Choosing the right car insurance first time for young drivers

I have a learner driver in the house so am gathering information about insurance.

I have contacted some industry resources to see what they have to say. You’ve probably heard about a black box, so I got the guys at insurethebox, who make the black boxes, to give me their thoughts and this is what they have to say:

So you’ve passed your test and bought a new car. Well, maybe it’s not new, new, but it’s your first car and you’re ready to hit the road. Not so fast! Now it’s time to choose your car insurance. It’s tempting to just go for the cheapest, but that’s not always the best option.

New drivers are three times more likely to crash in the first three months of their policy, compared to the final three months*. This should be pause for thought. Armed with these great tips, you can choose the right insurance cover and maybe even reduce your premium over time.

Choose a level of cover that suits your needs

Make sure you have insurance that covers your car, your passengers as well as damage to anyone else’s car – go for fully comprehensive cover. If your car is written-off in an accident, you won’t get a payout to buy a new car otherwise.

Consider telematics to cut your premium

Driving safely means you are less likely to be involved in an accident. Using black box technology, such as insurethebox, allows you to monitor and moderate you’re driving behaviour to earn rewards and impact your premium at renewal.

Look for ways to reduce your risk

The car you drive makes a big difference to your insurance costs, so choose a car in a low insurance group. Unfortunately, powerful engines and customisations, such as alloy wheels often come with a higher insurance premium or limit which insurers that may quote you. Expensive cars are usually expensive to repair, which may impact your premium, so think twice before buying the dream car.

 Shop around

Don’t just pick the cheapest. Get some quotes and compare the cover, as well as the cost.

A driver’s first year after passing their test is a vital time to create safe driving habits. Choosing the right insurance cover can also help. Traditional motor insurers use a generic risk rating, but telematics monitors how an individual actually drives. insurethebox, a winner in the 2019 FirstCar Young Driver Road Safety Awards, uses telematics technology to help young motorists monitor their driving and earn rewards for good driving.

A personal online portal helps insurethebox drivers learn what will make them safer on the road, as well as alerting them to the bad driving habits to avoid. In addition, the black box can sense a strong impact to the car, sending out an alert, so that a service agent can try to call and check everything’s okay.

Research from insurethebox shows that young drivers are 30% more likely to have an accident if they speed on country roads**. Crucially, a quarter of serious fatal accidents happen on rural roads, regardless of driver experience***. This is due to country roads having higher speed limits, tighter bends and narrower lanes, making them challenging, especially for the youngest drivers.

The pocket-size black box fitted in the car free of charge**** works out how safely the customer is driving, analysing things like their speed, the time of day and roads they drive on as well as how they accelerate or brake. By driving smoothly and under the speed limit, drivers can earn up to 100 Bonus Miles per month, which can also help bring down the cost of their premium at renewal.

Crucially, insurethebox helps drivers stay safe and improve road safety for everyone.

*Analysis of insurethebox driving data for policies starting in June 2016 – May 2017.

**Analysis of insurethebox driving data: speeders are defined as drivers who break the speed limit on country roads at least 2.5% of the time.

***Analysis of insurethebox driving data: a serious accident is defined as one resulting in a claim of £100,000 or more.

****Unless the customer’s policy is cancelled and a black box has already been fitted.