Young drivers insurance question...

[snoop51]

My daughter passed her test yesterday morning, 1st time (she had a good teacher .............. her Grandad). We bought her a Ka for her 17th birthday registered & insured it in it in my wife's name who then used it as her only car, taught our daughter in it. Now she has passed her test the car is in the process of having ownership transferred, insurance is now on a multicar policy with Admiral. The benefits of which are this:-

Daughter to insure car as an individual car cheapest quote £2025
Daughter to insure with Admiral as individual £2035

Mum's car (Megane convertible) & daughter's car Ka on Admiral multi-car policy £1658.68 of which the split is £1182.32 (daughter) £476 (wife).

Whilst it is more expensive to insure the wife with Admiral the total cost to cover the 2 cars is about £800 cheaper. Don't understand it myself but it is legal

PS. Markjay what does your wife drive, wouldn't it make more sense to let them learn in her car or do as we did. The incentive to pass the test quicker is they get a car. It means you pay out less for lessons, which are extortionate nowadays.

 

[markjay]

PS. Markjay what does your wife drive, wouldn't it make more sense to let them learn in her car or do as we did. The incentive to pass the test quicker is they get a car. It means you pay out less for lessons, which are extortionate nowadays.

Wife's got a 2.0L Automatic.

I don't think it's a good idea to learn to drive in an automatic car if the driving lessons and test will be in a manual car.

As for insurance, Aviva wanted 2.5k on-top of existing insurance to add one offspring.

Yes we have considered replacing her car with a smaller-engine manual one, but wife loves her car and do not want to get rid of it...

 

[snoop51]

Wife's got a 2.0L Automatic.

I don't think it's a good idea to learn to drive in an automatic car if the driving lessons and test will be in a manual car.

As for insurance, Aviva wanted 2.5k on-top of existing insurance to add one offspring.

Yes we have considered replacing her car with a smaller-engine manual one, but wife loves her car and do not want to get rid of it...

What about buying a small car for the kids but having it registered in your wife's name. As long as she uses it more than they do, runs to shops etc, then it's legal. It's only "fronting" if the use equation swings the other way. Transfer ownership when tests are passed, the other benefit is they are familiar with the car after passing the test because they learnt in it.

We are fortunate in that my wife walks to work so her car has always been more of a toy than a necessity. Consequently when it came to kids learning to drive we sold her beloved MX5, bought a Corsa for no.1 son and followed the course of action we just did with our daughter. Once he passed his test it got transferred into his name.

We pretty much knew our daughter was going to pass as long as she didn't suffer too many nerves. Don't tell him but she's a much better driver than her brother was at the time of test taking) That's when we got the Megane for my wife, she really wanted another MX5 but the dog won't fit in one.

 

[jonnyboy]

Snoop. The situation you describe is exactly the scenario insurers are actively targetting when claims occur.
If the OP can't prove his wife was the main user, he's snookered.

 

[markjay]

Well, this one is easy....

If wife were to replace her existing car with smaller one, then we are all good. At current, she is not happy with that option.

If wife keeps her car, then third car must be registered to one of the kids - my wife will not get a residents parking permit for two cars simultaneously, the owner of the third vehicle will have to be another member of the family (welcome to officialdom).

So current scenario is dad's car owned by dad, mum's car owned by mum, and kids car owned by the younger of the two... if this makes sense.

For the un-initiated, we live in Central London and don't have off-street parking so without residents parking permit the car is simply unparkable...

 

[Adam230K]

We did it differently.

When I was 18 and I passed the test, I was a named driver for 3 years, and when I bought the 230K just as I was turning 21 thats when I took out my own policy with 3 years named driver NCD (admiral/churchill), and now 7 years on I have 5 years NCD and i'm almost 25 (1 accident so far).

Was soooo much cheaper this way.

 

[Value Motering]

Fronting or not ?

Mum is main driver on low insurance group car, see does for example 200 miles per week, the two named children do about 190 miles per week each.

So car is doing 580 miles per week, Mum is the main driver,

Using Direct line for example, all 3 drivers earn NCD.

Of interest, I enquired about putting one of my children on my car(full lic) Admiral said I would have to put child as main user as they were a higher risk, I told Admiral I could not say/agree child would be main user as they were only going to use car for about 5/10% of the cars miles !!! they disagreed with my view, I reminded them that I must answer all questions being honest, they appeared confused ???

I never got child insured for cost/value reasons anyway.

But insurance will take all your money no problem "fronting included" have a big claim and they will dig and dig, if they can get out, you will be uninsured, pay all the bills and the police will do you for no insurance.

I feel very sorry for young drivers who don't have lots of cash avail to pay for insurance, they can't get job/travel due insurance costs, so what do they do, chill out if possible or drive uninsured, get caught uninsured and pay a £50 fine, the £50 does not even get that 8% insurane tax applied to it either, we live in crazy times.

