Insuring Your First Car
You've passed your test, bought your first car, now for the hard part - insurance. Drivers with little experience on the road pose the most risk to an insurance firm. Statistics show that new drivers are more than three times as likely to have a car accident than those with experience. Due to this, insurance firms ramp up their prices for those without experience behind the wheel. And it gets worse, if you are under 21 then expect to pay even more.
Get a Car That's Cheap to Insure
So how do you go about insuring your first car? The first step, if you haven't already bought your car is to look for something in a low insurance group. Every car model on the market is assigned an insurance group, this can range from 1-50, the higher the number the more expensive it will be to insure. A car with a small engine will be in a low insurance group, meaning you will pay less for your insurance.
3rd Party or Comprehensive Insurance?
If you already have a car then consider what type of insurance you want. If you have a small budget then look at third party insurance. This is a cheap alternative to comprehensive but means that if you were to cause an accident, you would not be covered for the damage to your own car. Similarly, if you were to write your car off then you would not have any cover - could you afford to buy a new one? If the answer is no, then look at fully comprehensive.
Add a Named Driver
Another way to lower your insurance premium is to add a named driver to your policy. As this is your first car then it's more than likely that you don't have any experience on the road. Add someone with a clean driving history to the policy and your insurance costs will lower dramatically.
Shop Around, Compare Online
Finally, shop around. There are a number of specialist companies that cater solely for people who are looking to insure their first car. They have experience in insuring first time drivers and can offer advice and competitive rates in comparison to some of the larger insurers. It's also worth checking out price comparison sites as the cost of insurance does vary from one company to another.
Related Articles:
- Learner Driver Car Insurance
- Car Insurance for Students
- Using Named Driver Insurance
- New Driver Insurance
- Tips for Cheaper Teenager Car Insurance
- Young Driver Insurance
This site is for information only and cannot offer insurance advice for your particular situation.
Consult with an FSA authorised insurance advisor if unsure on any topics related to car insurance.
