Hi there,

I am only 20 and have recently passed my test. I am already paying £200 a month on my van insurance but i have got another car honda crv and I am really shocked at insurance prices. I have not been quoted less than £2200 for TPFT so FAR.

Not everybody can afford a insurance at £3000 a year and in this way governement is encouraging drivers to drive without a insurance by not having any regulations or restrictions on these insurance companies that rip off.

Can somebody plz advise what to do?

Insurance costs are nothing to do with the government and everything to do with risk. Insurance companies consider you to be a bigger risk in your CRV than a middle aged lady in a Civic.

Insurance companies publish information about what "group" or risk category a car has and you can use that to help you to find a car that costs less to insure. For example, a small, cheap car like a polo is in a lower group than a big, expensive car like a Jaguar.

Why not chop the CRV in for a classic car? Classic cover is much cheaper, and as you have the van as your daily driver you can insure as a second car.

Grommet:

Why not chop the CRV in for a classic car? Classic cover is much cheaper, and as you have the van as your daily driver you can insure as a second car.

I like, and agree with the majority of your post but this driver is 20 years old and doesn't have a second car - he has a van. No insurance company is going to insure a 20 year old under a classic policy as it is, especially where his other vehicle is a van.

---

Coyote

grover:

I am only 20 and have recently passed my test. I am already paying £200 a month on my van insurance but i have got another car honda crv and I am really shocked at insurance prices. I have not been quoted less than £2200 for TPFT so FAR.

Okay... to clarify...

Your risk (as advertised) is as follows:

* 20 Years Old (and probably male); * Recently passed driving test; * Honda CRV (Group 11-15 depending); (This is without knowing the postcode, area kept overnight and other risk details)

grover:

Not everybody can afford a insurance at £3000 a year and in this way governement is encouraging drivers to drive without a insurance by not having any regulations or restrictions on these insurance companies that rip off.

Ridiculous comments and shows your serious lack of knowledge about the subject you're talking about. For a start it has very little to do with the Government; no encouragement is given to those driving without insurance as it is their choice. "If you can't afford silk, go for cotton" - having a Honda CRV as your first car speaks volumes. Finally the insurance companies are very much regulated and have an extremely strict set of instructions and restrictions.

Grover. Statistics suggest that you will have an accident in this vehicle. The severity of the claim is the only variable and this is a risk. The claim is likely to exceed the premium you are paying and the potential for this figure to reach a level in payout equivalent to that of a liability injury claim.

---

Coyote

I am asking for help on this matter, so let me know if anybody can help.

I can't help beyond saying that £2k is typical for your car and age.

I agree with what you said about the UK system though. It does make insurance unaffordable for young people, it encourages them to drive illegally and it creates a lot of work for the police and the courts.

The system in New Zealand is that legal minimum insurance is thrown in with their tax disc for around £80 per year. There insurance companies have to actually attract customers rather than have them forced to sign up by a UK-type system.

How does it encourage uninsured driving just out of interest?

---

Coyote

I'm 24 and passed my driving test at 17. Drove a cheap escort to start with £250 to buy and paid 1200 insurance. I wrote that car off in an accident. Second car was a cheap astra and eventually got myself three years no claims at 19 i paid for a brand new vauxhall and some idiot crashed intot he back of me while i was stationary at a junction. Due to havign no witnesses and her *** story that it was my fault even though i was stationary the insurance company decided that they would split it 50/50. Ok for her it was no problem as she probably had her no claims protected and her next premium wouldnt have rose much. My renewal however came to 1800 a jump in 1300. I sold the car as i have a compnay vehicle but its a van and isnt that practical. If i want car now i am looking at 1200 for insurance. If this women had not bene on her phone and crashed into me i wouold be still paying around 250-400 pounds a year which is very managable.

asnwer to your question regarding how does it encourage to drive with no cover. well uif you get caught you have 6 points and a maximum fine of 2000. the chnace of you getting caught are low. i very often borrow my parents car and drive with no insrance. I know its bad and i knwo i shouldnt but its not as if i dont want to pay,just feel very victimised by the outdated system.

Oh dear, talk about set yourself up!

Your sob story is ridiculous and not winning my heart, especially as you're the one endangering the lives of others with that stupid attitude.

Do you not realise you're the muppet for the rhyme and reason behind insurance rates for young drivers!!

I had to front the money when I was 17; luckily I didn't have the same childish mindset. Never had to make a claim either.

So, you can give yourself (and your parents for letting you borrow the vehicle, which is illegal under RTA 1988) a well deserved pat on the back. Let's just hope you don't seriously injure anyone forcing the sale of all you own.

Merry Christmas!

