How to cut the cost of convicted driver insurance

Have you been convicted of a driving offence? Whether you’ve been caught speeding, using your phone at the wheel, running a red light or another offence, a motoring conviction is likely to result in your car insurance premium going up.
 
But why is this? Well, if you break driving law and are convicted as a result, insurers see you as a greater risk to insure.

For instance, they may consider you at risk of committing the same or a similar offence again, or at a higher risk of being involved in an accident and therefore making a claim on your policy. They essentially balance this risk by raising the price of insurance.
 
Depending on the nature of your conviction, you might even find that certain insurance companies will refuse to cover you altogether.
 
Of course you want to keep convicted driver insurance costs as low as possible – and thankfully, there are ways to do just that. Below, we share six top tips that could help you to cut the price you pay for cover.
 

1. Insure through a specialist

If you want to find affordable cover, you’re best off getting a quote with a convicted driver insurance specialist like the Insurance Factory. We have more than 20 years of market experience and work with a panel of carefully selected insurers to find the right policies for convicted drivers, for the right price.
 
The Insurance Factory doesn’t judge, and nor does it tarr all drivers with the same brush. We’ll take the time to understand your individual circumstances, before matching you with policy that comes with all of the features and benefits of standard car insurance.
A person driving a car at sunset


2. Raise your excess

Your car insurance excess is the sum of money you’re expected to pay if you were to make a claim on your policy. There’s compulsory excess, set by the provider, then there’s voluntary excess that you’re able to set yourself and change.

As a general rule, the higher the excess the lower the cost of cover, because you’re essentially accepting more risk.
 
While you might look to set the excess really high to benefit from lower cover, we certainly advise against doing this. You need to make sure that you could afford to pay the amount in a claim, on top of the agreed excess.
 

3. Reduce your mileage

It makes sense that less time spent on the road means less chance of being involved in an accident. So, have a think about whether you can switch the use of your car to other modes of transport for certain situations.
 
For instance, could you walk to drop your kids off to school and pick them up? Could you catch the bus or train into town? Could you lift share with a colleague into work and back again, taking it in turns each week? Making these simple switches could save hundreds – or even thousands – of miles over the space of a year.
 
It’s important that you’re totally honest about how many miles you cover when getting a quote for car insurance. If it was discovered that you drive a lot more than you said you did, a future claim could be denied by your provider. It’s you who will lose out.
 

4. Make car security a priority

The more steps you can take to secure your car, the better. If you have a driveway, or better still a garage, park your car on or in them, as this can result in a reduction in your premium.

This is because there’s less risk of your car being stolen or vandalised when it’s on your property.
 
You might also consider installing an approved alarm or immobiliser onto your car if you don’t have one already. Don’t forget to tell your insurer if you plan to have a security device retrofitted onto your car.
A woman driving on a motorway


5. Take a drink drive rehabilitation course

If you were caught drink driving then you may be offered what’s known as a drink drive rehabilitation course by the court that hears your case.

Not only could taking this course reduce the length of your driving ban, but it may also reduce the cost of insurance when you’re ready to get back on the road.

You’ll need to pay for this course and can only take it if it's offered to you. It’s also down to you to find the course you want to take and present this to the court.
 

6. Be careful when picking your car

If you gave up your car following a conviction and need to buy a new one before you can get back on the road, then you’ll want to choose a make and model that’s cheap to insure.

That means avoiding buying high-performance sports cars, which usually cost lots of money to insure because there’s an increased chance of them being stolen plus they’re statistically involved in more accidents than, say, your average family car.
 
Carwow.co.uk has put together a handy list of best 10 cheapest cars to insure in 2020:
 
  1. Volkswagen Polo
  2. Skoda Citigo
  3. Volkswagen Up
  4. Hyundai i10
  5. Nissan Micra
  6. Ford Ka+
  7. Ford Fiesta
  8. Vauxhall Corsa
  9. Skoda Fabia
  10. Toyota Yaris
 
If none of these models tickle your fancy, then take a look at Thatcham’s Insurance Group Rating system. It classes all car models into a group from 1 (the cheapest to insure) to 50 (the most expensive).

You can search potential models you have your eye on for a general idea of how costly they are to insure.

 

Convicted driver insurance from the Insurance Factory

Competitive insurance loaded with excellent benefits needn’t be a thing of the past, just because you received a motoring conviction.
 
The range of convictions we consider at the Insurance Factory include:
 
  • Driving without insurance
  • Driving/attempting to drive with a blood alcohol level exceeding the limit
  • Speeding on a motorway
  • Driving dangerously
  • Reckless driving
  • Non-motoring convictions
 
If you can’t see your conviction listed above, just get in touch with one of our specialists who will be able to tell you if we have a solution for you. Or, get a quote today.