How Much Is Car Insurance for a New Driver in the UK? A Complete Guide

How much is insurance for a new driver? Well, it varies from insurer to insurer, and there are several factors affecting car insurance costs. That being said, car insurance is typically higher for new and young drivers than it is for more experienced drivers. What's more, costs are rising, with some newly qualified drivers being quoted as much as £3000 p/a.

There are several factors which can affect car insurance prices for young drivers, including:

• Age. Young drivers typically have less driving history than older drivers. This makes them an unknown quantity, which insurance companies may equate with risk. As such, young and newly qualified drivers may have to pay higher insurance premiums.
• Experience. More driving experience makes you a lower risk in insurance terms. It's hard to demonstrate experience when you've just qualified, but taking an advanced driving course may help.
• Location. If your location experiences a lot of car theft or accidents, insurers will consider your car to be more at risk and your premiums may be higher.
• Type of insurance. The type and level of your insurance impact the cost. For example, fully comprehensive cover costs more than basic third party insurance.
• Driving history. New and young drivers are at a disadvantage when it comes to proving their driving risk, as they haven't had time to build up a clean driving history. The better and more extensive your driving history is, the lower your premiums are likely to be.
• The make and model of your car. As a general rule, the more valuable your car is, the more it will cost to insure. Insurers calculate premium costs based on how much they might have to pay out, and how likely you are to make a claim. A more valuable car would cost more in payouts and is therefore more expensive to insure.
• Your voluntary excess. Your voluntary excess is the amount you agree to pay from your own pocket if you need to make a claim. The more you agree to pay, the less your insurer will have to pay. As such, a lower voluntary excess usually leads to higher insurance costs.
• Whether or not you have a no-claims discount. Many insurers offer discounts for drivers who go a certain amount of time without making a claim. A no-claims discount takes a while to build up, which puts new drivers at a disadvantage.
• Having another named driver on your policy. If you want another named driver insured to drive your car, you could end up with higher or lower insurance costs. If the other named person on your policy is a responsible driver with a clean driving history, this could bring your costs down. However, if they have a history of poor driving and points on their licence, your costs could be higher.

It can be harder for new drivers to find cheaper car insurance. But there are ways to bring your insurance costs down.

Take an advanced driver’s course

Passing an advanced driving course will demonstrate to insurers that you are a responsible driver who has taken the time to hone their skills. If you don't have much of a driving history, an advanced driving course is a good way to quickly mitigate the perceived risk of inexperience.

The UK government offers a Pass Plus scheme to help drivers improve their motoring skills. Anyone can take a Pass Plus course at any time, but it's particularly helpful for young drivers who have just passed their driving test. Many insurers offer cheaper car insurance for people with a Pass Plus certification.

Add another (experienced) named driver

If you can find a safe and responsible driver to join your car insurance policy, you could save money on your premium. An experienced driver with a clean driving history will lower the perceived risk and could result in a cheaper insurance policy.

Pick PAYG insurance

Pay As You Go (PAYG) insurance is often cheaper than other types of car insurance. Young and new drivers could benefit from PAYG insurance while building up a clean driving history and/or a no-claims bonus.

PAYG insurance does charge a fixed base rate for things like fire, theft, and third-party damage, but after that, you only pay for each mile you drive. If you drive fewer miles than average, you could save a lot of money with PAYG insurance.

Go for black box insurance

Black box insurance (also known as telematics insurance) uses a telematics device or an app to monitor your driving habits. PAYG insurance usually comes with a black box as standard, but you can opt for black box insurance without having to go PAYG.

The advantage of telematics insurance is that it helps to establish you as a safe and responsible driver even if you don't have an extensive driving history. Assuming that you drive sensibly and safely and keep your mileage relatively low, insurers will be able to see your driving behaviour using the black box telematics, and may lower your insurance costs accordingly.

That being said, if you are a high risk driver, black box insurance may not be for you (remember, 'high risk' doesn't necessarily mean you are a bad driver. It could simply mean that you have a high average mileage or a valuable car).

Get a low-risk car

The car you drive makes a big difference to your car insurance. When picking a new car, look for one that's in a low insurance group. Insurance groups run from 1 to 50, with 50 being the most expensive and 1 being the least.

Factors that put a car in a low insurance group include:

• The value of the car. More expensive cars cost more to insure.
• The average cost of repairs. If it's going to be difficult and expensive to source new parts for your car, or if it requires a lot of specialist skills to fix, your insurance is likely to be higher.
• The engine size. If your car has a smaller, less powerful engine, it will be considered a lower insurance risk.
• Safety features. The safer your car is to drive, the cheaper it will be to insure. Look for a car with features like airbags, traction control, and so on.
• Security features. If your car is harder to steal it will be cheaper to insure. Things like steering wheel locks and car alarms can help to bring insurance costs down.

Carefully compare quotes

Every insurer will try to convince you that they have the best premium for you. In order to get a true, objective overview of what's available it's important to carefully compare the quotes available.

Services like Money Expert allow you to compare hundreds of insurers to find the perfect premium for you. Car insurance quotes can differ considerably, so comparison is important to make sure that you're not paying more than you need to.

Build up a no-claims discount

Young driver insurance is often more expensive because you haven't had time to build up a no-claims bonus. Your car insurance will be more cost-effective in the future if you can build up a no-claims streak over multiple years.

Going for a long time without being involved in an accident or making a claim proves to insurers that you are a lower risk. As such, they're likely to offer you lower premiums and maybe even a no-claims bonus in the future.

Pay annually

Monthly payments may seem more affordable but may result in you paying more over time. Interest and service charges are often added to monthly payments, meaning that you may end up paying a higher total than you were expecting.

If you are able, paying your full year's insurance cost in one lump sum may work out cheaper for you in the long run.