---

Coyote

Actually I can afford it, currenty I have a car on hire at from enterprise and it costs me about £25 a day. Its not the money, I probably use their cars once a month for short trips. May I put it to you that I am a very good driver and have done over 300k in the last 6 years. With only 1 accident that was my fault. The Uk insurance system is pathetic. I have seen many perfect drivers (ladies and old people) cauase many accidents. I have seen far to many 5 foot five women driving range rovers when they cant see over the steering wheel. Me using my relatives car is not anymore dangerous, no study has proved that uninsured drivers are more likely to crash. I did front the money when i was 17 I was lucky to be able to easily afford it. Its not the money to me that is the issue, just the principle. I found out later that both our insuracne compnaies came under the same group of compnaies so it was in their intersted to go 50.50. I will get myself a nice new car when I am 25 and my premuim will drop dramatically becuase of my age.

Coyote:How does it encourage uninsured driving just out of interest?

The NZ system is one affordable payment and one noticeable sticker in the window to say that the vehicle is legal. Yes, you still get people who drive unsafe, untaxed, uninsured vehicles in NZ but far more young drivers can afford £80 per year than £2k per year.

I've no sympathy for drivers who don't care about others and who are happy to break the rules and who feel no remorse about having lots of accidents and writing lots of vehicles off (and two serious accidents in two years is a lot of accidents). I do, however, have sympathy for young drivers who would like to follow the rules but who simply cannot afford to.

mdmx33:May I put it to you that I am a very good driver and have done over 300k in the last 6 years. With only 1 accident that was my fault.

You 'ability' is irrelevant. You are breaking the law - you don't get to make these decisions, parliament and the courts do. What other laws are you willing to break? Where do you draw the line?

mdmx33:I have seen many perfect drivers (ladies and old people) cauase many accidents. I have seen far to many 5 foot five women driving range rovers when they cant see over the steering wheel.

So what? Worry about yourself, don't justify your (unjustifiable) actions by pointing out the faults of others.

mdmx33:Me using my relatives car is not anymore dangerous, no study has proved that uninsured drivers are more likely to crash.

He didn't say either of those things, you said them. Regardless, it's not about being 'more dangerous', it's about you abusing the privilege you have been granted. Driving is not a right.

mdmx33:asnwer to your question regarding how does it encourage to drive with no cover. well uif you get caught you have 6 points and a maximum fine of 2000. the chnace of you getting caught are low. i very often borrow my parents car and drive with no insrance. I know its bad and i knwo i shouldnt but its not as if i dont want to pay,just feel very victimised by the outdated system.

Let's have a role play. Let's assume tomorrow you walk to the shops for some new shoes. I know you're a very good driver, you don't need to tell me, but today you've decided to walk. You notice a car out of the corner of your eye. It careers off the road, and crushes you between his car and the wall.

As a result of this, you are paralysed waist down. You can't work and loose your job and earnings, your relationship goes down the pan, you suffer serious psychological harm and flashbacks. Your projected ongoing medical bills, physiotherapy, psychotherapy etc are astronomical. The emotional strain on your family is massive, the financial costs run into hundreds of thousands of pounds. It's OK though, you can claim all this on his insurance. You'll make the best out of a truly awful situation.

Then, BOOM, he tells you that he's uninsured. He reassures you that he's an excellent driver and was just popping out for a quick journey in his mums car. He felt cheated by the system so he decided the risk was justified.

Do you hold the same values for him, and let him off? What are you going to do about the money? About him destroying your life? He has left you totally stranded. I assume, going by what you've said above, you will say 'don't worry about it mate, I was cheated by insurance companies too. Just drop me off at the hospital and we'll call it quits yeah, you don't want that 6 point fine.'


May I put it to you that your attitude is in-fact very indicative of your understanding of driving, and therefore true ability (not self-assessed; that's completely pointless). At some point you will make a mistake, even the best drivers do. Your best hope is that your victim, of which there will be one, will share your views. I just hope you're never anywhere near me, or my loved ones, on the roads.

Matt

My daughter has just passed her driving test, she found that if she does the Pass Plus course, it reduces your insurance costs

I did the pass plus and I didnt really notice the difference as the companies that offer policies geared toward you using it are more expensive anyway. Churchill are good for young drivers. give them a try. I have to take a driving course every year for work, the company that i work for insists that we do so. The AA driving school provides the service. Anyhway I need not worry anymore, I have just been offered a job in Saudi Arabia and will have my own personal driver 24 hours a day when required. Funyn thing is I will now be able to pay a years insurance in the UK with a weeks wages. Happy New Year to all.

my daughter had a similar problem, she has a vauxhall corsa 1.2 3rd party only, car worth £500...a student on a Provisional,...cost was £50 per month.. when she passed her test and took the pass plus it went UP to £150pm? we changed to Admiral who gave a family policy...we each get our own no claims, her part went back to £50 pm and after 30 years I hit a deer the other day and within a day had car being repaired, hire car and no dramas...excellent service....we WONT be shopping around next year..guess were Admiral converts now..