Insurance for Teen Drivers
If the time has come to hand car keys over to your teenager, you’ll know that the time has also come to add them to your insurance policy. Teens, though well-meaning most of the time, don’t have the best track record when it comes to driving, and you may find yourself having to change date for practical driving test more than once if they’re still struggling with the rules of the road. Insurance companies are aware of this fact, and sometimes charge exorbitant premiums to add them to your policy. There are ways that you can cut that premium down so the monthly bill is one less thing you’ll have to stress over when they’re behind the wheel on a Friday night.
Probably the easiest way to control teen insurance premiums is to make sure they’re driving a safe car. Some cars are also cheaper to insure than others, and used cars always carry a lower premium than brand new ones. Check out Cars.com for reviews on the safest cars for teens. Some of the cars that insurance companies love most include the Honda CR-V and the Subaru Outback. So, when you are looking for their first car, whether that’s online or at some of your local car dealers, make sure to find out about safety features of any you like the look of so that you can make an informed choice.
You can also exercise some control over your insurance premiums once your teenager is added to the policy by raising your deductibles. Maybe you’ve always carried low deductibles on your policy like $500. This means that the insurance company forks over cash once a claim tops that mark. If you raise your deductible to $1,000 or higher, that lessens the insurance company’s exposure and that’s a development they always like.
Hopefully your teenager is already a conscientious student. In terms of insurance costs, it will benefit your premium enormously if they are. Good grade discounts are typically available from many of the major car insurance companies. You can also make sure that your teen is enrolled in a driver’s education course which will earn them, and you, brownie points from your insurance company too.
When exploring the necessity of adding your teen to your insurance policy, know that adding them to your existing policy is always better than having them on their own policy. Also know that you should shop around. Just because you’ve always used insurance company A doesn’t mean that insurance company B won’t offer a lower premium and/or better coverage. So, the best thing to do when weighing up your choices is to conduct an online search whereby looking for the cheapest car insurance provider in your area will help to narrow down the choices of all available companies that have policies that are in your price range. Once you have found the quote that appeals to you the most, then that is the one you should go with. Also be sure to explore all possible discounts for your teen like safe driving discounts, military discounts, and even some discounts offered by professional organizations.