I bought my Son a 2012 Fiesta 1.25 80hp Zetec 4 years ago. We test drove the Corsa and Polo at the time and the Fiesta was head and shoulders the better car, the Corsa felt cheap and crude, the Polo dull and boring, which I appreciate might be good for a new driver. He's put 50,000 miles on it and its now done a total of 62000 miles, it has been perfect. Selling now as he is moving to work overseas but it's cleaned up inside and out really well. Insurance wise I think they were all pretty much the same - we didn't go with a black box because 1/ he's a swimmer so 5am journeys were frequent and 2/ I would have hated this at 17 and still would have an objection to my driving being monitored!

I wanted a bigger car at that age (and more power!), I've never been a great fan of superminis. With all the different VW engine configurations the Seat uses there must be one to suit, if the OP goes down that route. I have to say though if new Corsas or Fiestas are being considered the quality of these has improved massively. Fiestas have always been pretty decent but Corsas up until the recent facelift were absolutely awful in terms of cabin materials and driving experience, now they're genuinely nice cars especially in 3 door guise which look better for a young man