One in five learner drivers risk driving ban and £300 fine over costly insurance mistake

Learner drivers are practising more with family and friends to reduce the high cost of lessons.placeholder image
Learner drivers are practising more with family and friends to reduce the high cost of lessons.
Learner drivers across the UK are being warned that driving without proper insurance could lead to serious consequences - including a £300 fine, six penalty points, and even a driving ban.

With the soaring cost of driving lessons, two in five learners (38%) say they turned to practising with family and friends to reduce the high cost of lessons with a professional instructor, reveals research by Tempcover, the temporary car insurance service.

The research also reveals that concerningly, a fifth of learner drivers aged 18 to 34 years old (19%) admit to practising without any insurance cover. While, two fifths (42%) wrongly believe they’re automatically covered under the car owner's insurance while driving with them.

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A quarter (24%) said they didn’t consider insurance, and a fifth (22%) were willing to take the risk of being caught without cover.

But failing to have the correct insurance doesn’t just risk a fine - it could completely derail a learner’s driving journey.

If caught driving without insurance, learner drivers face a fixed penalty of £300 and six points on their provisional licence. Worse still, if the case goes to court, they could receive an unlimited fine and be disqualified from driving entirely.

The warning comes as temporary insurance provider Tempcover reports sales of temporary learner driver policies rose 238% in 2024, suggesting more learners are turning to private practice, relying on informal arrangements outside of professional driving schools.

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Claire Wills-McKissick, temporary insurance expert at Tempcover, comments: “Learners should be aware that skipping insurance to save money isn’t just risky - it’s illegal. If you’re caught you could find yourself £300 out of pocket, with six points on your licence before you’ve even passed, and facing the risk of being banned from driving altogether.

“It’s important to double-check insurance cover before any private practice. A small upfront cost for the correct insurance cover could prevent a financial nightmare and safeguard a learner driver’s future on the road.”

Driving lessons now cost between £25 and £45 per hour, and with the average learner needing 45 hours of lessons plus 22 hours of private practice to pass, the cost has skyrocketed to between £1,125 and £2,025 for lessons alone[6] - before factoring extra costs like tests and fuel.

Other challenges include a shortage of professional instructors. Hotspots across the UK report just one driving instructor per 350–400 learners, with waiting lists for practical test slots stretching up to six months.

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Tempcover learner cover costs as little as £24.21 for a day of cover, making it 31% cheaper than a £35 driving lesson[8]. Temporary learner cover can be a lifeline for learners, offering a flexible and cost-effective solution to gain valuable supervised experience without the financial burden of traditional driving lesson costs.

Claire continues: “Temporary learner insurance not only gives insurance protection but also allows learners to practise with trusted friends and family, accommodating irregular schedules with pay-as-you-go flexibility to log more hours behind the wheel.”

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