Car insurance for learner and restricted drivers in New Zealand
Yes, a learner or restricted driver can be covered on New Zealand car insurance, usually by being added to the policy of the car they drive. The catch is the licence conditions: AMI, Cove, Tower and Vero all write that there is no cover when the driver is breaking them, such as a learner driving without a supervisor.
Last checked against its sources on 2026-10-30
Is a learner driver covered by car insurance in NZ?
They can be. Most policies cover anyone driving with your permission, or named drivers only, and a learner is a driver like any other. Two things change: an extra excess can apply when they crash, and cover falls away entirely if they drive outside the conditions of their learner licence.
Car insurance itself is not compulsory in New Zealand (see is car insurance compulsory?), so a learner is not breaking any law by practising in an insured or uninsured car. What they risk is a claim. Consumer Protection, part of MBIE, sets out the pricing side:
“Be aware you'll pay a higher premium for drivers who are under 25 or who don't have a full licence.”
— Consumer Protection (MBIE), Car insurance, read 2026-09-16
What happens if a learner breaks their licence conditions?
The insurer can refuse the whole claim, not just add an excess. All four wordings we read on 2026-10-30 exclude cover when the driver is not complying with their licence conditions. A learner driving alone, or a restricted driver carrying passengers without a supervisor, is the textbook case.
| Insurer | What the wording says | Exception |
|---|---|---|
| AMI (AMI0052/11, Nov 2024) | “We do not cover anything if … you or the driver of your vehicle does not meet the conditions of your or their driver licence” | Not applied if the car was stolen and a police report filed |
| Cove (CoveCar082025) | No cover for “any person using your car who, at the time of the event was … not complying with the conditions of their driver's licence” | Not applied if the driver stole the car and you complained to police |
| Tower (Comprehensive 09-24) | No cover “if your car is being driven by or is in the charge of anyone who … is not complying with the conditions of their licence” | Not applied if the person in charge of the car stole it |
| Vero (MotorPlan, Dec 2025) | “We won't cover any loss or liability where any driver … is breaching the conditions of their driver's licence”, on Comprehensive, Third Party Fire and Theft and Third Party | Does not limit the ‘Vehicle servicing and emergency’ benefit |
Vero's wording is the clearest on what “loss or liability” means: the exclusion covers damage to other people's cars as well as your own, on every level of cover. If a learner driving alone hits another car, the other owner's repair bill can land on the household rather than the insurer.
Is there an extra excess for a learner or restricted driver?
Often, and it is separate from the under-25 excess. Cove publishes the only figure: $1,000 on top of the standard excess whenever the driver does not hold a full current New Zealand licence, whatever their age. Vero and Tower name an extra excess for new or inexperienced drivers but publish no dollar amount.
| Insurer | Extra excess for a learner or restricted driver |
|---|---|
| Cove | $1,000 if the driver does not hold a full current NZ licence, on top of the standard excess (or $500 for a 21–24-year-old, whichever is higher). No cover at all under 21. |
| Vero | An “underage excess” for any driver under 25, and a “new driver excess” for drivers over 25 who have held an NZ licence for under 12 months. No figure. |
| Tower | An additional excess when the car is driven by “an inexperienced driver”. No figure. |
| AMI | Drivers under 25 can be excluded by an option on the schedule. No figure for licence type. |
Cove's age floor matters most for learners, because most learners are teenagers. Its car insurance page says: “At this stage there is absolutely no policy cover for anyone under the age of 21 – this includes non regular drivers of your vehicle that are not named on your policy.” A 16-year-old practising in a Cove-insured car is not covered at all, with or without a supervisor.
A worked example: the same crash, three ways
Take a 23-year-old on a learner licence who reverses into a parked car, causing $2,500 of damage to the other car and $1,800 to their own. On a Cove policy with a $400 standard excess, what the household pays depends entirely on whether the supervisor was in the car.
| What happened | Is it covered? | Household pays |
|---|---|---|
| Supervisor in the passenger seat | Yes | $1,400 ($400 standard + $1,000 for no full licence) |
| Learner driving alone | No: licence conditions breached | $4,300 (both repairs) |
| Same learner, now on a full licence and aged 23 | Yes | $900 ($400 standard + $500 for age 21–24) |
The gap between the first two rows is the reason this page exists. The extra excess is an irritation; the breached condition turns a $1,400 bill into the whole cost of the crash.
How do I add a learner driver to my car insurance?
Tell your insurer before they drive, give their licence type and date of birth, and ask whether they need to be named. If your policy covers only named drivers, or excludes drivers under 25, an unnamed learner may have no cover. If they will drive the car most, they must be recorded as the main driver.
- Check the drivers section of your schedule: anyone with permission, named drivers only, or an under-25 exclusion. Tower and AMI both offer an option that removes cover for drivers under 25.
- Ask the insurer to add the learner and quote the change. Adding a driver can change the premium.
- Ask for the dollar figure of any extra excess for a learner, a restricted licence and for their age, and whether those add together or only the higher one applies.
- Tell the insurer again when they move to restricted and then to full. Cove's $1,000 extra applies until a full licence is held.
- Be honest about the main driver. Naming a parent as the main driver of a car the learner mostly drives is the misrepresentation covered in car insurance in someone else's name.
What to ask before a learner or restricted driver gets behind the wheel
- Is a learner or restricted driver covered on this policy at all, and is there a minimum age?
- What is the extra excess, in dollars, for a driver without a full licence?
- Does the licence-conditions exclusion apply to damage to other people's property too?
- Do the driver excesses apply to theft or vandalism claims? Cove's wording says its driver and inexperienced driver excesses do not.
Questions
Do I need to tell my insurer about a learner driver in NZ?
Yes, if they will drive your car. Some policies cover only named drivers, and some exclude drivers under 25 unless you remove that option. Tell the insurer before they drive and ask what extra excess applies to a learner licence.
Is a learner driver covered if they drive without a supervisor?
Not on the four wordings we read. AMI, Cove, Tower and Vero all exclude cover when the driver is not complying with their licence conditions, and driving without a supervisor breaks a learner licence condition. Vero says the exclusion covers liability to others too.
Does a restricted licence affect car insurance?
Yes, in two ways. Insurers can charge an extra excess for a driver without a full licence (Cove publishes $1,000), and breaking a restricted licence condition, such as driving alone after 10pm, can mean no cover for that crash.
Can a 16-year-old learner be covered by car insurance in NZ?
On some policies. Cove publishes that it gives no cover at all to anyone under 21, named or not. Other insurers on this site publish no age floor in the pages we read but can add underage excesses or let you exclude under-25s, so ask before a teenager drives.
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Sources
- Consumer Protection (Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment), Car insurance
- AMI — AMI, Car Insurance Policy Wording (PDF)
- Cove Insurance — Cove Insurance, Car Insurance Policy Wording (PDF)
- Tower — Tower, Car insurance — Comprehensive cover (PDF)
- Vero — Vero, MotorPlan Policy (PDF)
- Cove Insurance, Car Insurance
- NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, Car licences
Read on 2026-09-16. If a source and this page disagree, the source is right.