21 replies to this topic

[callumsfirstcar]

hey, im 17 and have a 1275cc mini (1996) and just wondering if anyone could tell me what they pay for insurence ?

thanks cal:)

[Carlos W]

hey, im 17 and have a 1275cc mini (1996) and just wondering if anyone could tell me what they pay for insurence ?

thanks cal:)

Lots!

I heard a thing on the radio the other day about insurance prices going up by as much as 50% in the past 12 months, and 17-22 year old males are in the worst category!

the best thing to do is get some quotes, see if it's worth while doing the pass plus scheme, and whether insuring a parent as a second driver makes any difference (my dad is a named driver on my policy and makes it slightly cheaper) Don't fall foul of the law and think that insuring them as the main driver and you as second driver is worth while, if it all goes wrong you're stuffed!

Edited by Carlos W, 14 October 2010 - 01:03 PM.

[Topaz]

From what I have been able to sort out for my son, they will base the premium on your age first and so at 17 with no experience you are going to pay a high premium regardless of the type of car you drive. Carlos is correct in trying to see if 'PassPlus' makes a difference and take note of his warning about putting the policy in your parents name if they will not be the main driver.

A lot of the so called 'classic car' policies will only give reasonable discounts on vehicles over 20 years old and so you might not get that benefit. The difficulty in trying to compare quotes with others on here is that every person has different circumstances. There is another topic which I think lists 7 different rates based on post code so you could be in a high (or low) risk area. The valuation of the car makes a difference, as does mileage, modifications, occupation, alarm fitted, parked on street, drive or garage - so many variables that the only way to find out is to do the work yourself and pick up the phone to some of the companies that advertise in Mini World or Mini Magazine.

As Carlos mentions, it has been on the news that all premiums have gone up - my renewal with Footman James went up 30% from £100 to £130.

All of my children found that Direct Line were cheaper that all the comparison sites - this was a few years ago with Escort, Corsa and Fiesta but as I said earlier most of them work on age first and the type of car doesn't actually make that much difference.

Good Luck

Mike

[Carlos W]

The other alternative is see if Admarals multi car policy is any cheaper if there are a few vehicles in the household!

[Jacko-lah]

Don't fall foul of the law and think that insuring them as the main driver and you as second driver is worth while, if it all goes wrong you're stuffed!

Unless, the car was paid for by your dad, his name is on the V5, and he happens to be the main driver and being a nice dad, wants to let you use it, occassionally.

That's not Illegal, it's not immoral, but if insurance companies were shall we say 'fairer' to young drivers, then maybe there would be no need for the issue to arise.

Anyway how do you define main and second driver?

Is it the number of trips, the miles, the person who services it? If I'm the main driver on MY mini, and my wife and son are named drivers, and my wife uses it every day to visit her mum a mile away, take the dog to the beach, and go shopping, doing up to 14 journeys a week, but less than 18 miles. If my son is allowed to drive it to school on a Friday, and to work on a saturday, doing perhaps 4 jouneys and 20 miles, but I use it once a month to drive to the yorkshire dales for a pub lunch, and do maybe 90 miles in that day, who is the main driver ? We are all using it for the about the same distance.

According to Adrian Flux. They won't insure us. Simple.
According to Footman James, it's NOT a problem, I'm the named driver because my names on the V5 and it's on a classic policy because it's my second car.

[Carlos W]

Don't fall foul of the law and think that insuring them as the main driver and you as second driver is worth while, if it all goes wrong you're stuffed!

Unless, the car was paid for by your dad, his name is on the V5, and he happens to be the main driver and being a nice dad, wants to let you use it, occassionally.

That's not Illegal, it's not immoral, but if insurance companies were shall we say 'fairer' to young drivers, then maybe there would be no need for the issue to arise.

Anyway how do you define main and second driver?

Is it the number of trips, the miles, the person who services it? If I'm the main driver on MY mini, and my wife and son are named drivers, and my wife uses it every day to visit her mum a mile away, take the dog to the beach, and go shopping, doing up to 14 journeys a week, but less than 18 miles. If my son is allowed to drive it to school on a Friday, and to work on a saturday, doing perhaps 4 jouneys and 20 miles, but I use it once a month to drive to the yorkshire dales for a pub lunch, and do maybe 90 miles in that day, who is the main driver ? We are all using it for the about the same distance.

According to Adrian Flux. They won't insure us. Simple.
According to Footman James, it's NOT a problem, I'm the named driver because my names on the V5 and it's on a classic policy because it's my second car.

All I know is, it was mentioned on the news a couple of months back, that you could fall foul of the law, and your insurance be invalidated!

[Jacko-lah]

All of my children found that Direct Line were cheaper that all the comparison sites - this was a few years ago with Escort, Corsa and Fiesta but as I said earlier most of them work on age first and the type of car doesn't actually make that much difference.

Good Luck

Mike

This is still true that direct line is cheapest. Confuse the arse off the market is actually a con. It's one insurance company with lots of brands. Like buying washing powder. There are only 2 manufacturers of washing powder, so there was 50% chance you'd buy the product. So one of the manufacturers brings in another brand, and now theres 66 % chance you'll buy one of his.

