Bedford Driving Lessons

Passing your driving test is usually a time to celebrate. But for Independent reader Mike Ford, his joy was cut short when he passed his test last month because his insurer suddenly withdrew his cover. The reason? Marks & Spencer said it didn’t want to insure the 17-year-old any more because, as a qualified young driver, he was too much of a risk. M&S isn’t alone in penalising young people for being successful learners. Our tables below show that most insurance providers ramp up the cost of cover, but few go as far as M&S in simply leaving their customers uninsured. The move angered Mike’s father, Rob. “I find it totally reprehensible that a company of M&S’s standing should take on a provisional driver in full knowledge that they would cancel the policy the minute he passed his test, with no prior warning,” Mr Ford said. “What sort of signal does this send out to young drivers and their parents? Insurers warn of the dire consequences of a driver being found to be fronting [when someone other than the main driver is declared as the policyholder]; yet they treat honest policyholders with contempt.” More