Best car insurance for young drivers in the UK right now

Top pick for

A wide choice of cover options

Hastings Direct Standard

Top pick for

Cheaper rates

LV= Comprehensive

Top pick for

Driver benefits

Ingenie Black box

Top pick for

Black Box

Churchill

Best overall provider for younger drivers

Customer satisfaction: 4/5

★★★★★

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Finder's pick: Hastings Direct car insurance

Optional breakdown cover

Multi-car discount

24/7 claims helpline

• Why it's best
• Pros and cons
• Details

This insurer offers a range of affordable policies especially for 17- to 25-year-olds. On top of that, it offers black box insurance discounts for multi-car policies. There’s a range of add-ons including breakdown cover and car key insurance, making it easy to tailor your policy to suit your needs.

• Windscreen and windows glass cover included as standard in the Direct and Premier comprehensive policies.
• Hastings Direct has Multi-car and Telematix cover options and cover is available to new and young drivers.
• The claims team is available 24/7.

• There isn’t a lot of information about the third party, third party, fire and theft or the Essential comprehensive policies available prior to quote stage.
• The Hastings Direct website is not easy to navigate.

Roadside assistance	Optional extra
EU Coverage	Yes
No claims protection	Optional
Multi-car-discount	Yes
Courtesy Car	Yes
Claims Methods	Online or phone
Personal Accident Protection	Up to £1000

Best provider for cheaper rates

Customer satisfaction: 4.5/5

★★★★★

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Finder's pick: LV car insurance

Discounts for new customers

24/7 claims helpline

Multi-car discount

• Why it's best
• Pros and cons
• Details

We ran quotes for a range of different age groups and found that LV= tended to offer competitive insurance quotes across the board. This insurer also offers multi-car discounts (up to 20% on an additional vehicle), plus you can typically lower your premium by adding a voluntary excess. LV= also covers European use, damage by uninsured drivers, vandalism and accidental damage as standard with its over-50s policies. Insurance prices have generally been falling during the pandemic as people have driven less, so it's always worth shopping around.

• Offers a range of car insurance policies for standard, classic and electric cars.
• Multi-vehicle insurance available.
• A range of optional extras to enhance car cover.
• Claims line is open 24/7.

• A change in vehicle or named drivers can incur an admin fee.
• Terminating a policy within or after the 14-day cooling-off period will cost you a £40 cancellation fee.

Roadside assistance	Optional extra
EU Coverage	Yes
No claims protection	Optional extra
Multi-car-discount	Yes
Courtesy Car	Optional extra
Claims Methods	Online or phone
Personal Accident Protection	Yes

Best provider for young driver benefits

Customer satisfaction: 3/5

★★★★★

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Finder's pick: Endsleigh car insurance

No curfews

Regular driving feedback

Easy black box installation

• Why it's best
• Pros and cons
• Details

This insurer only offers car insurance to customers aged between 17 and 30, so its policies are understandably designed to suit younger drivers. It has policies tailored for learner drivers, students and new drivers, among others. Its features include black box insurance and finance deals for brand new cars.

• You can receive 20% off MOT costs and 10% off servicing with comprehensive and third party policies.
• Replacement car included as standard on comprehensive policies.
• Affordable insurance for new and young drivers.

• You will be subject to admin fees for the setting up and cancelling of your policy, as well as any changes you make.
• Policy information is not easily accessible.

Roadside assistance
EU Coverage
No claims protection
Multi-car-discount	No
Courtesy Car
Claims Methods
Personal Accident Protection

Best provider for Black Box insurance

Customer satisfaction: 4/5

★★★★★

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Finder's pick: Churchill car insurance

Discounts for good driving

24/7 emergency helpline

Courtesy car as standard

• Why it's best
• Pros and cons
• Details

Churchill's "DriveSure" telematics policy is available for 17- to 25-year-olds. You'll be guaranteed a discount on your premium with your first year of using this technology. It's one of the most affordable, intelligent and fair black box car insurance policies on the market. You'll be able to see your driving score on the DriveSure app – and will be able to claim another discount in the next year if your score is high.

• Uninsured driver promise.
• If your car is vandalised and you have a crime reference number, you won’t lose your no claims discount.
• Access to a 24/7 legal advice helpline.
• Telematics cover, called DriveSure, available.

• No 24/7 claim line (emergency line available).
• No third party only cover available.

Roadside assistance	Optional extra
EU Coverage	Yes
No claims protection	Minimum 4 Years of NCD for it be protected
Multi-car-discount	Yes
Courtesy Car	Yes
Claims Methods	Online or phone
Personal Accident Protection	Yes

Top 5 car insurance providers for young drivers

1. Hastings Direct – We rate Hastings Direct as the best overall provider of car insurance for young drivers. It has created a range of competitively priced policies aimed specifically at younger motorists.
2. LV= – This insurer has been doing business in the UK since 1843. It’s well-known for offering competitively priced premiums, particularly to younger drivers.
3. Churchill – Churchill has rightfully gained a reputation for providing in-depth car insurance, covering you in a variety of situations, with plenty of add-ons available at affordable prices. This is particularly true for younger motorists. We found its black box car insurance policies to be particularly enticing.
4. Endsleigh – Endsleigh is well-known for catering for new and young drivers with specific black box and learner driver policies. It offers 90 days of European cover as standard and you can start building up a no claims discount as a learner driver.
5. Marmalade – This insurance company was formed in 2006 with a goal to provide better car insurance for younger motorists. Its policies are only available to those aged under 30. It tailors its policies specifically to the needs of this market.