Recently I compared a number of different cars for quotes in my name with my 17 year old son and my wife as named drivers, with an L37 postcode, with my full protected no claims

Group 12 Volvo S40 122 Bhp beast with 6 airbags (Just the sort of car you want your precious ones driving) £3500
Group 8 Cavalier 92 bhp 8V 1.8 mk3 with no airbags (In the family from new) £2250
Group 1 12V 996 cc Corsa W reg £1998
Group 1 Inbetweeners Cinquecento slow £1575 (As in NOT the group 3 sporting)
Group 2 998 Mini £1275

So I think the car is VERY important. I'm guessing that the Corsa is expensive because it appeals to youngsters because they can make it look a bit like a GSi, and some of them fit bigger engines and fail to tell anyone, and to be honest in most claims the insurance assessor never opens the bonnet. (usually he can't)

[Jacko-lah]

Don't fall foul of the law and think that insuring them as the main driver and you as second driver is worth while, if it all goes wrong you're stuffed!

Unless, the car was paid for by your dad, his name is on the V5, and he happens to be the main driver and being a nice dad, wants to let you use it, occassionally.

That's not Illegal, it's not immoral, but if insurance companies were shall we say 'fairer' to young drivers, then maybe there would be no need for the issue to arise.

Anyway how do you define main and second driver?

Is it the number of trips, the miles, the person who services it? If I'm the main driver on MY mini, and my wife and son are named drivers, and my wife uses it every day to visit her mum a mile away, take the dog to the beach, and go shopping, doing up to 14 journeys a week, but less than 18 miles. If my son is allowed to drive it to school on a Friday, and to work on a saturday, doing perhaps 4 jouneys and 20 miles, but I use it once a month to drive to the yorkshire dales for a pub lunch, and do maybe 90 miles in that day, who is the main driver ? We are all using it for the about the same distance.

According to Adrian Flux. They won't insure us. Simple.
According to Footman James, it's NOT a problem, I'm the named driver because my names on the V5 and it's on a classic policy because it's my second car.

All I know is, it was mentioned on the news a couple of months back, that you could fall foul of the law, and your insurance be invalidated!

How much is propoganda and how much is true? The BBC will jump at a news story like that, as they love to do down youngsters.


If you really are the main driver and there's clear evidence then I'm sure the Large faceless Insurance companies would happily wriggle out of paying a claim.

Evidence like : Posting on the internet forum, what modifications you are doing to YOUR car.
Telling your mates it's your car, posting about how to obtain insurance on your car.

Let me state once and for all so that it's CLEAR in the event that MY insurance company want to try and screw me, It's my MINI, NOT my son's. If I put him on the insurance when he passed his test, it's because YOU won't insure him on the MX5, and the Cavalier is too bloody expensive, (and the Volvo has been scrapped as the gearbox went)

[Carlos W]

If you put him on the insurance when he passes his test he's a very lucky lad!

[AVV IT]

Anyway how do you define main and second driver?

Insurers do not seem to be defining this in terms of driver hours or miles. After all, unless they were to fit some kind of tachograph type device for recording the individual driver miles/hours fitted in each car, then it would be pretty much impossible to technically distinguish one driver from another in that way.

However I understand that the insurance industry are declaring policies to be "fronted" and therefore fraudulent, where the actual main driver is quite obviously not the person who has been declared as such. Basically this is when the circumstances surrounding a policy or claim are particularly suspicious. For example a middle aged parent purchases a small, lowish powered & older second car for themselves and also insures their 17 year old daughter who has just passed their test as an additional driver at the same time !! or.... The registered keeper of a newly purchased car is then transferred from teenage son/daughter to a parent shortly before the policy is taken out. or...... When a claim is made for such a car by the additional driver son/daughter for an accident that occurs at a university address during term time. or........ an insurance inspection reveals that a car that is owned by a middle aged woman with her son as an occasional driver, has what appear to be stereotypically teenage modifications and accessories.. (i.e would a middle aged mother really have tinted window film, uprated aftermarket stereo, with separate amp and a massive sub in the boot??)

[Carlos W]

Your examples are very good AVV IT!

I made the comment as a word of warning, I'm not trying to say the insuracne companies are right or wrong, and I have no idea how they're going to enforce it! But insurance companies will do what they can to avoid a pay out!

[AVV IT]

I have no idea how they're going to enforce it! But insurance companies will do what they can to avoid a pay out!

Yes I agree!!! I think they will do pretty much as they do already, i.e. they will happily take your cash/premium each year with very few questions asked, but then when it comes to a claim they will claw over your car, the policy details, and the circumstances with a fine tooth comb in order to find any possible way of getting out of the claim!!

[Carlos W]

And, I actually think that the cost of insurance is very counterproductive, insurance is too expensive, so some people don't buy it, they have crashes, which pushes up the price of insurance more!

It's a viscious Circle!

And I'm sorry, this thread has gone completely off the original topic!

Good luck Callum, I hope you can find reasonably priced cover! Look at terms and conditions like excesses etc (Your premium may come down if you agree to pay a higher excess in the event of a claim)

Ring everyone, use price comparison sites, go to big and small companies etc etc!

[RobFox]

Im 17 on my own policy with my dad as the second driver living in a BS48 postcode with a 1275 cooper ( extra alarm fitted and locked in garage ). I paid about £2200 (includes me before I passed my test + EU cover + agreed evaluation.)

One of my friends who lives around the corner but has a 998cc, same age etc paid £1800.

Another friend who has a 1275 cooper ( same age as mine ), 17 etc but lives 16miles from me is paying about £1800.


Hope that helps

P.S, for those who think that is expensive, it is but for any other car I tried it was £3000 minimum !!

[callumsfirstcar]

thanks guys:)

ill have to phone up and get some quotes myself then:)

i hope its not to high, utherwise i may have to change car, maybe a 1L arosa would be cheaper for me!