Car insurance - Tips & Advice - Car Insurance for young drivers

Statistically speaking, young drivers make more insurance claims than older ones, so their insurance premiums tend to be higher. However, there are several steps you can take to reduce the cost:

• Young drivers will often own older cars, which may require more maintenance. Try to get them serviced regularly as keeping on top of maintenance can help prevent breakdowns. And don’t forget, Direct Line offers a 25% discount off our top level of breakdown cover if you’re a Car Insurance customer
  
  
• Try to build up and protect your no claims discount. Direct Line’s New Improved Car Insurance means that you can build up your own no claims discount even if you’re a named driver on someone else’s policy, e.g. a parent
  
  
• Consider increasing the excess on your policy, (to do this you must be over 21) – this means you will pay more if you do have an accident, but won’t have to pay quite so much upfront
  
  

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  • Resist the urge to modify your car! Fancy accessories may make you stand out from the crowd, but they’ll increase the cost of repairs/replacement. Any proposed modifications should be discussed with Direct Line before being carried out as they may invalidate your insurance policy
    
    
• Install a few simple security measures such as a car alarm and/or steering wheel immobiliser to protect your vehicle, especially if your car won’t be kept on private property
  
  
• Paying for your car insurance in monthly installments (only available to drivers aged 18 years and over) can help you to manage your budget if you can’t afford to pay your car insurance premium in full.
  
  
• Think about enrolling on a Pass Plus course, which teaches you about driving at night or in bad weather and on motorways – it will quickly make you a more experienced driver and reduce your Direct Line car insurance premiums by up to 40%. Go to the Driving Standards Agency (www.dsa.gov.uk) for more information.
  

At Direct Line we try not to penalise young drivers, but we do want to encourage them to be safer, more considerate drivers. As the UK’s largest direct insurer, we try to keep our car insurance reasonable even for younger drivers, why not get a quote today?