I think it depends on how much money you want to spend and how safe you want to be but go for a Group 1 or 2 insurance car and it'll be cheaper.  Newer car (say £2000 plus) probably means comprehensive insurance so costs more (but not by much) and you get better safety. Older car means  go for a  Polo  or  Clio  for safety (check  pictures/scores on Euro NCAP!) or Micra for reliability and you might want to chance Third Party Fire and Theft Insurance.  Had a  R reg Micra  for years but traded up for safety reasons.  Overall, I'd go for the Polo because after the new car electrical problems are sorted by the first owner they go on for ever, are safe, hold their value and have some street cred too.