ROAD safety charity the IAM is offering weekly motoring tips from Britain’s top advanced driver, Peter Rodger. As International Youth Day is coming up next week, he is offering tips for young drivers.

* As a young driver, shopping for car insurance can be a stressful task – you’re likely to be faced with many unaffordable insurance quotes. Use comparison sites to shop around, and consider having a telematics box fitted to bring your premiums down. Further driver training will also bring costs down.

* As part of learning to drive, it’s likely that you will have been taught how to do basic checks on your vehicle – tyre tread and pressure, fluid levels, lights, and mirrors and windows. It’s important that you spend a few minutes each week doing each of these checks in order to avoid a breakdown and drive safely.

* The law states that you are allowed up to 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood before you are over the drink-drive limit. However, it’s impossible to judge how much you can drink and still be under the limit, so make it none for the road. And beware the morning-after effect – there may still be enough alcohol in your system to land you with a conviction for drink-driving.

* It’s inevitable that once you pass your test you’ll be expected to taxi about groups of your friends. But passengers are known to be one of the greatest and most disruptive in-car distractions. Make sure you keep your concentration on the road, rather than on those in the passenger seats.

* Learner drivers are currently not allowed on the motorway. This means that once they pass, they are faced with the often daunting task of driving on high-speed, unfamiliar roads. But there is no need to be anxious – motorways are statistically our safest roads, and the skills you learned to pass your test will equip you to take them on. Remember to check your mirrors more regularly and leave a minimum two second gap between yourself and the car in front.

IAM chief examiner Peter Rodger said: “There are many new challenges that come alongside the sense of freedom you get once passing your test and being entrusted to drive solo.

“It’s important that young drivers don’t see the removal of the L-plates as the end of their driving development. Skill and knowledge come with experience. But while you’re still building this, further training is the best way to develop skills in areas which you lack confidence in. And the fact that this will bring down your insurance premiums is an added bonus!”