Closed petition Stop car insurance companies ripping under 25s off with sky high prices

Petition progress

View all updates for this petition, with the most recent first.

• 4 January 2017

  Related activity

  MPs want to hear your views on car insurance costs

  We’re emailing you because you signed a petition about the cost of car insurance for young people.

  A similar petition, about capping the cost of car insurance for young people, will be debated by MPs.

  Before setting a date for the debate, the Petitions Committee would like the House of Commons to have the chance to find out more information about the issues raised in the petition. MPs will be able to use this information in the debate on the petition.

  You can help by telling the House of Commons Petitions Committee a little about yourself and how the cost of car insurance affects you by answering a few questions here: www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/young-people-and-car-insurance/

  It shouldn’t take you more than a few minutes. We won’t ask you for any personal details and all your answers will be anonymous. The deadline for this survey is midnight on 16 January.

  We’ll also be gathering information in other ways, including on Money Saving Expert forums and Twitter. You can take part there as well, so we’ll send you more details when we have them.

  Which petition is being debated?

  Put a max of £1200 on car insurance for 18-25 year olds

  Insurance companies are making it harder and harder for people aged 18-25 years of age to start driving. I myself am looking at a £2500 insurance for my first year driving which is completely unaffordable as i am earning minimum wage £5.30 per hour and am also having to pay bill for my property. https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/166847

  What is the House of Commons Petitions Committee?

  The Petitions Committee is set up by the House of Commons. It is made up of 11 backbench Members of Parliament from Government and Opposition parties. The number of committee members from each political party is representative of the membership of the House of Commons as a whole. Find out more here: http://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/commons-select/petitions-committee/role/

  What happens during a petition debate?

  Petition debates usually take place in Westminster Hall. There isn’t a vote, but it’s an important opportunity to question the Minister and put pressure on the Government. Find out more here: http://www.parliament.uk/about/how/business/debates/westminster-hall-debates/

  Find out more about how you can get involved with your UK Parliament: http://www.parliament.uk/get-involved/?utm_source=petition&utm_campaign=132140&utm_medium=email&utm_content=getinvolved

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• 8 August 2016

  Petition closed

• 25 February 2016

  Government responded to this petition

  Responsibility for setting premiums rests with insurers. The Government is strengthening the learning to drive process so that drivers can present themselves as a lower risk and obtain lower premiums

  Read the response in full

  The Government is aware that the cost of motor insurance can be high for new drivers and understands the concerns that have been expressed about this. The average cost of motor insurance for the 17-22 age group was estimated to be £1277 as at January 2016 (MoneySavingExpert.com).

  It is important to bear in mind that motor insurers have to provide unlimited cover against the risk of personal injury to third parties and cover of up to one million pounds for property damage.

  They use a wide range of criteria to assess the potential risk a driver poses and this includes the age of the applicant, the type of vehicle being driven, the postal area where the applicant lives and his/her driving experience.

  Figures from insurers show that as many as one-fifth of newly qualified drivers make a claim within the first six months.

  Whilst Government cannot intervene directly in the setting of premiums, what it can do is help to establish a situation where young and newly qualified drivers are better equipped for a life of independent driving.

  Accordingly, the Government has taken forward a programme of measures to strengthen the way people learn to drive and are tested and to provide opportunities for additional training for newly-qualified drivers. We have also engaged insurers in this process, so that they can have confidence that additional measures will make a real difference that can be rewarded.

  We are focussing our efforts on encouraging learner drivers to do more practice and to practise in a wider range of driving conditions; on ensuring that the driving test assesses the skills needed for today’s roads and vehicles and those of the future; and on identifying the most promising behavioural, educational and technological interventions that can reduce young driver casualties. The Government’s Road Safety Statement, published on 21 December 2015, announced a £2 million research programme to identify the best possible interventions for learner and novice drivers.

  The Road Safety Statement also conveyed the Government’s wider commitment to addressing concerns about motor insurance premiums for all drivers. It says:
  “We will support innovation in the motoring insurance market so premiums become more responsive to safer driver behaviour and vehicle choice. This could include extending the ‘reward based’ insurance approach pioneered through young driver telematics products to the wider motoring community and fleets.”

  Department for Transport

• 9 February 2016

  Government will respond to this petition

  This petition got more than 10,000 signatures meaning that government will respond to it.

• 8 February 2016

  Petition published

  This petition can now be signed.

  If this petition gets 10,000 signatures, government will respond to it.

  If this petition gets 100,000 signatures, it will be considered for debate in Parliament.

  This petition will stay open until 8 August 2016.