Other companies that include car insurance for younger drivers

• Admiral – This insurer offers tailored policies for learner drivers and new drivers. It is well-known for its enticing multi-car deals.
• Bell – Bell is part of the Admiral group. Its black box car insurance could be particularly noteworthy to younger drivers, as it only requires the telematics technology to be fitted for three months.
• Direct Line – Direct Line is well-known for offering competitive car insurance policies and great customer service. This insurer won’t be found on price comparison websites, so you will need to contact Direct Line directly for a quote.
• Tesco Bank – Tesco Bank is another insurer offering black box insurance. It also offers car insurance policies tailored for students, plus noteworthy discounts for those who have a more experienced named driver on their policy.

How to find the best cheap car insurance for young drivers

• Shop around. You could easily save hundreds per year by using our partner Confused to compare and find the best deal.
• Choose your vehicle sensibly. The value of your vehicle plays a huge role in how much insurers will charge you. That’s why it’s recommended for young motorists to drive a low-cost vehicle during their first years on the road. Modifications can also send premiums skyrocketing, so these should also be avoided by young drivers looking to cut insurance costs.
• Complete Pass Plus training. Pass Plus covers elements of driving that aren’t covered before your driving test, such as motorway driving and night driving. Many insurers offer cheaper premiums to young drivers who have completed this training.
• Add yourself to a multi-car policy. Insurers tend to offer discounts to households that ensure more than one vehicle with them.
• Add a named driver. Adding a more experienced driver onto your policy as a named driver can often cut the cost of your premium.
• Increase your excess. Your insurer may be willing to reduce your premium if you’re willing to pay out more when making a claim.
• Consider black box insurance. A “black box” (also known as a telematics device) uses GPS to monitor your vehicle and inform your insurer whether you’re a safe driver. A few insurers will grant young motorists a discount on their premiums if they install this technology within their vehicle.

Companies that offer black box insurance for new drivers

Black box technology has been available for many years now. Yet, there are still a limited number of insurers offering this technology to new drivers. See our guide on black box insurance for a full list of companies offering it.

We took a deeper look at all of the major insurers’ policies for young drivers in order to create this list of the best car insurance companies for young drivers.

Cost of car insurance for younger drivers

There are number of factors determining the cost of a car insurance premium other than age. However, it is true that younger drivers tend to be charged more due to the higher risk of them getting into an accident. Statistically, this has been proven. Data also proves that they’re more likely to get into serious accidents.

Statista conducted a study in 2019 that suggested that a 20-year-old motorist can expect to pay £851 per year for their car insurance. This figure was based on the average of the top 5 cheapest quotes offered to a 20-year-old with 2 years of driving experience and no previous claims on their insurance, driving a brand new Ford Fiesta (the most popular car in the UK in 2019).

The data suggests that younger drivers with less experience can expect to pay even more than this.

Best cars for cheap insurance for young drivers

All vehicles are categorised based on their “risk” to insurers. This risk factor mostly considers the likelihood of a car being damaged and the cost of replacing it. There are 50 categories in total, with category 1 cars being the cheapest to insure and category 50 vehicles costing the most.

For your convenience, we have compiled a complete list of vehicles in insurance category 1.

Bottom line

Everybody’s circumstances will vary so car cover that might work for you might not work for someone else. Do your research, shop around and compare deals in order to find the best car insurance for you.

Frequently asked questions

• Why is young driver insurance so expensive?

  Car insurance premiums are calculated using a complicated algorithm, which calculates the risk of a motorist making a claim and how much this claim could cost the insurer. The riskier the customer, the more they’ll be charged.

  Data suggests that younger drivers are far more likely to be involved in car accidents than their older counterparts. Their accidents also tend to be more severe and this is why their car insurance costs more.

• What car insurance is best for young drivers?

  You might think that “third party, fire and theft” insurance will be the cheapest car insurance for younger drivers, but this isn’t always the case. It’s worth comparing the cost of this policy with your insurer’s comprehensive policy before choosing one or the other.

  In many cases, comprehensive cover is priced similarly and sometimes it’s even cheaper. Comprehensive car insurance policies cover you in a far greater range of scenarios and should always be chosen over “third party, fire and theft” insurance if you can afford it.

• Is it cheaper to pay monthly or annually for a new driver?

  A lot of car insurance companies charge interest if you choose to pay monthly. Some don’t. Either way, it’ll never cost you more to pay annually.