ABI calls for radical reforms for drivers under 25

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) is calling for radical measures to improve the safety of young drivers and to lower the insurance cost and risk.

The ABI wants to introduce new measures including restriction on drivers aged under the age of 25 driving at night and an extended period of learning to drive.

The ABI says that drivers aged 18 are three times more likely to be involved in a crash than an 18-year-old driver and that more than a quarter of all motor insurance claims above £500,000 involve drivers under the age of 25.

It says only one in eight drivers on the road is under 25, but they represent one in three of the fatalities on the road. 

ABI director general Otto Thoresen said: "Radical action is needed to reduce the tragic waste of young lives on our roads, especially among the 17 to 24 age group.

"A car is potentially a lethal weapon, and we must do more to help young drivers better deal with the dangers of driving. Improving the safety of young drivers will also mean that they will face lower motor insurance costs.  

The ABI is calling for specific changes to the laws for drivers under the age of 25. It wants a minimum period of learning to drive of 12 months to ensure that young drivers have more supervised practice. This would include a ban on intensive driving courses.

However, it says that it would not ban drivers of 17 passing their test as it would reduce the age at which people can start to learn to 16 and a half.

The ABI wants to investigate graduated driver licensing models for young drivers that have been introduced in the United States and Australia. 

The graduated period would last for six months and would include restrictions on the number of young drivers allowed to be passengers in the car of a young driver and a lowering of the minimum alcohol level.

It would also include restrictions on young drivers driving between 11pm and 4am, though it proposes exemptions for people who drive to work or an educational placement.

Mr Thoresen added: “We have all side-stepped this issue for too long. Northern Ireland is introducing reforms, and politicians in Westminster should follow their lead in introducing meaningful reform to help today’s young drivers become tomorrow’s safer motorists.”

Road safety minister Stephen Hammond said: "We are already working with young people, the insurance industry and other key stakeholders to identify what else can be done to ensure that newly-qualified drivers are properly prepared and drive safely."

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