Mileage, vehicle value and named drivers: what insurers look at when calculating your premium

May 6, 2026

Do you often wonder how your motor insurer calculates the price of your car insurance premium? What factors are taken into account, and what’s most likely to swing the balance in your favour?

The following brief blog might offer some insights.

It’s all about the facts and figures

Any insurer can only go on the information you provide. So, it’s critically important that you give accurate facts and figures in any insurance application. Indeed, if you deliberately mislead an insurer by giving false information – in an attempt to get cheaper car insurance cover, for example – you may commit insurance fraud, which can have serious consequences.

As we explained in a previous posting, insurance relies on accurate information being provided to the insurer – and that requires the insured to fully disclose all relevant information.

Which facts and figures?

Some facts and figures are likely to be important to your insurer.

Age and mileage

The mileage of the vehicle, for example, may give an indication of its condition, previous use, and likely value.

The value of the car is clearly an important element – a “material fact” in insurers’ terms – since it underlies the likely costs involved in repairing the vehicle or the value if it is written off.

A possible exception to the underlying logic of age, mileage, and valuation is the case of classic cars. The age of the classic car, of course, may add to its value. Its mileage – even when a reliable record is available – may have less bearing on its value. As our blog highlights, the key facts likely to concern any insurer of a classic car are whether it has been restored or otherwise modified, and its value.

The drivers

The number, age, and experience of the drivers may also have a bearing on the premium you pay.

Your first decision will be whether only named drivers are going to drive your car or if the insurance should extend to any driver. Naming the drivers and declaring their driving history gives an insurer a known quantity, whereas any driver may have all manner of motoring convictions or claims. If you choose named drivers only, premiums may often be lower than policies that allow any driver.

In some cases, premiums may also be more favourable where two named drivers are included, and both have a good driving record and relevant experience.

If the principal driver is relatively young and inexperienced, some insurers may reduce the premium (depending on the circumstances) for a named drivers policy if a second, older, and more experienced driver is added. This is most unlikely to be offered on specialist classic car insurance policies.

Whoever you intend to drive your car, however, be sure to declare accurate and truthful information. If it is a youngster who will be the principal or only driver, for example, do not be tempted to put the name of a parent or an older, more experienced person as the main driver in the hope of getting cheaper premiums. (This is known as “fronting”).

As the Association of British Insurers (ABI) explains, this may amount to insurance fraud, which can result in fines or imprisonment, invalidation of the insurance policy, any claims being declined, higher premiums in future, and your name on the insurance industry’s fraud databases.

We can help

Accurate and honest facts and figures make all the difference when arranging your motor insurance. Here at Alan Blunden, we can look at your individual circumstances and help you consider suitable cover based on your needs, at what we believe is a competitive price.