Learner drives waiting longer to drive

[CAM]

The hope is that the result of higher standards would lead to a reduction in insurance costs as risk reduces. So what you lose upfront, you will gain in the first few years of lower premiums.

 

Personally I think that the proposals are reasonable BUT, I would be reasonably happy to see higher standards encouraged by the market. So you choose whether you achieve an A level licence and get lower premiums or you just go for the CGSE and then pay through the nose for insurance because you represent a higher risk. What I think is unacceptable is that we do nothing to stem the carnage of young, inexperienced drivers on the roads.

 

Pipe dream. If the price of insurance "drops" they will find ways to raise it again. Currently they are introducing black boxes to wriggle out of more claims by spying on driving habits. Also insurance used to go down once you passed, now it goes up by a significant margin as they claim you are on your own and thus more of a risk then someone who hasn't even qualified. A decade ago my insurance was around £1500 for a Fiesta, dropping a lot after qualifying and currently around the £300 mark for my Astra with maximum no claims.

[Danp]

They should let people drive when they are younger, but restricted cars. In Sweden 15 year olds are allowed to drive a 2 seater car that is restricted to 30mph, this gives them the experience at reduced risk so when they are allowed more power and bigger cars when older they dont go mad with them.

[gtg93]

This is a ridiculous idea in my opinion - yes something needs to be done about the kn*bs who have a car bought for them by their parents, and then spend their time putting tinny exhausts on and driving around like numpties until they smash the car to pieces - but this is penalising the many because of the few.

 

I'm 20years old have been driving 3years in March... Touch wood not a bump or scrape so far! I do however, believe the passplus should be mandatory, and part of the learning process should be offroad learning how to manouvere in different conditions (heavy rain, snow, ice etc).

 

IMO, the best option (although unlikey to ever happen), would be to incorparate it into the curriculum and learn offroad from the age of say 12, but not be legally allowed on the roads until you're 17. I think it's Norway (might be elsewhere) that currently do this and they have one of the lowest road accident / casualty rates in the world.

 

edit: People mentioning their insurance - My first years insurance @ 18 was just over £4000 (cheapest I could find) and that was in a '99 Corsa 1.4 (cost me £500) - I'd got quoted for a 1L and that was a whole £200 cheaper over the year. I know drive a '02 focus 1.6 and am paying just over £1000.

Edited October 11, 2013 by gtg93

[DrPerceptron]

They should let people drive when they are younger, but restricted cars. In Sweden 15 year olds are allowed to drive a 2 seater car that is restricted to 30mph, this gives them the experience at reduced risk so when they are allowed more power and bigger cars when older they dont go mad with them.

 

SEAT, Mercedes-Benz and several other manufacturers let young drivers out and about in their little cars on closed courses with an instructor usually. They might be unrealistically priced though, I think I saw £30 for 30 minutes in some places.

[pcstru]

Pipe dream. If the price of insurance "drops" they will find ways to raise it again. Currently they are introducing black boxes to wriggle out of more claims by spying on driving habits.

And your evidence for this scurrilous claim is?

 

Also insurance used to go down once you passed, now it goes up by a significant margin as they claim you are on your own and thus more of a risk then someone who hasn't even qualified.

Sure, and they are right, young people are killing themselves in droves, but not generally while they are accompanied learners under instruction.

[Danp]

SEAT, Mercedes-Benz and several other manufacturers let young drivers out and about in their little cars on closed courses with an instructor usually. They might be unrealistically priced though, I think I saw £30 for 30 minutes in some places.

 

There is a local company that offers proper driving lessons on an old airfield for under aged drivers from 11, £20 an hour I think

[Ephelyon]

Can they even reach the pedals?!

 

My mother was raised in Rhodesia/Zimbabwe/whatever and apparently the first thing you used to have to do was reverse around a line of cones. If you couldn't even do that, they wouldn't take you out on the roads!