The cost of getting on the road for the first time has risen to unprecedented highs of £7,609 as drivers are facing the biggest spikes since before the pandemic.
For the average driver aged between 17 and 20 years old, the cost of getting on the road and driving for the first year has gone up by 13 per cent from 2019.
MoneySuperMarket calculated the initial costs of getting on the road which include purchasing a licence, lessons and a test plus the cost of actually driving have all contributed to the rise in price.
Car insurance has played a huge factor in cost spikes with average prices for premiums in the UK at £995, with young people affected worse, with Ulez and parking fines also playing contributing roles.
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Nearly half of young people said they could not afford to get on the road
GETTYThe capital has the worst prices for car insurance reaching £2,449 per year, which is £246 more a year than Birmingham.
Cardiff has the lowest total cost of getting on the road at £1,113 while Glasgow has seen greater increases in the cost of getting on the road than anywhere else in the UK with an eight per cent increase in costs.
Sara Newell, motoring expert at MoneySuperMarket, said: “Parents of today's young drivers generally had a much less expensive experience when it was our turn to get on the road.
“95 per cent of people we asked underestimated how much it costs for young drivers today - which is no surprise given it’s 135 per cent above the rate of inflation over the last 35 years.”
According to research, nearly half of young people said they could not afford to get on the road without parental support as average costs reach nearly £2,000 from £1,240 in 2019.
Minimum wage for a 17-year-old is just £6.40 an hour, with the compare site estimated that young drivers would need to work 1,188 hours and spend more than half of their annual income just to stay on the road.
Newell added: “When you’re faced with the decision of slogging it out as a taxi service, or helping financially so your kids can get on the road, it’s not a straightforward choice - as our latest Household Money Index shows.
“If you’re a parent or carer of kids who are approaching 17, knowing the breakdown of motoring costs means that you can prepare and chat through how much you might be able to help. Shopping around for the best deal or comparing policies with telemetry can help reduce the bill.”
Meanwhile, a majority (53 per cent) of under-25s who had put off getting behind the wheel said it was because driving became too expensive.
To help young drivers, only 10 per cent of parents said they would pay 100 per cent of what it costs to get on the road while around twice that number disagreed noting they would pay nothing as they also couldn’t afford the price.
The research followed the Department for Transport figures which found the number of 17-20-year-olds with a full UK driving licence has never been lower.
The high cost of learning was flagged as a key reason young people are putting off getting their licence well into their 20s.
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The high cost of learning was flagged as a key reason young people are putting off getting their licence
PAHaving someone else named on the car is a legitimate way to bring down the cost of insurance as long as the more experienced motorist also drives the car, according to Compare the Market.
Young drivers could also consider a telematics policy, also known as black box insurance, which provides more accurate risk pricing and may reduce premiums for those who demonstrate that they are safe drivers.
