Affordable car insurance for 25 year old drivers
By the time you reach 25, you may have a few years' driving experience under your belt and be starting to see your car insurance costs fall.Car insurance for 25 year olds is generally cheaper than it is for those in their teens or early twenties, especially if they've managed to build up a few years' worth of No Claims Discount, but premiums can still be significant.
Twenty five is an age where you may be starting to think about saving for the future, so it makes sense to shop around for your car insurance to make sure you're getting the best deal. MoneySupermarket's car insurance comparison tool can help you to find cheap quotes on the cover you need.
Why car insurance for 25 year old drivers is expensive
The cost of your car insurance is a reflection of how likely the insurer thinks you are to make a claim. The level of risk you pose is determined by a number of factors, not least your age and experience.Though statistics show drivers aged 25 are less likely to be involved in an accident than a 17 year old driver, they're still more likely to make a claim than older, more experienced drivers. Insurers weight car insurance premiums according to statistics like this.
Inevitably, this means younger, less experienced drivers are penalised with higher premiums.
But it's not just young drivers being squeezed by the cost of car insurance as it is relatively expensive across the board. There are also factors which continue to inflate the cost of cover for all age groups.
A rise in the number of personal injury claims in recent years, including fraudulent claims where someone falsely claims for whiplash or other injuries following a crash are pushing up everyone's premiums.
Car insurance is a legal requirement in the UK, but some drivers continue to flout the law by driving uninsured. The Association of British Insurers estimates that this illegal activity adds around £40 a year to the average premium, but new regulations which came into force this year aim to deal with the problem.
New car insurance rules
The new Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE) regulations mean that unless your vehicle is registered as off the road with a SORN declaration, it must be insured.As the Motor Insurers' Bureau (MIB) and the DVLA are working together to clamp down on uninsured vehicles by comparing DVLA records against the Motor Insurance database, you should be careful not to get caught out.
Anyone who breaches the new regulations will get an initial warning, followed by a fixed penalty of £100 if they do not comply with the warning's advice. Worse still, if the driver does not take action, their vehicle can be clamped, seized and disposed of and a court prosecution with a maximum fine of £1,000 can be imposed.
The ECJ's 'gender ruling'
Traditionally, there's always been a difference in prices for men and women, but a new ruling will put an end to this in 2012. A ruling by the European Court of Justice in 2011 means that as of December 2012, insurers won't be able to charge drivers different amounts for cover based on whether they are male or female.
It remains to be seen how much of an effect the ruling has, but estimates say that car insurance for women will rise by up to 30%, and fall by around 10% for men.
Get cheap car insurance for 25 year old drivers
MoneySupermarket data consistently shows that drivers can save money on their car insurance by shopping around for cheapest quotes. Beyond comparing prices, there are still some other things you can do to reduce your costs.For instance, adding an older, more experienced driver to the policy as a named driver can help to lower your premium because in theory, it cuts the amount of time you'll spend behind the wheel.
You must not be tempted to add them as the main driver and yourself as a named driver to get a cheap quote though. This is called 'fronting', is illegal and can invalidate your insurance if discovered.
Increasing your excess can lower your premiums, but you must set it to amount you'll genuinely be able to afford in the event of a claim.
Safe and conscientious driving is one of the best ways to keep premiums down, as it'll earn you a No Claims Discount (NCD). Eventually, an NCD can cut your premiums by as much as 60%, so it's well worth taking your time and taking care behind the wheel.
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