Car insurance for young drivers is expensive for several reasons. For starters, teenage drivers have very little experience behind the wheel, which makes them especially prone to driving mistakes, such as failing to keep a proper following distance, failing to check blind spots, and not wearing a seat belt. What’s more, due to their immaturity, they are more prone to risky driving behaviors, such as reckless driving, speeding, running a red light, distracted driving, driving under the influence and drowsy driving, which increases their risk of getting into an accident, resulting in higher insurance premiums.
There are a couple of ways for lowering insurance premiums for teens, though, including having the teenager drive a safe car, dropping certain types of coverage, raising some deductibles and having the teen complete a driver’s ed course, among other things.
Changing the Coverage
Insurance rates for teenage drivers can be lowered by raising the comprehensive and collision deductibles to about $1,000. This way, the driver will not be making small claims frequently, which will help them get a claims-free discount.
In some cases, dropping comprehensive and collision coverage altogether is also recommended, specifically for drivers owning older cars that are not worth much more than the deductible.
Buying a Safe Car
Driving a car with a wide variety of safety features and a good safety rating can also help bring down insurance costs. All car insurance companies offer lower premiums for safe vehicles that are equipped with anti-lock brake systems, side-impact and passenger-side airbags, as well as anti-theft devices.
Completing a Driver’s Ed Course
Most insurance companies offer discounts for teenage drivers who have certificates for completing a driver’s education course. These types of certificates indicate that the driver knows the rules of the road and has sufficient behind-the-wheel training, which means they have the practical skills and the theoretical knowledge that can help lower the risk of accidents.
Getting Good Grades
If a teenage driver can manage to maintain a GPA of at least 3.0, there is a good chance they will qualify for a good student credit of up to 15%, which is offered by most auto insurance companies, so parents are advised to encourage their children to try to be better at school.
The bottom line is that teen drivers are generally more expensive to insure, but insurance costs can be significantly reduced by avoiding some of the most expensive mistakes that parents of teen drivers make, such as failing to send their teen to a safe driving course or not asking for a good student discount.