Young people traditionally face higher car insurance costs than older drivers, but they can take steps to lower the price of their premiums, an insurer has advised.

According to Direct Line, one of the best things to do is take a Pass Plus training course which teaches more advanced skills.

Pass Plus is a government-run initiative consisting of six one-hour lessons for around £100, a spokesperson said.

She explained that it is worth doing the course because it can knock as much as 35 per cent off the cost of car insurance.

With Direct Line figures showing the average insurance premium for a young male driver to be around £2,000, a 35 per cent saving would be around £600.

Drivers should also think about "buying a car with a smaller engine, as older cars and bigger engines tend to be more expensive too", she added.

Department for Transport statistics released earlier this year show that the number of people killed or seriously injured in road accidents has not gone down from last year.

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