Young Driver Insurance - Is this legal?

justontime

When my husband died I kept his car as my main car and kept my old micra as a run-around (to be honest it is far more reliable than the Galaxy!). I had thought that my daughter (now 18) would want the micra but she does not want to learn to drive yet. Her boyfriend has recently passed his test and although he has grander aspirations than an old (but well maintained) Micra, he is limited by the cost of insurance. If I keep the ownership of the car in my name and continue to maintain it, would it be legal for him to insure the car in his name as the main driver and me as a named driver, or would I have to do it. We do not live at the same address. I would need the car to get to work on occasions when my other car was out of action or being serviced, but apart from that he would have full use of the car. The car is not worth much but it is in good condition, properly maintained and it would be cheaper to insure than others that he was looking at. Sorry if I am asking a stupid question, but I wouldn't want to break the law.

airforce_beret

Don't quote me on this but I'm quite sure that when you fill out the online forms you can put whether or not you own the car. So he should be able to fill it in for himself and then just put you as a named driver.....seems logically but things are often not this simple.

aj3001

Most insurance companies will not touch anyone who is not the owner and registered keeper. You will have to go as the main driver and him as a named driver.

Put your daughter on the policy as well, will help to balance out the premium with just the boyfriend

justontime

From what I have read on here it would be fraud or ilegal for me to be listed as the main driver if I wasn't the main driver in reality. Sorry if I am missing something obvious, but I just want to get it right.

MarkyMarkD

aj3001 worded it slightly incorrectly. Amendments in bold

aj3001 wrote:

Most insurance companies will not touch anyone who is not the owner and registered keeper. You will have to insure it in your name with him as a named driver and with him specified as the main driver.

Janusian

It is all to do with Insurable Interest. If it is your car, but he insures it, then who would get the benefit of a claim. Say the car was stolen, if it was his policy he would get the benefit, but he has not lost anything, it was your car.

Also if there is a third party claim which arises when there is no driver in the car, e.g. handbrake fails and car rolls down a hill, then you as registered owner are liable, yet you would not have insurance on the car.

So go with what MarkyMarkD said.

MarkyMarkD

Thanks, Janusian, but in the "no driver" situation you mention, I believe that the last driver is responsible.

marcellep

If you are the owner and keeper you must insure it, your future son in law does not have insureable interest in the car, which means he would not suffer a loss if the car was written off.

You will struggle to find insurance companies who will insure you as the policy holder and your son in law as main driver, this is seen in the insurance industry as "fronted" - meaning your putting this in your name to obtain cheaper insurance.

If the car is registered at your address it must be insured there, only alternative is to change ownership to him at his address, When you do come to insure it either way you do it,make sure you both have Social, domestic, pleasure, and commuting to and from one place of work.

Hope that helps

MarkyMarkD

marcellep wrote: »

You will struggle to find insurance companies who will insure you as the policy holder and your son in law as main driver, this is seen in the insurance industry as "fronted" - meaning your putting this in your name to obtain cheaper insurance.

That's quite wrong, marcellep. "Fronting" is insuring the car in the parent's (usually) name and claiming that the parent is the main driver when in fact it's the child's car.

If you insure it in anybody's name but clearly state who the main driver is, that isn't fronting, it's being honest.