Buying new car, keeping old for learner daughter?

Helen105

I have had my Polo for 4 years and it is a great little car but a) it is now 14 years old and b) it is too small for fitting all the family in so I would like a newer bigger car ideally a VW Sharan. However I promised my 18 year old daughter that at renewal I would add her to the insuarnce for the Polo, she has been learning to drive now for about two months. When I looked last year the TP cost of this was around £700, fully comp £1500 on my full NCB.

What I would like would be to keep the Polo and the Sharan, have both me & DD able to drive the Polo and me only for the Sharan. What would be the cheapest way of doing this?

I am separated from my husband who drives his new partner's motability car so has no car insured in his name but does have 1 years NCB from 4 years ago. Would it be worth giving the Polo to him and letting him insure it and add DD as a named driver?

no-oneknowsme

Excuse me if I am reading your post wrong and if I am please feel free to correct me.....but am I correct in assuming that the main driver of the polo will be your Daughter when she passes her test? I assume this because you will have the Sharon to drive and your Husband drives the mobility car...

If your Daughter IS going to be the main driver then you really need to declare this when you are taking out insurance on it REGARDLESS of who is actually listed as owning the car . If you do as you say and give the polo to your Husband and he insures it in his name but it is actually your Daughter who is the main driver then this is known as fronting and is illegal . It has also been reported on this very site that insurers are clamping down on people (especially parents doing it to get their kids cheaper insurance) fronting.

Google insurance fronting to find out more....

Also , the 1 years NCB which your Husband holds from 4 years ago probably wont be valid as NCB expires after 2 years if not used - there are companys out there who will allow you to use it after 3 years but from what I have read on here most companys only allow 2 years.

Again , if I did read your post wrong I apologise.

Helen105

Possibly, possibly not. Should the Sharan prove uneconomical to run, I am quite happy to keep on running the Polo for short distance commuting and as my daughter has not yet passed her test it is a bit early to talk about her as main driver of anything.

I would however still welcome anyone's suggestions as to the best way of insuring both vehicles.

I have run a quote in daughter's name and got quote of £1300 for her only and tried to put myself on as a named driver but for some reason this was rejected. I have also run a learner driver quote with Collingwood and got £115 for a month which is no better and leaves you with the hassle of finding cover again when the test is passed.

no-oneknowsme

Helen105 wrote: »

Possibly, possibly not. Should the Sharan prove uneconomical to run, I am quite happy to keep on running the Polo for short distance commuting and as my daughter has not yet passed her test it is a bit early to talk about her as main driver of anything.

I would however still welcome anyone's suggestions as to the best way of insuring both vehicles.

I have run a quote in daughter's name and got quote of £1300 for her only and tried to put myself on as a named driver but for some reason this was rejected. I have also run a learner driver quote with Collingwood and got £115 for a month which is no better and leaves you with the hassle of finding cover again when the test is passed.

I thought I had answered your question about how to insure both vehicles but anyhow.....

You have already said that at this point you dont know who is going to be the main driver of the polo . A good starting point would be to make this decision AND THEN decide on the insurance !

The starting question that any insurer will ask you if you go for a quote is "who will be the main user of the vehicle" . Your options are :

1. Insure the polo as yours with you as the main driver and your Daughter as a named driver and if the situation changes (eg you find that once she passes her test she is driving more than you...) contact the insurer to inform them of the change and pay any additional premium due. You will however begin with zero NCB for the polo though as you will be using your bonus on the Sharon and NCB can only be used on 1 vehicle.
2. Give the vehicle to your Husband to insure as his car and have your Daughter added to the policy as a named driver and if the situation changes (as above) contact the insurer to inform them of the change and pay any additional premium due. You Husband will also be insuring the vehicle with zero NCB as I dont think any companys will accept a NCB which is 4 years old.
3. When your Daughter passes her test , insure the polo as her car with either you/her dad as a named driver to lower the premium a little.
4. Insure the car as a second car for yourself with you as the main driver and your Daughter as a named driver and hope that the insurance company never find out if your Daughter drives the car more than you do.

None of the above is me saying that you intend to any such thing . Im merely pointing out your options.

bouncydog1

Just be aware that as soon as you mention that there is a young driver on the policy insurers will often rate on the youngster's age, particularly as you will also be asked whether you have the use of any other vehicle - as would your husband if he tried to insure the Polo.

You are in the same position as many other parents - either insure in yours or your husband's name and put DD on as a named driver - be prepared for a hike in premium when you advise she has passed her test - not telling insurers she has passed is withholding a material fact and they can void the policy.

Or come clean and pay the same as everyone else and give your daughter a chance to earn her own bonus. You can help keep the premium a bit cheaper by using some of the young driver tips on the site - there is no longer any such thing as cheap insurance for young drivers.