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Parents spend nearly £9,000 to get kids behind wheel of first car
Research out today from QUINN-direct - the young drivers car insurance specialist - found that nearly 50 per cent of teenagers will rely on their parents to fund getting them on the road, at an average total cost of £8,620.
With the average first time driver taking around 42 lessons and three tests to get their license, parents will need to set aside over £1,400 to get their children through the test alone.
The costs do not stop there. The average first car will set parents back by £2,400 and on average £4,792 to insure, pushing up the first year’s driving cost to £8,620. For boys, who are generally more expensive to insure, this cost can rise to over £10,500 which is why we focus on helping by offering cheap car insurance for young drivers.
Most families are not saving enough to get their offspring behind the wheel. Despite putting enough money aside for their child’s first car, parents are not saving enough to get them through their test or get them insured. This is leaving the average family short by a whopping £5,125.
Mums and dads who have a daughter should consider themselves lucky - insuring the average 17 year old girl can be as much as £3,866 cheaper than a boy.
John McDonagh, Head of Consumer Insurance, from QUINN-direct, said:
"Parents looking to get their children on the road need to be aware of ALL the costs involved, not just the cost of getting them though the test or buying a cheap first car.
"If you look at the ten cheapest insurance quotes for a 17 year old man on Confused.com, the price difference can vary by as much as £5,800, so don’t forget to shop around for the most competitive quote. It is also worth considering investing in taking the Pass Plus, this can pay for itself twice over by reducing your insurance by around £400."
How the Cost Breaks Down
Passing the test (information from uSwitch.com)
- Cost of provisional licence = £50.00
- Cost of theory test = £31.00
- Cost of driving test = £62 x 2.4 (the number of times it takes the average person to pass) = £148.80
- Average cost of a 1 hr lesson (based on learning to drive in North London) = £28.50 [(BSM = £30.50 + AA = £28 per hour + Red Driving School £27.00 = £85.50 / 3 = £28.50) x 42 (number of lessons the average person needs to pass their test = £1,197
- £50.00 + £31.00 + £148.80 + £1197 = total amount spent per person on learning to drive = £1,426.80
Insuring the car (using confused.com*)
- Average for boys £6,725 (or £2,950.77 from QUINN)
- Average for girls £2,859 (or £1,803.74 from QUINN)
- Overall average £4,792
- Average shortfall of £5,096.25 on lessons and insurance
The cost of the car (QUINN-direct research data)
- The average first car costs £2,400
- They are nearly spot on with the amount of money they sat aside for their child’s first car, at £2,500
*correct at 24.11.10 – Based on a 17 year old male / female motorist, driving a six year old 1.4 litre Ford Fiesta, valued at £2,400
