insurance so they either do without a car or drive uninsured (perhaps with no policy, perhaps with a policy in mum's name).

One neighbour here drives old cars until the vehicle is taken away, usually ones with no MOT or insurance and a few months left on the tax disc, then he buys another. It's not right but it costs him a lot less than buying proper insurance. One of his cars is outside now. I reported it not being taxed when the tax disc ran out 30/6 but nothing has been done about it. Every few years the authorities might come and tow away such cars but they don't do enough to stop the practice.

In my view, basic, legal minimum insurance should be included with the tax disc. That way it would be straight forward for anyone to see which cars have insurance and which don't. There's such a system in New Zealand and the tax disc costs around £80 per year. So much of UK insurance premiums goes towards advertising, marketing, expensive offices and so on that the real cost of including legal mimimum cover with the tax disc wouldn't be much more than it costs in New Zealand. An amount in that order would be affordable and such a system would reduce the number of uninsured drivers on the roads.

A young male driver may now pay close to £3,000 for an annual car insurance premium – and it’s not the only expense that’s on the rise with lessons and tests adding to the burden. Andy Leadbetter shows you how to keep costs down…

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