Young drivers are being forced to pay out high premiums to insure their cars, which it has been suggested is the main reason that a number of teenagers fail to insure their cars.

One learner driver was very surprised when he received a quote from one car insurance provider pricing his cover at a staggering £17,000 to insure his £2,000 Vauxhall Corsa.

James Hayes, a student turning 17 next week, saved for a long time to be able to afford his one-litre car but has been stunned at the high quotes for car insurance.

James’ case highlights the problem that many young drivers are facing – that insurance providers are continuing to charge very high premiums, which is argued to be a way ofputting off young male drivers.

The scarce availability of reasonably priced insurance being offered to young drivers is being blamed on an influx in uninsured drivers, which causes the cost of cover to increase for others and leads to further drivers dismissing insurance all together.

Another illegal method commonly used to cheat the system is when the young person gets a parent to state that they are the main driver which lowers the premium.

Direct line car insurance told him that all quotes generated by customers are stored – so if a potential customer is given a quote but later realised it was too expensive and repeated the process but adding a parent as the main driver instead, the insurer would not pay out as the system would recognise that it was obviously fronted.

A spokeswoman for Direct line insurance said: ‘Fronting is fraud and the consequences could be grave – ranging from an additional premium being required, to the cancelling of a policy (and therefore non-payment of the claim) as well as the policyholder being added to the financial industry’s fraud database.’

Insurers see young males as a riskier group based on accident statistics which penalises anyone that happens to fall into this category.

You are 10 times more likely to be killed or seriously hurt as a result of a car accident if you are aged between 17 – 20, according to the road safety charity Brake, while on average 1 in 5 of all new drivers crash their car within 6 months of passing their test..

These figures are also reflected by the Association of British Insurers (ABI), with studies suggesting that the average claim made by a young driver is three times higher than an older driver.

But the insurance companies refusal to offer affordable cover to male teenagers has led to almost a quarter of all young male drivers to drive uninsured, according to Brake, which ends up costing all motorists as they foot the £500million annual bill for accidents caused by uninsured drivers.

Fines are given when an uninsured driver is caught for driving without cover, however these fines can be as small as £200 plus six points on the licence – which could be a more appealing cost than forking out thousands for a simple policy.

According to the AA, car insurance premiums have jumped 11% in the past 3 months alone. The average car insurance premium for drivers who spend some time shopping around is £704, but the majority of young drivers can expect to pay more than £1,500.

Mr Hayes says: ‘I used six comparison websites and the cheapest comprehensive quote I found as a learner driver was £2,257 with ibuyeco. This rises to £3,555 with Admiral when I pass my test. It’s not right when my car is only worth £2,000.’

The most expensive comprehensive quote was from The Green Insurance Company, quoting him £17,000 per year.

Mr Hayes said he wanted to purchase a higher level of cover than the third party-only insurance on offer and doesn’t want to invalidate his insurance by fronting.