Over one in five young drivers (aged between 17 and 20) has no car insurance, which is causing further strain on the debt problems of other drivers, according to latest figures released.
The study by the Motor Insurers’ Bureau, shows that hundreds of thousands of recently qualified drivers are driving illegally. This has a detrimental effect on every other legal driver, as insurance premiums are pushed up to compensate.
Their figures show that there are approximately 243,000 illegal young drivers, which equates to one in five – compared to one in twenty uninsured nationally.
Police use automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras to check if a car has a current MOT certificate, a valid tax disc and if the driver is insured or not.
The police have the power to stop, question, and in some cases, arrest drivers if they haven’t got insurance cover. Consequences for driving uninsured can be anything from a fine, to points on their licence or having their car taken off the road and scrapped.
Ivan Cooper, Chairman at debt management specialists Chiltern said: “More should be done to reward good drivers, as by punishing everyone with higher insurance premiums it causes more strain on already overstretched household finances.
“We’ve seen constant increases in many living costs, and still our annual cover rises – even if we haven’t had a claim and stay with the same provider.
“To keep the costs of cover as low as possible, make sure you shop around when renewal time comes, and don’t take out additional cover or products unless you desperately need them, as these only push the price up further.”
Ashton West, chief executive of the Motor Insurers’ Bureau says the cost of covering young drivers is down to the risk they pose on the road – and not just down to what type of car they drive.
He said: “Young drivers statistically are a bad risk, they are. They are many times more likely to have an accident.”
