What is the Best Way to Insure a Learner Driver?

16 April 2024 | Phil Evans

Home > BLOG > What is the Best Way to Insure a Learner Driver?

Learning to drive can be incredibly exciting and nerve-wracking, with many new drivers plagued with questions before they hit the road – like whether they should learn to drive automatic or manual, what’s the best way to insure a learner driver, or even how to insure a learner driver…

We understand that knowing the cheapest way to insure a learner driver is of the utmost importance, lessons don’t come cheap so you don’t want to be spending a fortune on insurance for practice too.

While there are a host of long-term insurance options available for learning, we recommend utilising short-term learner insurance as a means of covering yourself. After all, there might not always be someone available to accompany you on your practice drives – meaning that long-term insurance is money being wasted, when short-term insurance provides you the option of insuring yourself as and when you need – in minutes.

We’ve put together a complete guide to the best ways to insure learner drivers – so you can hit the road as soon as possible knowing you’ve chosen the best insurance for your driving practice!

The Importance of Insuring a Learner Driver

When learning how to drive, practice makes perfect – with research showing that it takes people 45 hours of driving lessons in addition to 22 hours of private practice to pass their test. It’s not just good practice to insure a learner driver – it’s a legal requirement to be insured whilst driving, even if you don’t have a full licence. This means that you’ll always need valid insurance when you get in the car – with the exception of when you’re getting into a car with a qualified driving instructor, as they will have that in place already.

In addition, learner drivers are a lot more prone to bumps and scrapes than a veteran driver due to their experience. This means that having insurance in place is essential to safeguard your finances – and our short-term insurance protects the vehicle owner of the practice vehicle’s no-claims for this exact reason.

What to Look for in a Learner Insurance Policy

Flexibility

When insuring a learner driver, there are several things to look for to find the best policy. The first of these is the flexibility of coverage available. While short-term insurance can be purchased on an hourly, daily, weekly or monthly basis (up to 24 weeks), ‘typical’ insurance works differently, locking you into the policy for roughly a year. As a learner might not require this long to pass their test, this could become a costly endeavour.

It’s also important to consider that the hours when you can get in this practice are limited by several factors, including the availability of a supervisor, working hours, inappropriate weather conditions and much more, meaning that finding the best way to insure a learner driver can be difficult. This means that the ‘as and when’ opportunity provided by short-term insurance gives you the perfect opportunity to practise without any wasted time – and you can secure a quote within minutes, which means sporadic practice sessions are easier than ever.

Affordability

Another thing to look for is the affordability of your learner insurance policy. There are multiple factors that affect the cost of insurance, and being a learner or new driver is one of them. You can’t lie to bring insurance costs down, as a learner you will typically face higher insurance costs. Just make sure to select a policy that accurately reflects your needs, instead of selecting one that sounds better due to add-ons that won’t impact your driving. Practice in a sensible car that won’t drive your insurance costs up, and consider temporary cover to help bring costs down too.

Coverage

A key factor of any insurance policy is what it covers. For learners, we always recommend comprehensive (fully comp) insurance, as inexperience behind the wheel makes the risk of an accident more likely. While this type of insurance is more expensive than third-party only or a policy that combines third-party, fire and theft, it will cover damage to both your vehicle and another vehicle, even if the learner is at fault. This makes investing a bit more money worth it in the long run.

No Claims Discount

It’s essential to look for mention of protection of the car owners’ no-claims discount when seeking the best policy for a learner driver. This is because your no-claims discount (not having to make a claim on your insurance in the event of an accident) might be impacted in the event of a learner crashing. Whether it’s their own fault, or the fault of another party, not having no-claims discount protection could lead to the vehicle owner’s no-claims discount being lost, and their insurance premium subsequently rising.

Comparing Learner Driver Insurance Options

The best way to insure a learner driver is to research all of your options thoroughly before you purchase a policy – which is why we’ve gone through each of the learner driver insurance options below.

Temporary Learner Options

Temporary insurance is one of the best options for learner drivers purchasing a policy. This is because you can take out cover for exactly as and when you need it – or extend it on an ongoing basis – and the price will be much cheaper than traditional long-term insurance. This also means that if you pass your test quickly, you won’t be locked into an expensive, long-term policy. We offer specialised learner insurance at GoShorty, which makes insuring a learner very easy, and quick.

In addition, our policies ‘protect’ the owner of the car as their no-claims bonus will not be impacted in the event of the learner being in an accident.

Traditional Insurance

Some insurers offer longer-term coverage, which can be purchased until the day you pass your test. This is a great option for learners who have ongoing access to a supervisor or individual who can jump in a car with them at any time. However, these policies are often accompanied by strict regulations and can be very costly – meaning the longer it takes to pass your test, the more expensive it will be.

Adding Learner to Your Insurance

Another means of insuring a learner driver is by adding them onto your car insurance as a named driver. This is sometimes the best option for anyone learning to drive in a car owned by a family member, such as a parent, or a close friend. The policy provides flexibility and one swift call to a current insurer, but there’s a risk of the original driver’s premiums increasing, or an accident impacting their no-claims bonus. Plus, you can often end up having to pay for a longer period of cover than you might need.

The Cheapest Way to Insure a Learner Driver…

For flexibility and protection short-term learner insurance remains one of the best – and most cost-effective – choices for learners.

With short-term insurance, you can purchase up to four hours of cover from £19.99. With the cost of learning rising by 47% since 2023, being able to just pay for cover when you are going out practicing can be a big money saver.

Alternatively, four weeks of coverage will only cost you from £66, which is just over £15 a week. This is compared to adding someone as a named driver to an existing policy, which can cost up to £1,300 per month – a saving of over £1,200.

In addition, short-term insurance caters to the needs of anyone who will be driving intermittently, meaning if your supervisor is going away for a few weeks, you won’t find your expensive long-term insurance going to waste

And that’s why temporary insurance is the best way to insure a learner, you’ll just be paying for cover when you need it – making it far cheaper than more long-term options. You can get a quote and try it for yourself in under two minutes, start getting your practice in today with our learner driver insurance options…

Temp Car Insurance

Temp Van Insurance

Temp Learner Insurance

What is the Best Way to Insure a Learner Driver?

The Importance of Insuring a Learner Driver