Lower Insurance Premiums for Teen Drivers

Just when you think you have your finances in complete control, your child starts to creep toward age sixteen and you can feel the cost of car insurance tugging at your savings as if the realization that your child is about to start driving is not worry enough. There are a few ways, however, to curb that expense, and, as is the intention of most insurance companies, saving money on premiums is often connected to the safety.

Most any company will award a discount for someone who has taken a driver's safety course, and those are available to current and prospective drivers. You will find courses that are part of regular high school curriculum, or you can find courses by calling the department of motor vehicles or even your current insurance provider.

Of course, the best way to keep premiums down is to keep a good driving record. You can tell that to your child repeatedly, but it is one of those things that needs some reinforcement. Educating children about safety by showing the devastation that could happen is one way, but kids usually are not persuaded unless a tragedy hits close to home. They do speak cold hard cash, however. Have your child be responsible for half the price of his car insurance. If he does not pay up, he does not drive. This can cause quite a conundrum if he cannot drive, because he cannot get to work to make the money to pay. It may sound harsh, but it is realistic, after all isn't that what would happen to you if you didn't pay?

Of course, you are not going to find much cost relief if you provide your teen with a hot rod sports car, but lower rates abound for certain types of cars. Insuring your child to drive your minivan will certainly be less expensive than making him the primary driver of a two door, shiny red coupe.

Licensing for young drivers today is becoming a more difficult process, and as a result companies are offering comparable rates. Unlike their parents, teens today do not get an unrestricted license at the age of sixteen. There is a permit to obtain, and after six months as a practicing driver, a teen can get a license to drive in daylight with no more than one non-family passenger. These safety precautions are finding lower premiums for young drivers and their parents.

For all drivers and even for other types of policies, a hard and fast way to decrease your monthly bills is to take a higher deductible, which is the amount you will pay upfront for a claim before the insurer will begin to foot the bill. A quick cost benefit equation will help you to determine if lower monthly premiums are worth the higher deductible. It is different for different families, but well worth figuring.