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Whether you’re buying your first car or looking to borrow someone else’s, if you’ve just passed your practical driving test, you need car insurance.
Unfortunately, new driver insurance can be quite expensive due to your lack of driving experience. But having cover in your name will enable you to build up a no-claims bonus (NCB), which can mean access to cheap car insurance in the future.
New driver insurance is car insurance suitable for people who have recently passed their driving test. New drivers can apply for standard car insurance or specialised products designed for new or young drivers, such as a telematics policy or pay-as-you-go cover.
Whatever type of car insurance you choose, it’s important to understand the different levels of cover, and what is included in each:
It can be tricky to find cheap insurance for new drivers. This is because young or new drivers are statistically more likely to be involved in an accident due to their lack of driving experience.
For example, we found the average quote for a 17-year-old new driver was a whopping £7,744.88.[1] However, that drops 57 per cent to £3,329.94 when that same driver turns 18 and has one year’s worth of driving under their belt.
The more experience you gain, the further your car insurance premium will fall – and it’ll become even cheaper if you build up your no-claims bonus at the same time.
How much new drivers pay for car insurance will depend on various factors, with age being near the top of the list. For example, the cost of cover for a new driver drops from £7,813.51 for a 17-year-old to £1,615.73 for a 27-year-old.[2]
Other factors include:
We’ve compiled top tips for how you can try and reduce the cost of your cover, and get the cheapest car insurance for new drivers available.
When you’ve had your own car insurance policy for a year, your insurer will send you a renewal quote – but you don’t have to accept this. In fact, we highly recommend not auto-renewing your car insurance if you can help it. Instead, compare prices elsewhere and make sure you state you have a NCB if yours is still intact.
It’s best to buy car insurance about three or four weeks before your renewal is due – studies show that drivers who leave it until the day their insurance is due for renewal could pay more
Use a price comparison site to compare new driver car insurance quotes from different insurers. Premiums can vary considerably for new drivers, as some insurers are keen to have these customers, while others purposefully price themselves out of the market.
When buying your first car, check which insurance group your intended purchase falls into. All cars are categorised into insurance groups from one to 50 – the more powerful and expensive your car, the higher the insurance group and the more you’ll pay. Cars such as the Fiat Panda, Ford Ka Plus or Nissan Micra are in Group 1, and so are the cheapest to insure. If an older or second-hand car is purchased, the insurance premium might be lower as a result of the lower value of the car itself. However, this won’t apply universally.
The excess on your policy is the amount you’ll need to pay towards any claim. All policies have a compulsory excess; adding a voluntary excess too can lower your premium, but make sure it’s an amount you can comfortably afford in the event of a claim.
If you can afford to, it’s best to pay your car insurance premium in one go each year. Most insurers offer the option to pay monthly, but this works out more expensive.
As a new driver, you can add someone with more driving experience as a named driver to bring down the cost of your cover. This is because it signals to the provider that you as a riskier driver won’t always be behind the wheel.
We found that, on average, you could save 10.24 per cent on your cover by adding an older named driver.[3] The biggest saving was for a 19-year-old new driver, who saved 17.61 per cent by adding their parent as a named driver.
You’ll need to state your estimated annual mileage when you buy car insurance. It might be tricky to estimate this figure as a new driver, but bear in mind that low mileage means fewer chances of an accident, and, in turn, lower premiums.
We found that, on average, drivers paid £49.73 more for every additional 3,000 miles they drove.[4]
Insurers don’t like modifications, such as spoilers and tinted windows – these changes to your car will result in higher premiums.
Having an immobiliser or tracker in your car can reduce your insurance premium, as there is less chance of it being stolen and an increased chance of recovery if it is. Dash cams can be useful to prove what happened in the event of an accident.
It’s important for new drivers to build up a no-claims bonus – you can do this by driving carefully and not making any claims on your policy. A NCB guarantees a discount on your premium when it’s up for renewal, but keep in mind that several factors influence the cost. Keeping a clean licence will help too, as speeding and motoring convictions mean paying more for insurance.
This is an advanced driving course which teaches drivers to improve their skills and drive more safely. Once you’ve completed Pass Plus and got a Pass Plus certificate, you will qualify for a discount from some insurers.
New driver insurance usually costs more than learner driver insurance. Learner drivers on a provisional licence are always driving under supervision, which means they are less risky for insurers.
New drivers who have passed their test can drive alone – but a lack of experience means this demographic presents a higher insurance risk. For example, according to the Association of British Insurers (ABI), drivers aged 17 to 24 only make up 7 per cent of UK licence holders and drive fewer miles than average, but this age group is involved in 24 per cent of all fatal collisions.[5]
This also means that younger drivers – who make up the largest portion of new drivers – have been hit the hardest by rising car insurance costs. The latest data from Consumer Intelligence shows that quoted premiums rose 66.9 per cent for under-25s in the year to February 2024, compared to 49 per cent for drivers over-50.[6]
You don’t have to take out a standard annual car insurance policy as a new driver. There are a number of specialist options that could either save you money, or better suit your needs:
With a telematics or black box car insurance policy, your insurer will monitor your driving habits via a device fitted in your car. Drive well and you’ll get cheaper cover.
