What makes young drivers insurance for cars so expensive?

Insurance, of course, is all about risk, the likelihood of something happen, and the statistics tend to speak for themselves – the road safety charity Brake has revealed that although drivers aged between 17 and 19 account for 1.5% of all drivers in Britain, they are involved in 25% of the crashes that result in death or serious injury.

With figures like this, you may be wondering whether it is possible to get lower cost insurance if you are under 25? The answer is “Yes”. The cost of your cover can be influenced by choosing a specialist insurer for younger drivers, as well as you reducing your risk of claiming. Here’s how …

Specialist insurers

• insurers helping you get on the road and insured at a realistic price are those who believe that driving a car is a rite of passage which does not need to be denied the careful younger driver;

• at GSI Insurance we are one such provider and our specialist knowledge of the market helps identify motor policies for those under the age of 25 and which are also price competitive;

Pick your car

• driving an expensive to repair, imported or high performance car attracts high insurance premiums for any driver – and the younger you are the more costly they are certain to be;

• if you want to keep your insurance costs down, therefore, pick your car carefully and avoid anything which might be expensive to repair and therefore incur a large insurance claim;

Level of insurance

• the law says that you must have a minimum level of third party insurance to drive your car on the roads – and there are hefty penalties if you do not have it;

• if the car you want to drive is relatively inexpensive and unlikely to cost a lot to replace in the event of it being written off, third party cover might suffice;

• the alternatives are third party, fire and theft or fully comprehensive insurance;

• because the latter obviously gives you greater protection, it might be tempting to think that it is always the most expensive – this need not be the case, however, and buying inadequate cover to suit your needs may prove a false economy;

Your record

• if you are under the age of 25, you are unlikely to have an extensive driving record and many insurers may evaluate the risk of providing cover simply on your age and lack of experience alone;

• the increasing use of vehicle telematics (an onboard computer which feeds back your driving habits and performance) may help you to convince an insurer that you are as safe a driver as you claim;

• the greatest test and proof of your ability, however, lies in keeping a clean record – free of motoring convictions and insurance claims – in order to steadily reduce your annual insurance costs;

Excess

• one way of expressing your confidence in avoiding insurance claims is to take on a greater part of the risk yourself and agree to a voluntary excess in addition to the compulsory excess imposed by your insurer;

• if you do have to make a claim, however, bear in mind that you will need to pay the excess charge before any insurance settlement is made – so any voluntary excess you opt for should be affordable.

There is precious little way around the fact that if your are a younger driver, insuring your car is going to cost a lot. But there is light at the end of the tunnel, with lower premiums as the reward for a clean driving record. Specialist young drivers insurance is there to help you along the way.

Further reading: GSI guide for young drivers insurance