A recent study has revealed that young people in the UK are giving up on the idea of learning to drive.
Research carried out by Honest John has shown that the number of 17-year olds taking their practical driving test has fallen by more than 100,000 since 2007, while the number of current learners under the age of 25 has fallen by 20 per cent.
Some experts believe the rising cost of car insurance could be a major influence on the figures, with the Insurance Premium Tax (IPT) doubling to 12 per cent in just a few years.
Whiplash claims and changes in compensation calculation have also impacted the rising cost of car insurance, which some believe has a direct correlation to the fall in young drivers.
Another factor that needs to be considered is the overall cost of learning to drive. According to Honest John’s research, a learner driver will pay £1,529 on average to gain their licence with 47 hours of professional tuition required.
Whilst the average pass rate has increased, the overall number of tests conducted in the UK has drastically dropped, decreasing from 1.8 million to 1.5 million with young people accounting for a big part of the lost demographic.
