Staveley Head: Young Drivers Give Insurance Companies a Headache

Drivers under 21 are frequently horrified by the huge premiums quoted by insurance companies when they buy their first car. A 17 year old male driver will pay up to nine times more than a 25 year old to insure a similar car, in the same post code area; and fourteen times more than a 35 year old. The reasoning behind these huge premiums levied on young drivers is easily explained. Drivers under 21 years of age have far more accidents than their more experienced elders.

One in five new drivers will be involved in an accident within six months of passing their test. Drivers under 21 are twice as likely to be involved in an accident as those over 21, five times as likely to have a claim involving personal injury and ten times more likely to be the cause of a serious injury claim.

A spokesman for Staveley Head, one of the UK's leading motor trade insurance providers said "These premiums are not arrived at arbitrarily. Insurance companies employ highly qualified actuaries and provide them with sophisticated software programmes to enable them to analyse all the risks they put on cover, according to age, area, vehicle, driving experience, occupation or any combination of those and many other considerations. An obvious result of analysing these statistics is the fact that 17 year old female drivers are involved in proportionately fewer accidents, and cost insurers a third less in claims than 17 year old male drivers. Consequently, a 17 year old female pays a third less for her car insurance than the equivalent 17 year old male."

The Staveley Head spokesman went on to say "I appreciate some young drivers are more responsible than others, but it's difficult to differentiate between them by examining a proposal form, and an impossible task to interview each candidate individually. Some insurers do make allowance and apply a discount of up to 35% for young drivers who have successfully completed the Driving Standards Agency Pass Plus test."

In addition to the Pass Plus course the AA offers a Drive Smart assessment for newly qualified drivers, as part of their Charitable Trust for Road Safety initiative. It's available, free of charge, to anyone who has passed their test in the last twelve months.

Staveley Head is one of the country's leading motortrade insurance brokers and will give you all the advice and assistance you need regarding this matter, including an insurance quote, if you log on to their website at www.staveleyhead.co.uk

For more information on any aspect of motor traders insurance, or to enquire about cheap motor trade insurance, contact Staveley Head.

Contacts: Staveley Head Ashley Peters 0845 017 9991 quotes@staveleyhead.co.uk www.staveleyhead.co.uk

SOURCE: Staveley Head