Say goodbye to taxi driver mates

Getting your licence as a young driver can be the best feeling in the world. However, with a car comes great responsibility, not to mention the constant nagging favours from friends and family begging for a lift here and a ride there.

In a recent survey by Gocompare.com, it was found that 24% of drivers between 17 and 25 ‘HATE’ being the designated driver for all their friends with 5% claiming it causes tension between friendships.

60% of young drivers claimed to ferry their friends around and 29% of these said they were quite happy to do friends a favour. However, 11% of these said that they felt friends started to abuse their generosity and take their lift giving for granted.

The survey showed that 29% od young drivers weren’t just giving their friends lifts in the direction they were going, but that drivers are going between 6-10 miles out of their way to take friends home. It also showed 11% of drivers claimed they drove a whopping 6-20 miles out o their way for friends without receiving contribution to petrol etc.

Any motorist will confirm that petrol isn’t cheap and young drivers are often finding themselves out of pocket after giving lifts to friends. 20% confirmed that lifts cost them between £11-£15 a week and a further 12% claimed that they were out of pocket £16-£20 a week calculating to a whopping £936 a year on average.

Young drivers admit that keeping a car on the road is often difficult financially with 20% admitting that they struggle. And yet only 24% said that they would accept petrol money from friends when offered but 18% say they never are.

It turns out that these generous young drivers have a right to feel miffed, as 19% of non-drivers openly admit to asking for lifts from friends as it’s a cheaper alternative to public transport. 21% of non-drivers claimed that the reason they hadn’t learned to drive/ bought a vehicle themselves, was because of the extreme costs that owning a car incurs. A shocking 11% felt that they didn’t need to bother learning at all because they have friends to drive them anyway.

A spokesperson from Gocompare.com was quoted saying, “As a father, I sometimes feel like ‘I’m not a taxi’ is my personal catchphrase, so it’s interesting to see a quarter of young drivers feel the same.

“However, it’s concerning that some young drivers are being left seriously out of pocket thanks to their friends, especially when a fifth (20%) of young drivers are struggling to keep their cars on the road due to running costs.

“Young drivers already face some of the highest insurance premiums in the UK, with the average premium for those aged 17-25 standing at £1,617, more than double the price those in their 30’s pay.

“If you find that being a chauffeur for your friends is stretching your finances you should tell them as they may not be aware of the costs involved, especially if they don’t own a car themselves. Don’t be afraid to ask for a contribution towards the cost of the journey, as you’ll likely find most people are more than willing to chip in, even if they require a little nudge to do so.

“Don’t forget, there are a host of ways to save money on your motoring costs, for instance, shopping around on your car insurance could save you up to £239 a year, so it’s well worth looking around and to see if you can drive down the costs of motoring.”

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