The tricks a young driver used to swindle a whopping £18,601 off his car insurance

Seventeen-year-old Conner Robinson was proud to have paid for his first car himself and couldn’t wait to hit the road after getting his driver’s license three weeks ago.

The apprentice welder from Doncaster in South Yorkshire always expected his first insurance policy, as a newcomer to the job, to be expensive.

But he was shocked when he entered his details into price comparison website Go Compare and saw that the only insurance quote he could get – from Insure247 – would cost him £21,601.

Conner doesn’t own a Ferrari sports car, but a modest second-hand Ford Fiesta that cost him £5,500. That means the insurance would cost almost four times as much as the car itself.

He said: ‘I really like cars and was so happy to get my licence. I bought the Fiesta in March with a loan as an incentive to get behind the wheel.

‘But when I saw the quote, I nearly fell off my chair. It was such a horrible feeling to suddenly find myself stuck and unable to enjoy driving after getting my license. No other insurer would even offer me a deal.’

Conner, who demonstrated his driving skills four years ago by taking part in the Young Driver Skills Day, could not understand why the prize was so high.

Research by comparison website Confused.com found that drivers aged between 17 and 21 pay an average of more than £2,000 for their car insurance.

But after talking to a friend who was also a young driver but got a much more attractive quote, Conner discovered some insurance tricks that allowed him to get coverage for one-tenth of the cost he had been quoted.

He also discovered the mistakes he had made that caused insurers to stop offering coverage altogether, meaning only the most expensive rate was available.

Money Mail was alerted to Conner’s plight by his grandfather, Darryl Robinson. The retired aerospace engineer, who is married to Janet, 73, said: ‘Conner was so happy to have passed his test and, as a keen car enthusiast, was excited about the prospect of the freedom of driving.

‘It is wrong that the insurance sector is pushing young drivers out of the market.’

On the advice of his friend, Conner called Hastings Direct, a company that specializes in helping young drivers, and was told that he could get a much lower quote if he drove fewer miles.

Without realising the impact this would have on his premium, Conner had estimated he would be driving 10,000 miles a year to make the 40-mile round trip to Rotherham, where he works, every day.

Otherwise he is dependent on the bus or a lift from his grandfather.

If he only used the car for social journeys and reduced the mileage to 4,000 miles per year, he could take out insurance through Hastings Direct for £3,400.

Conner also found, when he tested various parameters on comparison website Go Compare, that if he waited 12 days before taking out the policy on September 1, the price dropped to £2,800.

This equates to a saving of £50 for every day he postpones driving. If he had tried other comparison sites, such as Confused.com and Compare the Market, he might have got even better prices.

The insurance industry often offers the best prices to drivers who are willing to wait three or four weeks to buy a policy. This is because insurers take advantage of drivers who leave it until the last minute or who need a policy immediately, in order to increase premiums.

Another cost-saving measure Conner had to take was to have a black box installed in his car.

These devices use telematics technology to monitor when and where you’re driving – and whether you’re exceeding the speed limit or driving irregularly, such as braking too hard. More than a million drivers now have one of these devices in their car – and they’re particularly popular with younger drivers.

According to comparison website Compare the Market, a black box can reduce insurance costs by £500 a year, but for a younger driver the saving could be as much as £1,000.

Rhydian Jones, motoring expert at Confused.com, says: ‘When you have a black box fitted, insurers don’t make any assumptions. The price is calculated based on how, when and how often they drive.

‘There may be restrictions, such as a curfew or mileage limit. Check the policy terms and conditions to make sure you don’t fall foul of the rules.’ Younger drivers are typically the ones who suffer from expensive car insurance, as they have less experience, making them more likely to make a claim.

According to the trade body the Association of British Insurers (ABI), drivers aged 17 to 19 make up just 1.5% of all driving licence holders, but are involved in almost 12% of fatal and serious accidents.

This makes them a hot item in the car insurance world.

Another option for younger drivers is to add a parent to their policy as a named driver. If they are older and have more driving experience, there is a good chance that this can bring the price down. However, new drivers should not consider asking a parent to take out a policy for them to get a cheaper price, as this is called “fronting” and is considered insurance fraud.

Conner found that by adding his 50-year-old father as a nominated driver, he could reduce the final quote by at least £1,000 to £2,800. He had originally listed his grandfather as a nominated driver, but removed him when he realised that insurers viewed older drivers as a higher risk than middle-aged motorists, so they increased the premiums.

The trick to finding the cheapest deal is to call providers directly to see if they can beat a quote you have found. The best insurers to negotiate with are Admiral, the AA, Churchill and Hastings Direct.

Although Conner has limited his car use, his annual premiums will soon fall as he builds up a no-claims bonus by not having any accidents. So next year he could drive more and perhaps use the car to get to work.

The ABI website states: ‘The no-claims discount varies per insurer, but can be up to 30% for one claim-free year and 60% for five claim-free years.’

Some insurers also offer you the option to protect a no-claims discount that has built up over several years, for an additional fee (in some cases as little as £20) in case you need to make a one-off claim and don’t want to lose out on this great discount.

The type of car you drive also has an effect: for a car with a small engine and a cylinder capacity of 1 litre, the chance of an increase in premium is smaller than for a sports car with a cylinder capacity of 3 litres.

It is also worth taking out insurance annually rather than monthly, as this is cheaper on an annual basis.

Opting for a higher excess – the amount you have to pay yourself as part of the cost of a repair – will also reduce your premiums, but make sure you can afford it. Conner agreed to a £750 excess to get his insurance.

A comprehensive insurance policy, such as Conner chooses, is usually the best option because it not only provides coverage against damage to your own car and that of others, but is also often cheaper than an insurance policy that only provides third-party liability insurance.

This is because a comprehensive insurance policy generally attracts fewer high-risk drivers than an insurance policy that only includes third-party liability insurance.

A week from Sunday, Conner will finally hit the road after taking out his £2,800 insurance with Hastings Direct.

Insure247 did not respond to a request for comment.