I know this has been discussed before but........

[gavroche]

My grandson passed his driving test last Saturday, first time with just one minor fault. He has a Vauxhall Corsa worth no more than 2000 pounds. He shopped around for insurance since Saturday and the cheapest he could find was 4000 pounds WITH a black box. This is a disgrace!1 Why do they penalise youngsters even before they have the chance to prove their driving skills ? Then, one wonders why so many people drive with no insurance. My grandson is now planing to buy a 3 year old car as the insurance will be cheaper, only by about 500 pounds . We live in a very greedy society and it is not getting better.

 

[PK99]

That's how insurance works. Your grandson is part of a class of driver that represents a significantly greater financial risk.

 

[Kingfisher101]

I think because its that age group that have the most accidents. He can just use public transport until he gets a bit older?

 

[Dirk]

My grandson passed his driving test last Saturday, first time with just one minor fault. He has a Vauxhall Corsa worth no more than 2000 pounds. He shopped around for insurance since Saturday and the cheapest he could find was 4000 pounds WITH a black box. This is a disgrace!1 Why do they penalise youngsters even before they have the chance to prove their driving skills ? Then, one wonders why so many people drive with no insurance. My grandson is now planing to buy a 3 year old car as the insurance will be cheaper, only by about 500 pounds . We live in a very greedy society and it is not getting better.

If he's already got a car, it makes no economic sense to buy a newer car in order to save 500 quid on insurance.
May as well keep the older one and cough up the extra.

 

[ianrauk]

As others have said, youngsters are some of the worst drivers on the road, so he will be paying for others his age indiscretions.

 

[All uphill]

As above the insurance industry responds to risk and employs armies of actuaries to identify those risks.

If the country wanted an insurance industry that gave cheap insurance to young inexperienced drivers that could be done, and would have to be paid for from our taxes.

Maybe the higher rates will give more young people encouragement to live life without a car. Our son passed his driving test twelve years ago and hasn't driven since, building a life around public transport, cycling and walking.

Driving is not a human right.

 

[Kingfisher101]

Would it be cheaper if one of his parents were down as the main driver/owner of the car and then put him on their insurance as an extra?

 

[DCLane]

It'll be a combination of age, postcode, student/job and the type of car he's driving.

Son no. 2 has my old Pug Tepee; 1.6 petrol, no frills. Comprehensive insurance without a black box was £1400 for him as a 17 year-old A-level student studying History (and Politics / Maths / Geography).

 

[Electric_Andy]

Would it be cheaper if one of his parents were down as the main driver/owner of the car and then put him on their insurance as an extra?

You can't do that anymore, if the son will be using it often then this is known as "fronting". It's essentially lying to the insurance company

 

[glasgowcyclist]

He’d be better off signing up to a car club like CoWheels or Enterprise. Car use at a fraction of his current costs.

 

[glasgowcyclist]

You can't do that anymore, if the son will be using it often then this is known as "fronting". It's essentially lying to the insurance company

True, but there can still be a lower premium for adding a named driver.

 

[Kingfisher101]

You can't do that anymore, if the son will be using it often then this is known as "fronting". It's essentially lying to the insurance company

Yes but how would they know? theres worse things going on in the world.

 

[oldwheels]

Would it be cheaper if one of his parents were down as the main driver/owner of the car and then put him on their insurance as an extra?

No as he would still have to be declared as main driver. They could do that but if there is a claim the manipulation of truth would come out and then big trouble.
We were lucky as insurance was a burden but bearable when ours started driving.

 

[Electric_Andy]

My grandson passed his driving test last Saturday, first time with just one minor fault. He has a Vauxhall Corsa worth no more than 2000 pounds. He shopped around for insurance since Saturday and the cheapest he could find was 4000 pounds WITH a black box. This is a disgrace!1 Why do they penalise youngsters even before they have the chance to prove their driving skills ? Then, one wonders why so many people drive with no insurance. My grandson is now planing to buy a 3 year old car as the insurance will be cheaper, only by about 500 pounds . We live in a very greedy society and it is not getting better.

I've always said to shop for insurance first and to choose a car that returns the lowest premium. If you buy the car first, and it's a popular model that's claimed against a lot, like a saxo, Fiesta, corsa etc, then you're already stuck in a higher bracket and can do little to lower it

 

[glasgowcyclist]

Yes but how would they know? theres worse things going on in the world.

It’s a stupid risk to take.

Fronting is something that insurance companies are vigilant about. It’s also fraud, so you could end up with a criminal conviction, affecting possibly your current job and any future job that needs a CRB check.

At the very least the policy will be void, you’ll lose the premium AND you’ll be responsible for your repair costs if you’ve had a collision. Oh, there’s 6 points on your licence, a fine and the potential for jail too.

And good luck getting any insurance after that.