How to Keep the Cost of Convicted Driver Insurance Low?

Drivers who have been convicted of a drink/drug driving offence, or other motoring offences, will usually find that their insurance premium has risen as a result of their conviction or ban. However, many of the ways you can lower a regular Car insurance premium can also be used to lower the price of a Convicted Driver insurance policy. Here are some of them in more detail…

Lower Your Mileage

Whether you have been driving for two years or several years, you will have noticed that Car insurance companies reward motorists who cover less miles, with cheaper premiums. So, if you are able to cut out some of your regular or irregular journeys, you may be able to reduce your annual mileage. Of course, when taking out a Convicted Driver insurance policy, be honest about the mileage you cover, and don’t be tempted to lie just to get a cheaper quote. If you deliberately declare a lower mileage than you actually end up driving, this can dramatically backfire, particularly if you have an accident or need to make a claim, as when the insurer discovers the additional mileage you have driven, they may reject the claim, cancel your cover, and void the policy, making it so you never had cover in the first place, which could leave you massively out of pocket if you have to cover the cost of any claim yourself. 

Choose Your Car Carefully

If you’re returning from a driving ban and looking for Car insurance you may also be in the market for a new car, having got rid of your old one when you were handed your ban. Even if that isn’t the case, and you’re looking for a Convicted Driver policy for a different conviction, it’s still worth considering what car you are driving. Things that can influence your premium relating to the vehicle include the engine size, the insurance group, the vehicle age and the value of the vehicle. 

For example, if you’re looking for Convicted Driver insurance due to several speeding fines accumulating on your licence, and you’re looking for insurance for a high-powered vehicle/fast car then you might not be presenting yourself as the rehabilitated driver you would want to come across as. Either way, a sensible car with a sensible engine size isn’t going to hurt your chances of getting a lower price for your Convicted Driver insurance quote.

Rehabilitation Courses for Convicted Drivers

One of the best ways of demonstrating that you intend to be a safe driver following a ban for drink driving or a ban for drug driving, is by completing a rehabilitation course. We have successfully helped convicted drivers referred to us from OGWR DASH and motorists who completed TTC courses (along with many other rehabilitation course providers), get Convicted Driver insurance. Completing one of these courses can not only help you reduce the length of your driving ban, but it may also help you save money on your insurance, as discounts can be offered for course completion. 

Named Drivers on Convicted Driver Insurance

Just like a regular Car insurance policy, the named drivers on your policy can have both a positive and negative impact on the price of your Convicted Driver insurance. Careful and experienced drivers, with no claims history and a clean driving licence may help lower the price of your insurance policy. 

However, on the flip-side, adding an 18-year-old daughter or son that has only held their full driving licence for a short time, will in most, if not all, cases increase your Convicted Driver insurance premium. Young drivers are considered a greater risk due to their inexperience, and the statistics show they are more likely to be involved in an accident or make a claim. Therefore, if you add them to your policy, this could have a dramatic effect on your premium.

Level of Cover

Another way to reduce the cost of your insurance is to lower the level of cover you have. There are three levels of cover for Convicted Car insurance and they are (in order of lowest to highest level of cover provided):

• Third Party Only – this is the minimum level of cover required to drive on UK roads, and will, if you are involved in an accident, cover the cost of any damage caused to a third party if the accident is your fault.
• Third Party, Fire & Theft – this level of cover protects any third party, but also includes cover for your own vehicle in the event of theft, damage resulting from attempted theft, or any damage caused by fire.
• Comprehensive – this is the highest level of cover, and in addition to everything above, it also protects your vehicle in the event of any accident or claim where you are found to be at fault.

Increase Your Voluntary Excess

As part of your insurance Terms & Conditions, you will be required to pay a compulsory Excess if you make a claim. This means that for any claim you make, the first part of the cost is covered by you, with the insurer picking up the cost of the rest. For example, if your Compulsory Excess is £500 and the cost of your claim is £2,000, you will pay the first £500 and the insurer will settle the rest.

You can help to reduce the cost of your policy by adding a Voluntary Excess to your policy too. This means that, in addition to the Compulsory Excess, you also pay a pre-agreed voluntary amount on top. The higher the Voluntary Excess, the lower your insurance premium will be (though be careful not to increase it to a level that you couldn’t afford to cover if needed).

Address & Location of Your Vehicle

Insurers do a lot of analysis on how the geographical location of your house, or where your vehicle is kept, can influence your likelihood of you making a claim. They take in to account the claims type, cost and frequency of other people living in your area, and therefore your postcode can influence your insurance premium. It will likely not be an easy (or realistic) thing to change, but if possible, you can look at where you live if you want to reduce your insurance premium.

Similarly, where you keep your vehicle overnight will play a part in how much your cover costs. If you keep your car in a locked garage, then it is probably less likely to be damaged or stolen overnight than if you park it on the road or in a public car park. Therefore, if possible, store your car in a garage to reduce your insurance costs.

Use of Your Vehicle

If you have a driving conviction and want to reduce the cost of your insurance, then you could consider what you need to use your vehicle for. There are several different types of Vehicle Use, including:

• Social, Domestic & Pleasure
• Social, Domestic & Pleasure including Commuting
• Business Use – Self-Employed
• Business Use – Employers Business Use

Business Use can cause the cost of your cover to increase significantly so be careful when it comes to selecting how you plan on using your vehicle, and where possible, restrict it to help reduce your premium.

Your Occupation

Again, this is probably something that you are not going to change just because it could influence your insurance premium, but insurers look at each occupation separately and rate it according to their statistics. Therefore, some occupations will lead to a higher insurance premium than others, and if you do have flexibility and want to change it, then this could save you money on your insurance premium.

Flexible Payments

If you have exhausted all the methods discussed above and still find that your annual premium is too high, then we may have the solution to help you get back on the road. At Think Insurance we offer flexible payment options so that our customers can get insured, whether that’s a young driver, motor trader or a convicted driver. For more details, ask one of our team when discussing your quote and they will talk you through the various options available.

Want to Discuss a Convicted Driver Insurance Policy Further?

At Think Insurance we have a team of dedicated Convicted Driver insurance experts, that’ll be able to help answer any further queries you may have. Please call 0800 221 8077 to speak to a member of our Convicted Driver insurance team or click ‘Get a Quote’ below if you’d like to start the quotation process.