Car insurance

‘They quoted £7,000-£8,000’: young drivers face huge car insurance rises.

 

average price of car insurance for motorists aged 18 is now more than £3,000 for the first time, this traditional rite of passage is becoming unaffordable.

Premiums are going up for drivers of all ages – the average annual cost of insurance is now at a record high of close to £1,000 – but drivers aged 17-20 are bearing the brunt of the increases. Their premiums have increased more than £1,000 year on year, according to the comparison website Confused.com.

Quotes of £7,000-£8,000

The cost of cover is a wake-up call for teenagers who thought passing their test would be the biggest obstacle they faced to getting on the road. Lancashire-based Charlie Michael Baker, for example, was over the moon when he passed his test this month and was looking forward to driving his first car, a secondhand Kia.

The 17-year-old, who has 1 million online followers after gaining attention with his memoir about autism, has more money than his peers because of the payments he receives for social media posts. However, he balked at quotes of £7,000-£8,000 to cover the car he had bought for just over £4,000. “I passed my test two weeks ago now and I am still unable to drive my car,” says Baker, who is still weighing up his options. “I didn’t think the insurance would be a horrendous amount but it turned out it was. I can afford it because I do Instagram as a job but most 17-year-olds are not going to be able to, are they?”

Louise Thomas, a motor expert at Confused.com, says younger drivers are seeing some of the biggest increases in costs. The website analysed the price of standalone policies for young drivers using their own cars.

“For 17-year-olds, average prices are now £2,877, after a 98% (£1,423) increase. But it’s 18-year-old drivers who are taking the biggest financial hit,” she says. “Premiums are now 84% (£1,447) more expensive, with average costs now £3,162.”

The prices are all for fully comprehensive insurance, which is now typically cheaper than taking out a third-party policy.

When confronted with figures such as this, the system appears rigged against teenage drivers but, unfortunately, there is a lot of evidence suggesting that younger and less experienced drivers carry a higher risk.