New drivers can reduce their car insurance premiums by adding an adult (for instance, one or both of their parents) as a named driver on their policy. However, it’s important to be honest about who actually drives the car the most – lying to get cheaper premiums is known as fronting and is illegal.
If you only need to drive in short bursts and plan to borrow someone else’s car, you could consider temporary car insurance. This will allow you to take out insurance for as little one hour up to a few months. Importantly, if you were to get in an accident, it wouldn’t affect the no-claims bonus of the car owner.
Sometimes called pay-per-mile insurance, this type of policy charges you a set rate for insurance for each mile you drive. Your distance is measured by a telematics device in your car. Pay-as-you-go car insurance can work out to be good value for occasional drivers, but might be costly if you need to ramp up your mileage
An alternative to pay-per-mile insurance, if you drive less than 6,000 to 7,500 miles a year, you could consider a low-mileage car insurance policy. These policies are typically cheaper than standard cover, as it indicates you are on the road less, and therefore a lower accident risk.
“It might be worth considering getting a telematics policy, where the insurer instals a box in your car to track your driving. If you drive sensibly, you should start to see some financial reward for this. If you’re only planning on driving occasionally, it may make sense to avoid an annual policy altogether. A new breed of insurers offers cover by the day or even by the hour. If you do have your own car and will be the main driver, it’s important not to let your parent put themselves as the main driver on the policy. This is called “fronting” and is illegal. It could invalidate your insurance altogether if the insurer finds out.”
Car insurance policies vary regarding what they cover for new drivers. Some of the things below will be covered as standard on new driver insurance policies, while others can be covered for an extra fee.
When choosing a car insurance policy as a new driver, think about the additional cover options that will be most useful for you:
If you’re caught driving with a cracked windscreen, you could face three penalty points on your licence and a fine of up to £2,500.
When you’re looking to get new driver car insurance, you’ll likely need to have the following to hand to compare quotes:
Here’s what to look for when comparing new driver car insurance quotes:
| Factors to consider | What it means |
|---|---|
| Level of cover | Third party/ third party fire and theft/ fully comprehensive |
| Premium | Annual cost of the policy |
| Total excess | Amount the policyholder pays in the event of a claim |
| Optional extras | Add-ons such as legal expenses, windscreen cover and personal belongings |
| Courtesy car | A car you can drive while yours is being repaired in the event of a claim |
| Breakdown cover | Assistance if your car breaks down on the road/at home |
| Legal expenses | Financial protection against legal fees if you’re involved in an accident that’s not your fault. For instance, personal injury, excess recovery, loss of earnings |
| Personal accident | Provides you or your family with financial support if you’re injured or die in an accident |
| Telematics | A black box fitted in your car to monitor your driving |
All mainstream insurers offer cover to new drivers. There are also a number of specialists who focus on new drivers. These include:
Based on our research, we found that between age 17 and 21, the average new driver car insurance quote falls from £7,744.88 to £3,054.74.[10] That’s a drop of 60.56 per cent.
Assuming you don’t make any claims, your car insurance should get cheaper each year as you get older, and also as you build a NCB. Some telematics policies will lower your monthly premium if you have driven well the previous month.
Legally, you’re considered a new driver for the 24 months after you first pass your test. During this period, you’re on probation – if you get six or more penalty points, your licence will be cancelled.
New drivers can be added to other people’s car insurance policies as a ‘named driver’. However, adding a new driver to their policy could result in paying more for cover as inexperienced drivers present a higher risk to the insurer.
Telematics insurance can sometimes be a good value option, but it won’t necessarily be the cheapest car insurance for new drivers. It depends when (the time of day) and how well you drive. When comparing car insurance quotes, you should look at both standard and telematics car insurance policies.
Some insurers offer a discount if you take an advanced driving course such as IAM RoadSmart’s Advanced Driver Course or the DVLA-endorsed Pass Plus course. But this doesn’t necessarily mean that the discounted premium will be the cheapest option for you – you should still carry out a full car insurance quote comparison to find the best value deal.
In order to drive other cars on your insurance, your policy will need to include the ‘driving other cars’ benefit. If it does, you’ll be able to drive someone else’s car, only if you have their permission, with third party cover only.
You normally need to be over the age of 25 to have driving other cars cover, so many new drivers won’t be eligible.
The excess is the amount you have to contribute to the cost of a claim. Normally there’ll be a compulsory excess, which is set by your provider, and a voluntary excess, which you set yourself at the start of your policy. Younger and newer drivers may have to pay an additional excess, depending on the provider.
For every year you have a car insurance policy and don’t make a claim, you’ll build up a no-claims bonus. This will give you a percentage discount on your next policy. This discount will grow for each year you fail to make a claim. Some providers will have a maximum limit on the no-claims discount you can build.
If you make a claim, you will lose some, but not necessarily all, of your no-claims bonus, depending on how long it has been built up.
If you switch providers, you may be asked for proof of your no-claims bonus. You can normally get this from your previous/current insurer.
