Car Insurance

Jewelz^ · November 07, 2010, 03:27:56 PM

Ok, so im at that time where I am in need of car, I havent passed my test yet so I still have some time, although it is booked and I should pass first time.
Finding a car is easy enough the hard bit it getting reasonable insurance for it. The cheapest i have found for a 17 year old male with no no claims bonus is Ã,Â£2700 which is ridiculous for a 988cc Citreon C1. (An insurance group 1 car!)
Everywhere I look im getting quotes for Ã,Â£3/4k, if someone knows somewhere for cheap car insurance or knows a car that is cheap to insure please let me know.

Car Budget: Ã,Â£3000 maybe a tad more
Insurance Budget: Ã,Â£2000

Thanks in advance

Gorion · November 07, 2010, 03:31:36 PM

We have a "trick" in Malta.

Basically, you register the car and insurance under your parents name, then they add your name to the "can be driven by" list.

I have no idea if this sort of "loophole" exists in the UK though; so you'll have to check.

But honestly, with those kind of prices I'd prefer buying a scooter or using a bus instead of paying those asses that kind of money.

Benny · November 07, 2010, 03:41:11 PM

That 'loophole' exists, but I wouldn't advise it. If you get caught, you'll get pulled in and your insurance will be void.

My 17 year pays Ã,Â£2400 for a Ã,Â£1k 1.6 Astra. There is no cheap easy way. Buy a crap car, small engine (1.0, <Ã,Â£1k) and suck it up for a year or 2.

Gorion · November 07, 2010, 03:46:35 PM

Quote from: Benny;319192That 'loophole' exists, but I wouldn't advise it. If you get caught, you'll get pulled in and your insurance will be void.

Benny, how can the insurance be void if you are on the drivers list of that car?

The car would be insured and you are legally allowed to drive it.

smilodon · November 07, 2010, 04:51:03 PM

My god that's a huge premium! It makes my Ã,Â£300 fully comp seem like a drop in the ocean. Am I really ten times less likely to have an accident in my car than you are? Sounds unlikely. I suppose the only thing you can do is buy a cheap car and insure it 3rd party only until you build up a few years NCB as suggested.

I'm not sure about Benny's comments. It would depend on the wording of the policy. If it made no requirement that the main insured person drove a certain percentage of the miles then I guess it would be OK. However I think Benny's right as I cannot imagine the insurance companies would have left such a big hole in their policies. I think most insurance companies have a no under 21 or 25 policy when it comes to named drivers? Could be wrong.

Use a throw away e-mail address and get quotes from those price comparison sites, just never give them a real e-mail address as I believe they tend to spam the crap out of you as soon as you get a quote.

GhostMjr · November 07, 2010, 05:16:52 PM

Have you tried with your parents as named drivers on the policy?

Pass plus reduces the premium so do that straight after your test!

I paid around Ã,Â£1500 for my first policy.

Definitely build up your own no claims with your own policy though with your parents as named drivers.

If you go as a named driver on there's you will have to pay this sort of premium eventually anyway when you have your own so you may as well do it now!

Gorion · November 07, 2010, 05:48:09 PM

How does the no claim system work in the UK. Does the car build up the bonus or the driver?

When I added my name on my dad's van, we had to pay a bit extra and we still benefited from the no claim on the van.

Basically, what I'm saying is try to use your parents no claim until you're 25-26 then the cost of insuring goes down drastically. Then you can start building your own.

I used to pay around 350-400 sterling for a fully comp insurance with a 60% ncb @ 19yrs. Now it's around 300-350 ish euros afaik.

Jewelz^ · November 07, 2010, 06:06:14 PM

Quote from: smilodon;319196Use a throw away e-mail address and get quotes from those price comparison sites, just never give them a real e-mail address as I believe they tend to spam the crap out of you as soon as you get a quote.

33 E-mails today.

Also, tried putting my mum as the named driver and me as a +1 still came out roughly the same, I think the insurance companies have cottonened on to these "loop holes" i'll try another site

Edit: Does anyone know a cheap car to insure?

Benny · November 07, 2010, 06:24:44 PM

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/insurance/car/article.html?in_article_id=424629&in_page_id=35

and numerous other references, but don't take my word for it. Try it.

Quote from: Gorion;319194Benny, how can the insurance be void if you are on the drivers list of that car?

The car would be insured and you are legally allowed to drive it.

Jewelz^ · November 07, 2010, 06:36:04 PM

This pretty much sums up how my insurance hunt is going.

1.2L Fiat Punto (Which google says is one of the cheapest cars to insure)

Lameduck · November 07, 2010, 07:29:09 PM

I cant imagine that a years taxi fares would any where near the prices quoted.
Good luck Jewelzy.
And here I am moaning that LV want to charge me Ã,Â£165.10 for fully comp

Tutonic · November 07, 2010, 07:34:05 PM

Ouch.

I didn't start driving until I was 21, and still got stung for Ã,Â£1600.

I know a few people who had 1ltr Nissan Micra's as their first car, so they might be worth a look.

Gorion · November 07, 2010, 09:38:16 PM

6.2k per annum?

That's simply insane, don't pay anything over 1k. Robbery straight in the face.

@Benny, I wouldn't believe anything written by an insurance advert.

Check the article of the law.

Common sense would be that if a person is insured then it's insured; since to be insured the insurance will ask for the allowed drivers ID/license they will know the age. Ergo, they would have accepted the "fronting" and agreed to a contract.

Edit: Googled fronting and an article came up with something interesting:

"The only problem here is that you are not supposed to really do that. Why? Because the car is in your name and you will be using the car most of the time"

So, what happens if the car and insurance are in your parents name and you are added as an additional driver?
Also, how will they know whether you use the car most of the time or not?

TeaLeaf · November 07, 2010, 10:00:18 PM

Gorion, where the loophole trips up is that for the insurance to be in the name of a parent then they have to be the main driver. If the main driver is the child then there's your problem and the insurance is nul and void. It's fraud.

Benny · November 07, 2010, 10:05:40 PM

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10241769
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/moneybox/7052569.stm

Truth is, it makes not the slightest difference to me. Front away if you feel inclined. As a parent the idea of my son hitting someone else and potentially injuring someone and not having insurance worries me.

I've had three accidents in over 15 years of driving, all three before I was 21. (I'm not counting the driving into my garden gate to open it because it was raining).

The risk is yours to take, you could happily get away with it. You could end up with 6 points and a higher premium. You pays your money, you takes your choice.

I'm not an insurance salesman, I'm also not a lawyer, but given that most parents have their own car you can take a rough stab at how long it would stand up....

"You state that you are the main driver of this car and your son borrows it"
"Yes"
"Then what's this other car?"
"Um.....that's my...er.....weekend car?"