First cars for 17 year olds: what you need to know

You’ll have many things to think about when buying your first car, but making sure you’ve got the right one is the most important thing.

We’ve looked at the cheapest cars to insure for 17-year-old drivers so you can make informed decisions about which car is right for you.

How much is car insurance for a 17 year old?

We base car insurance costs on a number of factors. The value of the vehicle itself is one, but it’s not the only factor to consider.

One of the easiest ways to determine which cars will be the cheapest to insure is by looking at their group rating. The lower the group rating, the cheaper the insurance will be.

Knowing roughly how much you’ll be spending on your average annual premium is a must before you buy a car.

We’ve created the below table which shows the 10 cars that were on average cheapest to insure for our 17-year-old policyholders from May 2022 to May 2023.

The cheapest cars to insure for 17 year olds

*Car models with 50 or more policies on our system

What other costs will I have to pay for my first car?

Car tax

Unless you choose a Band A vehicle, it’s electric or built before 1973, you’ll have to pay car tax.

MOT

An MOT checks your car’s road worthiness and safety. A dealership or garage usually does it.

You can read about car MOTs here.

Fuel

Choosing a car with good fuel consumption should be a high priority before you buy. Not only does better fuel consumption save you money, it’s good for the environment too.

Think about car sharing as well. If you’re making the same journey as somebody else every day, or even just sometimes, you can save money by doing it together.

Tyres

With a good set of tyres, you should be able to get around 20,000 miles out of them. It’s important to check tyre pressure regularly and make sure you prioritise safety.

Repairs and services

However good a driver you are, problems will always arise over time and car maintenance is a safety essential. Most cars only need a thorough service once a year so this is something that can be easily budgeted for.

Pick the right insurance for you

It’s worth thinking about black box insurance. With black box insurance, you’re rewarded for how well you drive and if you are a safe driver you could even be rewarded with lower premiums. 

For up-to-date information, visit our Car Insurance Pricing Index. We update this monthly to show the cheapest cars to insure across multiple age groups, so you'll know what car is best for you as you get older.