How to reduce the cost of
car insurance for teenagers in the UK
Teeneagers are expensive
drivers to insure. Their lack of experience behind the wheel, coupled
with the young person's enjoyment of speed, sensation-seeking and
risk-taking all conspire to push up the premium, especially for the new
teenage driver who will not have been able to build up a no claims
discount.
While there is only so much that you can do to reduce costs, if you
adress all that we list here, you should be able to shave hundreds off
your car insurance for teenagers cover.
Before we start, a word of warning about what not to do. Don't get a
parent to pretend that they are the primary driver if they are not. If
the insurance company detects this - and they like to look for it -
they will not pay out on any claim. Also, don't take out third party
cover in an attempt to save money. It doesn't provide cover for driver
or passenger injuries or losses if you are responsible for the accident
or loss or it is the fault of an uninsured driver.
So what can you do?
It starts with your car. You want a low car insurance group car such as
a Corsa or Clio. Any that is above car insurance group 10 (of the
Thatchem 1-50 rating) will be costly to insure. Clearly, the lower the
car insurance group, the better. It's wise to check the car insurance
group in advance of buying your first car. Even later on when you
already have a car, if you're struggling to find cheap cover, a
trade-in for a more modest car may make sense.
Naturally, it pays to leave out what isn't essential in your cover to
reduce costs. Courtesy car cover, for example, will push up your
premium. For the teenager, a no frills policy tends to be a better
choice given the much higher cost of relatively inclusive policies.
Many young peoeple agree a higher excess too. If you're not planning to
do many lengthy trips during the course of the year, then capping your
annual mileage will help.
Any in and out of car security enhancements are worth considering. Is
there any way you could park off-road or in a garage? You may also be
able to improve on-board security with a Thatchem-approved device.
Sometimes adding an older person (over 25) as a second driver reduces
the premium too. Some young people even train for and pass an advanced
driving test. This renders you safer on the roads and your premium will
reflect this.
How you buy is very improtant too. A price comaprison site is a
powerful way to check out numerous quotes although care is required to
check over the policy schedule before purchase as exceptionally cheap
cover is often a mistake.
The car
insurance supermarket provides all the usual car insurance
buying
options, including Endsleigh, the young driver specialist.
|