Car insurance for 17-year-olds

Car tax: Car tax, officially known as vehicle excise duty (VED), is an annual amount you pay to use public roads. It’s based on the type and make of car you have and when it was first registered.

MOT: An MOT test is an annual legal requirement to drive in the UK if your car is three years old or more. It checks that your vehicle meets road safety and environmental standards.

Fuel or electricity: You’ll either need to pay for petrol or diesel at forecourt prices or, if you opt for an electric vehicle, consider the cost of fitting a home charging point and an overnight electricity tariff or the cost of charging at public chargers.

Servicing and maintenance: Cars need regular servicing and maintenance to keep them safe and road-worthy.

Repairs: If your car is involved in an accident and you can’t, or don’t want to, claim on your insurance – perhaps so you can build up a no-claims bonus – you’ll be faced with the repair costs yourself.

Yes, your insurer may offer a discount if you have completed a recognised advanced driving course – though this isn’t always the case.

The Driving Standards Agency’s Pass Plus scheme is perhaps the best known of these and is specifically aimed at new drivers. But organisations such as RoSPA, IAM RoadSmart and the RAC also offer driving training.

In the long term, improving your road safety knowledge could make you a lower risk driver and reduce your premium

Yes, adding your mum or dad to your policy as an additional named driver can result in cheaper car insurance as the presence of an older, more experienced motorist reduces your overall risk.

However, it’s important that you correctly declare who the main driver is, otherwise it could be considered fronting. This is an illegal practice where you lie about who the main driver of a policy is to get cheaper premiums.

Yes, black box insurance is a good choice for most young drivers as it:

• Encourages safer driving: Since the box tracks behaviours like speeding and harsh braking, it can incentivise new drivers to develop safe habits

• Can potentially lower premiums: Some insurers will offer an upfront discount for telematics policies. Others will first collect data for a certain amount of time (often 3-12 months) or miles and then reduce your premium if you demonstrate safe driving habits

However, you need to be aware that:

• If you do a lot of nighttime driving when accidents are considered more likely to occur telematics insurance may not suit you

• Your premiums can increase if you drive in riskier ways

• Other people driving your car may affect your score

Telematics insurance providers will typically monitor:

• When you drive: you’re statistically more likely to be involved in an accident if you’re driving at night or in rush hour

• Where you drive: there’s more risk of an accident on busy roads and motorways compared to quiet country lanes

• How fast you drive: what your average speed is, and if you ever go over the speed limit

• How many miles you drive: the more you drive, the higher your chance of an accident

• How you drive: this includes, how you steer, brake, and take corners

Yes, if you cannot afford to pay your insurance premium in one annual lump sum, you can opt to pay your insurance monthly.

Doing this is more expensive than the annual payment as you will be charged a small interest fee on your monthly payments. 

Car insurance excess is what you pay upfront for any claim. It has two parts:

• A fixed insurer amount

• Your chosen voluntary amount

Choosing a higher voluntary excess lowers your premium, but make sure you choose an amount you can afford when needed.

Yes, you need third-party car insurance as a minimum to legally drive on UK roads.

The fine for driving uninsured could range between a fixed penalty of £300 and 6 penalty points to possible disqualification from driving if the case goes to court.

The police also have the power to seize your vehicle if you are driving uninsured - it can cost between £100 and £200 to retrieve a car from an impound lot.

You can check whether your car is insured for free on the Motor Insurance Database at www.askMID.com - all you need to enter is your vehicle’s registration number.  

Yes, a 17-year-old can usually be added to a policy as a named driver. However, some insurers have age restrictions so you’ll need to check.

You should also be aware that:

• If the 17-year-old is actually the main driver of the vehicle then you may be committing a type of insurance fraud known as fronting

• Being a named driver means that you probably won’t be able to build up a no-claims bonus

• If you have an accident it’s likely to affect the main driver’s no-claims bonus and push up their premium.

When you have a car insurance for at least a year without making a claim your insurer will apply a no-claims bonus to your next premium.

This discount accrues each year, so the longer you go without making a car insurance claim the more your insurer will discount from your premiums.

Insurers set their own rules when it comes to the minimum and maximum discounts given but they usually range from between 5% and 60%.