All insured driver not only pay for all the uninsured drivers, but we pay their 8% insurance tax also, it's a great system.

 

[crockers]

What about buying a small car for the kids but having it registered in your wife's name. As long as she uses it more than they do, runs to shops etc, then it's legal. It's only "fronting" if the use equation swings the other way. Transfer ownership when tests are passed, the other benefit is they are familiar with the car after passing the test because they learnt in it.

First questions in the event of an accident is "does the registered owner have access to any other vehicles? Are they registered in her name? Is she the main driver of that car? Are the children named on that car too? ........ yes they would see this a possible "fronting"...

Ask yourself this question - are you doing this to save money? Is your wife really the main driver of BOTH cars?

 

[Dieselman]

Just buy them a cheap group1 nail of a car and insure it 3rd party only. That way they build NCB if they don't crash it, but more likely they can just chuck it away when they do.

 

[markjay]

Just buy them a cheap group1 nail of a car and insure it 3rd party only. That way they build NCB if they don't crash it, but more likely they can just chuck it away when they do.

That was the original plan.... may have to revert to it.

 

[Dieselman]

Ideal 1st car.

1999 SUZUKI SWIFT GLS GREEN on eBay (end time 24-Mar-11 20:55:33 GMT)


Shedtastic..

 

[markjay]

I can see it already -

Insurer help line: 'how much is the vehicle worth Sir?'...

 

[Dieselman]

I can see it already -

Insurer help line: 'how much is the vehicle worth Sir?'...

To which the answer is...

A lot less than I paid for it...

Seriously that's a great learners car. Cheap to buy, cheap to insure, not too fast, very frugal and long enough MOT.

It's got alloys...what more can they want...

 

[snoop51]

Snoop. The situation you describe is exactly the scenario insurers are actively targetting when claims occur.
If the OP can't prove his wife was the main user, he's snookered.

Easy enough keep records, personally I look at it this way. The insurer has to prove she isn't the main driver.

 

[snoop51]

First questions in the event of an accident is "does the registered owner have access to any other vehicles? Are they registered in her name? Is she the main driver of that car? Are the children named on that car too? ........ yes they would see this a possible "fronting"...

Ask yourself this question - are you doing this to save money? Is your wife really the main driver of BOTH cars?

Fair points for the OP to ask himself. Personally wife had 1 Car not 2 until 2 weeks prior to daughter taking test, so no fronting on our part.

As to the rest well if the MAIN driver does MORE miles in a car than the other named drivers then surely he/she IS the MAIN driver regardless of how many cars are registered in their name?

Yes I know the insurance company would argue the toss but then they will about paying out for any claim. You seem to think they are there for your benefit, they aren't they are there to make money from you not giving money out.

Anyway it's irrelevant in the OP's predicament as he has now said he couldn't register 2 cars under the same name for parking permits.

Also irrelevant to me now too as both son and daughter are holders of full UK licences, I'm just the poor sap trying to find them the best LEGAL deal I can to stop them being raped and pillaged by the big bad insurance companies. I'm a Dad, that's my job!

 

[DITTRICH]

+1 to the Dieselman solution.
Cars like that can be crashed and replaced with another shed for what? £26? (the current bid on the link).
The fuel in the tank and the tax on the windscreen will be worth more than the car.
If it dies or fails the mot then get another one.
Insurance TPFT only.

 

[Sonny Burnett]

Ideal 1st car.

1999 SUZUKI SWIFT GLS GREEN on eBay (end time 24-Mar-11 20:55:33 GMT)


Shedtastic..

could not ever put my kids is such a car.. what would happen if it would behit head on by a S class or ML.. or even rear ended by a ML.... get the kids a 190 or cheap 202... not a death trap...

 

[Dieselman]

+1 to the Dieselman solution.
Cars like that can be crashed and replaced with another shed for what? £26? (the current bid on the link).
The fuel in the tank and the tax on the windscreen will be worth more than the car.
If it dies or fails the mot then get another one.
Insurance TPFT only.

Why bother with Fire and Theft, unless it costs no more.

Bit of a bugger about the price now, it's gone up since I posted the link on here....it was only 1 penny...

 

[Dieselman]

could not ever put my kids is such a car.. what would happen if it would behit head on by a S class or ML.. or even rear ended by a ML.... get the kids a 190 or cheap 202... not a death trap...

or a 40 tone lorry.....

Who says a W202 is that safe, it's an old design car. If a W202 was hit bay a new Renault Scenic it would crumple badly.

We used to drive cars made like ice-cream wafers, but still survived a number of accidents OK.

 

[MercFanUk]

Guys, the insurance costs on a 202 compared to a normal hatchback for example more than likely be double - the car may be cheaper, but it might not work out cheaper over all

Remember that Top Gear episode where they pretended to be teenagers?