Best Car Insurance for Young Drivers
Drivers under 25 have always faced huge car insurance bills due to the higher risk of being in (or causing) an accident. The cost of cover has rocketed by 49% and the average premium for under 25s is now more than $2,000/yr. Yet never assume your renewal is the best deal. Many save $100s following our tried-and-tested cost-cutting tips.
What is young drivers’ insurance?
Your age is one factor that insurers use when working out how much to charge you for car insurance , but it’s not the only thing (see what affects your car insurance quote ). There’s therefore no such thing as ‘young drivers’ insurance’, as Most car insurance policies are open to anyone.However, as many young drivers have little driving experience and will typically face expensive insurance costs, we’ve written this guide with extra tips and tricks to try, such as considering black box insurance.
What types of car insurance can young drivers get?
Like all car insurance, you’ll usually have the choice of three main levels of cover (see more detail in Types of car insurance explained ):Third party only. This covers damage to someone else or their property.Third party, fire and theft. As above, but cover if your car is stolen or catches fire.
Comprehensive or ‘fully comp’. On top of third party, fire and theft, you can also claim the costs of repairing or replacing your own car if you were at fault and caused the accident.
What do I need to get a young driver insurance quote?
Once you know the basics from our top 10 tips for cutting costs, it’s time to follow the steps below.Warning: No matter how tempted you are to say someone else is the main driver, or to pretend you have no points, or to seriously underestimate your mileage to get a cheaper premium – don’t. You must be completely honest or it could invalidate your insurance and even lead to prosecution.
Step 1: Get quotes from multiple comparison sites
Firstly, visit the comparison sites as these zip your details off to a number of insurers’ and brokers’ websites to find the cheapest quotes. As no single site captures the entire market and prices vary, combining a number of sites is the best way to make a saving. It’s best to use all four, but if you don’t have time, we’ve ranked them in order of the sites that most often return the cheapest quotes so you’ve the best chance of bagging the top deal.
Struggling to find (affordable) cover?
If you’ve had a string of claims or accidents, you have a medical condition that affects your driving, or you’ve four or more points on your license, you may find it hard to get an affordable quote from a comparison site. Some may find it hard to get cover at all.If no or few insurers are quoting on the sites above, or premiums are coming back too high, consider enlisting the help of a broker. Search the British Insurance Brokers’ Association website to find someone who can help.
Step 2: Try a specialist telematics policy
Telematics (also referred to as “black/smart box”, “pay-as-you-drive” and “usage based”) is a type of motor insurance policy which prices your premiums depending on how you drive.
This is where you have a device fitted to your car (or download an app to your phone) that monitors your driving – when/where/how you drive, your braking, speed, cornering and how many miles you drive. Of course, the flipside is that high risk driving behavior could cost you more – or even see your policy canceled. So the better you drive, the less you pay.
These types of policies are now commonly available via the comparison sites in step one, and if you’re a careful driver who doesn’t cover many miles and drives during off-peak hours, you could see a reduction in the premium you pay.
How do insurers judge your driving?
It’s not just a case of keeping your hands at ten and two and shifting smoothly up the gears. An insurer will take the following into account when determining if it will reward you for responsible driving.
- The time of day or night you drive (10pm to 5am may cost more)
- Your speed (stick to the limit)
- Gentle braking reactions (hard and sharp stopping is not good)
- Gentle acceleration and cornering is good (don’t treat your local roads like Silverstone)
While your insurer will be following your driving closely, there are relatively few restrictions on when and where you drive.
Step 3: See if you can get cashback on top of the cheapest quote
If you use cashback sites, you’ll know that if you get your car insurance via them they will get a ‘lead fee’ for sending you on to the insurer. Once it gets paid the fee by the insurer, the cashback will either be paid directly to you, though some are now starting to only pay the cashback to a charity.
This is likely to be displayed – alongside the insurance provider – if payment will be to a charity, but do check if you are unsure.
This can beat going to the comparison sites above, but do check your quote through a cashback site isn’t more expensive – and it’s best to think of the cashback as a bonus, rather than 100% guaranteed as sometimes the deal isn’t tracked or the cash paid out. These are the two routes to try…
- Route 1: Use cashback sites’ own comparisons. There’s a version of Confused.com’s comparison when you use cashback site Topcashback, or go via Quidco and it will be a MoneySupermarket version. Should you use either of these cashback sites, you’ ll get $45 cashback if you buy a policy through either of them, though you don’t get the standard Confused or MoneySupermarket perks as these are a rebranded version of its comparison.
Yet as we say above, do keep an eye on the quotes you get, as you may not get exactly the same prices as you would from Confused’s (or MoneySupermarket’s) comparison. We did a sample in MSE Towers for car insurance and nine of 17 people got the same price from both cashback site comparisons as Confused, while three got it cheaper and five found it more costly via the cashback site comparisons.
The easiest way to do it is to look at the quotes you get, then take off $45 from Quidco’s or Topcashback’s cheapest, and see which works out cheapest for you. - Route 2: Find your cheapest insurer then go via a cashback site. Once you know your cheapest insurer, check what cashback you, or the charity, will get going to it direct via Quidco and Topcashback.
But be careful not to let the cashback tail wag the dog. Choose the right insurer first, then look for cashback. Don’t look for the biggest cashback then choose the insurer.
Again, make sure you check the price you’re getting through this route is the same as the prices you found from the comparisons you’ve already done. If it’s more expensive, see if the cashback offsets the rise. If not, go with the quotes you got above.
Step 4: Once you’ve found the cheapest quote, try to haggle a bigger discount with your existing insurer
Haggling is not a must – especially if you want to try a new provider – but if you’re looking to renew with your current insurer it’s well worth contacting it to negotiate.
Once you’ve followed the steps above and got the overall cheapest price, give your insurer a call or use its online chat to see if will beat or match it. Usually it’s as simple as asking, but if you’re not getting any luck , see our Car and home insurance haggling, guide for top tips.
What extras can I get with car insurance?
Many policies will have optional extras, or add-ons, that you can choose to include. Though never just blindly assume it’s a good deal, always compare prices elsewhere before committing.Here are some examples of common extras:
- Courtesy car. This may come as standard, so always check what sort of car you might get, in which scenarios and how long you could have it for. There may then be an optional upgrade to extend this cover if it’s unlikely to suit.
- Breakdown policy. Check the cover carefully as these are often basic policies, so breakdowns at home or onward travel to your destination may not be covered. Upgrades are often possible, but always compare against a cheap standalone car breakdown policy.
- Protected no-claims discount. If you have a car insurance policy for a full year and don’t make a claim, you’ll earn a discount on the following year. This can be valuable so you can choose to protect it, which means you won’t lose it. See what is no-claim bonus protection? for full help.
How to complain about your insurance provider?
The insurance industry doesn’t have the best customer-service reputation and while a provider may be good for some, it can be hell for others. Common problems include claims either not being paid out on time or at all, unfair charges, or exclusions being hidden in small print. It’s always worth trying to call your provider first, but, if not, then…
You can use free complaints tool Resolver. The tool helps you manage your complaint, and if the company doesn’t play ball, it also helps you escalate your complaint to the free Financial Ombudsman Service.