I was shocked to hear that recent research has found that a 17 year old new Driver can expect to pay 2841 on average for Car Insurance. This figure absolutely astounds me!
Now although I am the Tightest Man in Britain, I understand the need for Car transport in today's world and the particular desire of a 17 year old to gain the independence and freedom that having a car can give.
However what I really don't understand is the rush to go out and get a "Boy racer" car. A Boy racer is a male in his late teens, who drives his car in an intimidating or dangerous way for fun. Classic signs of being a boy racer are: blacked out windows; lowered suspension; extra large exhaust; sound system that is worth more than the car; under car lighting. In general if you car has been souped-up or modified in any of these methods then you are in danger of being branded a boy racer. To me Boy racers deserve to be taxed off the road via high insurance premiums - they are a menace.
If, on the other hand, you are a well-behaved, sensible 17 year old then keep your insurance premium down by picking a sensible, small car - without the boy-racerisms! A quick search on autotrader.co.uk brings up 80 used cars available within 20 miles of my house which are asking less than 2000 and have a 1 to 1.3l engine. The makes of the cars are broadly:
-Renault Clio
-Vauxhall Corsa
-Fiat Punto
-Ford Ka
-Etc
My advice in order to get around this tricky situation would be to:
Follow the same rule I apply to houses - pick the cheapest car you will be happy with. Never pay more than 1000 for your first car.
Take out all the extras on your insurance. Get Third party only. Knock off any protection premium. Ramp the excess up to the max.
Makes sure you have no accidents whatsoever. Drive like a granny for a few years!
Build up your No Claims bonus.
Wait a while. Use Dad's taxi for as long as possible. By waiting a couple of years until you get behind the wheel you can save money on your car insurance without actually doing anything.
By doing the above, annual premiums should come down to around 1300 rather than the 2800 mentioned above. Following this advice and building up a NCD should leads to premiums of just 30 a month within 3 years. Once again, use common sense and everything will fall naturally into place.
