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We have seen in the previous pages ample evidence that
young drivers represent an enormous risk to car insurance companies
because their accident rate, for various reasons, tends to be far higher
than those for other age groups. As a result it can prove very difficult
for youngsters who are driving soon after passing their driving tests to
get proper car insurance cover for anything other than premiums which seem
absolutely extortionate. The fact is however that insurers have to work
with statistical figures and so every youngster has to be looked upon as
being just as likely to have a smash as any other. If you are in this
position and your insurance quote looks absolutely crippling there are a
few things that you can do to bring it down, however, and some of them can
reduce your premiums very substantially.
Insurance premiums crippling
you? try here for the
cheapest young drivers insurance
The first thing to do is to avoid the very understandable urge to buy a
flashy fast set of wheels! The bigger the engine, the more the power, the
higher the insurance quotes will be and you will get far better value if
you have a car with a small engine which could be replaced if necessary at
little cost. This is of course not as easy to do in practice as it is in
theory; since small cars are so economical to run compared with large ones
they tend to be more expensive to buy second-hand but when you work out
the fact that they will not only save you a small fortune in insurance
premiums but there will also cost far less to fill up with petrol as well
has cost far less for servicing, new tyres and brakes, etc etc. If you are
buying a car from new it is a no-brainer; a small cheap runabout is far
and away the best option.
Taking the car out at night can be very tempting but the awful lot of
nights out involved a bit of booze; it can be far cheaper to leave the
motor at home and take a cab or even, heaven forbid, public transport
rather than risk your driving licence or perhaps even your life by driving
after a jar or two.
Insurance companies like to deal with people they consider to be a little
more responsible than the rest so it would not be a bad idea at all to
take a pass plus course; this is an additional set of driving lessons
which are designed for people who have just passed their driving tests but
who would benefit from extra tuition in real life driving, which can be an
entirely different from tootling around the safer parts of town with a
competent instructor in the passenger seat. Most major insurers will give
substantial discounts to customers who can show that they have
successfully completed one of these extra driving courses.
Modified cars are bad news as far as insurance companies are concerned;
ignore the somewhat illogical urge that some people seem to have to fit
new suspension systems, upgraded exhausts, fancy wheel arches and all the
rest of the toys; they not only reduce the resale value of a car but could
shove the insurance premiums up through the roof as well.
Some insurance companies will give you additional discounts if you agree
to keep your driving mileage below certain levels, or agree to pay a more
substantial policy excess in the event of a claim. If your basic insurance
premium is extremely high reducing it by just a few per cent could still
result in substantial savings.
Finally, try very hard indeed to resist the urge to put your right foot
down and show off either to others or yourself! If you think that the
insurance premiums you have to pay now are excessive, just wait and see
what they will be when you have to own up to having had a claim against
you or a conviction. And don't for goodness sake think that you can pull
the wool over the eyes of the insurers and fail to inform them of these;
they know about them just as soon as you do and if you attempt to deceive
them in any way the consequences could be catastrophic and you could find
yourself unable to get any insurance at all, at any price. Drive
carefully! |