How to Save on Car Insurance for Your Teen
Ease the cost of adding a teen driver to your insurance policy by following these tips.
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Getting a driver’s license has long been a rite of passage for teenagers. When that milestone arrives, parents have concerns about not only the safety of their child behind the wheel, but also the added cost of insuring their newly minted driver. Here are a few cost-saving tips when it comes time to add a teen driver to an auto insurance policy.
Which Wheels?
Give careful consideration to the vehicle that your teen driver will be using. It’s usually less expensive to insure an older, non-sporty vehicle, such as a used sedan. Certain newer vehicles, however, come with extra safety features such as blind-spot detection and adaptive cruise control that not only provide added protection but may reduce your premiums. Work with your agent to compare the insurance costs for the vehicles in contention.
Making the Grade
Now there’s another incentive for your child to earn good grades. Many insurers offer a discount for teen drivers who maintain a “B” grade point average or higher. Families provide their teen’s report card to their insurance agent for verification, on a basis ranging from quarterly to yearly.
Find out about AAA Memberships for your teen drivers.
Learn MoreOn Course for Savings
According to the Centers for Disease Control, the risk of motor vehicle crashes is higher among 16- to 19-year-olds than among any other age group. A driver’s education course or defensive driving course not only can better prepare teenagers for the road, but it may qualify them for an insurance discount. In previous decades, many school districts offered such classes. However, as schools have cut their budgets, driving classes in many states have largely become the purview of for-profit driving schools and private instructors. Ask friends and family for recommendations for instructors.
Home or Away?
How frequently your child drives will influence the size of their financial impact on your car insurance policy. For instance, if your child attends college more than 100 miles away and doesn’t take a vehicle with them, they’re considered an occasional driver instead of a primary driver. As a result, the cost to insure them drops—freeing up money for college care packages.