Learner Driver Insurance

No – only your qualified instructor’s insurance covers you as a learner automatically. When you’re in your driving instructor’s car, they have a special kind of insurance policy that covers you so long as you’re paying for their services. If an accident were to happen, it would be for them to claim and sort out, so learners need not worry about insurance at all when paying for classes.

But, if you’re arranging private sessions with a friend or family member, you will need a separate policy to cover learner drivers. The car owner could try adding you to their policy, but since you haven’t even passed yet, there’s a good chance their insurance provider will say no – and cover could cost a lot of money regardless. Because their insurance won’t apply to you, you’ll need another arrangement. And that’s where our short-term cover comes in. You can get learner insurance for one day, one week, or one month.

Learner driver insurance policies are tailored to the needs of provisional drivers. Tempcover’s learner insurance is a flexible, short-term option that’s ideal if you’re learning to drive and want to get some experience outside of your usual lessons, in a different car.

This type of cover can be taken out for the time period that suits you, unlike standard policies that usually offer annual cover. This makes our provisional insurance a cost-effective way of getting covered while learning to drive. Get a quote today to find out how affordable it could be.

You can get learner driver insurance on your own car, as long as it meets our eligibility criteria. The vehicle must:

• Be taxed and in a roadworthy condition with a current and valid MOT (unless you are using the insurance policy to take the vehicle to a pre-booked MOT).
• Be insured with an annual insurance policy if the owner of the vehicle is not you (the learner and policyholder).
• Be used only by you when you are being supervised to learn to drive.
• Not be modified in any way except if designed to aid disabled drivers.
• Not be a hired or rented vehicle.

No, a learner driver is only insured to drive the car that’s named on the policy. But nothing is stopping you from paying for another provisional insurance policy on a different car if you wanted to get some practice by using a second vehicle.

You can find cheap provisional insurance by choosing the right insurance for your situation and only paying for cover when you’re actually behind the wheel.

Without road experience, insurers will always increase the cost of provisional insurance. To get cheap learner driver insurance, you will first need to choose the right type of insurance:

Learner driver insurance – The ideal option for learner drivers who want something more flexible and don’t want the huge expense of an annual policy. If you only practice on weekends, learner insurance for one day, or weekend insurance is likely to be the best option. If your test is in a week or a month, getting just one week’s insurance or one month’s learner insurance will be more cost-effective than an annual policy.

With temporary learner driver insurance, there are no long-term commitments, so if you pass your driving test sooner than expected, you aren’t left tied into a contract.

Become a named driver – Being a named driver on your parents or other family members’ policy can be a better option if you’re planning on learning for a long time or aren’t sure exactly when you’ll be practising. However, there are a few drawbacks, including the risk to the vehicle owner’s No Claims Discount and the likelihood that the cost of their insurance will go up to cover you.

Annual learner driver insurance – This is a long-term option if you aren’t planning on taking or potentially passing your test in the near future. Once you have passed your test, you can update the details of the policy and continue with that insurance provider or cancel the policy (both actions will come at an additional cost).

Choosing the right policy for your needs is the best way to get cheap provisional insurance. You can also reduce the cost of your policy by taking the following steps:

• Practice in a small-engine car in a low-insurance group
• Increase any voluntary excess on the policy
• Add a more experienced driver to your policy (if it’s your vehicle and you are still the main driver)
• Choose comprehensive cover over lower levels of cover

Adding a learner driver to an insurance policy can be quite costly, but will depend on various factors including age of the learner and the vehicle itself. With learner insurance, you'll pay one flat fee for the time the learner needs - from one hour to 28 days.

Yes, you can get one-week learner driver insurance. Like other temporary car insurance policies, you can get learner insurance for 12 hours, a day, a week, or a month, up to 28 days at a time. So, whether you need that last bit of practice before your test or you’re getting behind the wheel for the first time, you can select a policy duration that fits your needs.

No, you probably don’t – unless you’re planning to drive a car other than your instructor’s.

As was the case during your lessons, if you take the test in your instructor’s car, their specialised insurance will automatically cover you. But if you want to take the test in your car or a friend/family member’s car, you’ll have to arrange temporary learner car insurance to do this. You will also need some form of learner insurance if you’re driving someone else’s car.

Once you pass your test, your learner driver insurance will become invalid, so you’ll need to make sure you have other arrangements for this.

Potentially, yes. All the same laws apply to drivers learning on ‘private land’. If you are learning to drive in an area the public has access to, for example, a footpath, then you must have the same insurance as you would need to drive on the road.

Without the right weekly or monthly learner driver insurance, not only do you risk having your car seized but you could face fines and see points added to your licence. This can have a big negative impact on your premiums when buying annual insurance after you’ve passed.

Having the right insurance is not only the law, but it gives learners that little bit of extra reassurance when practising on the road.

You can get an unlimited fine, be banned from driving and get up to 8 penalty points for driving without insurance.

As a learner, you can also be fined up to £1,000 and get up to 6 penalty points on your provisional licence if you drive without the right supervision.

If a learner is caught driving alone, they could invalidate their insurance and face a potential driving ban.

You need your own insurance as a learner driver if you own your car. Your family member or friend will usually be covered on this.

If you’re practising in someone else’s car, you need to either:

• Make sure you’re covered by the car owner’s insurance policy as a learner driver.
• Take out your own insurance policy that covers you driving in the car as a learner driver.

Learner drivers can be fined up to £1,000 and also get 6 points on their licence if they do not have the correct supervision.

A learner cannot drive a car without supervision. This supervisor can be a either a qualified driving instructor or friend or family member who:

• Is over 21 years old (with a Tempcover policy, the supervisor must be over 25).
• Had held a full UK driving licence for three years.
• Is qualified to drive the type of vehicle they are learning in.
• Must not currently be banned from driving.

As a supervisor, you need to be covered in the learner’s vehicle. If this is a vehicle you own, you’ll already have a policy. If you’re practising in a car owned by the learner or somebody else, make sure you are added as a named driver or have temporary car insurance in place.

Find out more about learning to drive with family and friends on the UK government’s website.

Yes, it is a legal requirement for learners to display L plates (or D plates in Wales) on both the front and rear of the vehicle when driving, whether that's private practice or with a professional driving instructor.

Yes, the supervisor must ensure there is valid learner insurance in place when someone with a provisional licence is taking a private car out for practice.