A mature woman dressed for cold weather driving in her car

Ladies' car insurance

Is car insurance cheaper for women? It’s complicated. But the good news is that reducing your risk factors will lower your premium, whoever you are.

Published - 7 Dec 2023 | Updated - 2 Oct 2025

For many years if you ticked the F box, your premium automatically got a discount. But although driving statistics may show in women’s favour in some respects, it’s not purely because of biology.

There are complex reasons why we’re all familiar with the generalisation that women are safer drivers – but we all know of perfectly safe male drivers and terrible drivers who are women.

When did women-only car insurance end?

Back in 2012 the EU passed a law that made it illegal to charge women less for their car insurance premium on the basis of their sex or gender. Since then, no discounts have been available purely for women. And after Brexit, this is one of many pieces of EU legislation that still applies in the UK.

Do women get cheaper car insurance now?

Sometimes, but not because of who they are, but because of their driving habits. Things that women statistically do, such as driving less, having clerical jobs, getting fewer driving convictions, reduce risk and, in turn, bring down premiums. But if a man gave exactly the same answers on a quote as a woman, his price would be the same as hers.

How can women get cheaper car insurance?

Women can get cheaper car insurance in exactly the same way men can, such as accurate details when getting a quote and the timing of when you get it. Take a look at these tips:

Don’t go the extra mile – if you had an average sort of year between MOTs, take a look at the mileage on each and check how many miles you actually clocked up rather than guess.
Volunteer more to pay less – weigh up how much excess you’d be prepared to pay towards a claim. The more you offer, the more your premium could drop. Find a happy medium that won’t leave you out of pocket if you do ever need to claim.
Like the price? Fix it! – if you get a quote you like with Saga Plus, the price is fixed for your next two annual renewals if nothing changes.

Occupational hazard – there are hundreds of job titles and descriptions in the insurance database. Make sure yours is right for you or see if there’s a more specific one you could use. Some occupations have a higher risk, but slight differences in job title can change the premium.
Time it right – timing matters when it comes to getting a car insurance quote. The nearer your renewal or start date, the higher your premium could be. Current thinking is 20-26 days before it’s needed is the sweet spot for the best price.

Women don’t always get cheaper car insurance

There are times though when women can find they’re actually paying more for their insurance. Women often get insured as a second named driver, which can make things cheaper for the main policyholder.

When a named driver then goes on to get their own policy, they find their premium is high because they haven’t built up their own no claim discount (NCD).

An NCD can have a dramatic effect on cost, and discovering that many years of claim-free driving as a named driver doesn’t count can be a shock. An NCD can carry over for two years, so if you’re always a named driver and never the policyholder, you could look at alternating each year.

What affects the cost of car insurance for women?

We’re all paying more for car insurance these days, so it’s good to know how you can make savings where you can.

If gender is no longer factored into your premium, what things affect it instead? Some of these you cannot change, such as how old you are. But driving safely, parking off road or choosing a less powerful car can reduce your premium, just as speeding tickets and traffic accidents can put them up.

Here are just a few of the things that decide the cost of your car insurance:

Recent claims on your car insurance
Points on your driving licence
Where you live
Where you keep your car during the day and at night
Your age
What type of car you drive
How much No Claim Discount you have.

What type of car insurance should women get?

There's no specific type of car insurance women should look for as cover needs be based on your needs. As mentioned above, establishing a No Claim Discount in your own name, and protecting it, will help reduce costs long term.

Who are Saga's car insurance policies underwritten by?

Saga’s car insurance policies, exclusively for people over 50, are unique products designed by us specifically for our customers. They are underwritten by a number of carefully selected insurers that provide high standards of quality and service.