My son just turned fifteen and is studying to get his learner permit. Do I have to add him to my policy when he gets it? Isn’t a teen driver insurance rate so much higher?

Gabby

Thanks for asking, Gabby.

Yes, you do have to add him, and yes, a teen driver insurance rate will be higher than the one you currently have. You gotta do what you gotta do, though, and if you do it right, then your teen driver insurance rate does not have to be exorbitant. Here are a few steps to follow when insuring your teen driver.

• Keep it in the family.

A teenager should not have his own car insurance policy, even if they have a job to pay the premium. While adding a teen driver insurance rate to your own policy may seem undesirable, it will come out cheaper than two separate policies. Your teen being on your policy will lower his risk rate, and give him cheaper rates. Not so great for you, but since you’ll probably be helping out with the payments, it’s best to have a lower total than one lower and one very high.

• Keep the grades up.

When your son starts driving, he can get a good teen driver insurance rate if he makes good grades in school. Make an ultimatum. Good grades, you drive; bad grades, you walk. You’re killing two birds with one stone, there.

• Keep looking.

Anytime you’re about to make a major change in your policy, you need to look at what other companies have to offer. Your teen driver insurance rate from one company may be much better than the teen driver insurance rate you have with the company you already own a policy with, because at your current company teens might file more claims.

• Keep it crash worthy.

If you buy the right car, not only can you get a discount on your teen driver insurance rate, but you can also be sure that your teen is more protected while on the road.

• Keep it safe.

Don’t just buy your teen the car and let him loose. Make sure that he understands driving safety, and enroll him in a driving course or two to enforce that understanding. Keep on top of his driving habits and correct him when he is out of line. If he ever wants to get a cheap teen driver insurance rate, then he needs to start his good driving record ASAP.

• Keep it real.

You can’t just tell your son to drive safe, you have to lead by example. Drive well, follow the laws, and try to drive a safe car to show him what should be done. Point out how you drive to him, and use it as a conversation starter on driving safety.

• Keep it innovative.

Many states have adopted a graduated driver’s license program which restricts teen’s driving priveleges while they are younger, and as they get older allows them more freedom, until they reach the age of eighteen. Even if your state does not have this law, you can ensure driver safety by creating a system of your own just for you and your son.

Cheers,

Fashun Guadarrama.

I know my teenager drives well, but he doesn’t pay as much attention as necessary at times and I’m worried that he could get into an accident and hurt himself or cause our car insurance rates to go up. Is there anything that I can do about this? He’s a good kid, so I don’t want to take away his privileges.

Mary Anne

Great question, Mary Anne.

I completely understand your situation, and I also get that you don’t want to punish your son for practicing the common teenage gift of absent mindedness. However, you have to remember that while he’s being the wheel, his lack of attention could end up in at the best higher teen driver car insurance rates, and at the worst a serious car accident. The first thing that I would do would be to sit down and talk to him about paying more attention on the road.

After that, whether he starts to pay more attention or not, I would enroll him in a defensive driving course. Most teen driver car insurance companies will give you a discount for taking a defensive driving course, and they are often good for the whole family so that rates for everyone can be lowered.

Defensive driving can be helpful in supplementing the knowledge that your son learned in his driver’s education courses. It goes beyond simply knowing the laws of the road and teaches teenagers and their parents about one of the most important concepts for owners of a teen driver car insurance policy–accident avoidance.

There are several types of classes that you can take, and usually you can call your teen driver car insurance company and ask them which ones will be acceptable to count towards the discount. One of my favorites, though, that I have heard of is Xtreme Measures, which is taught by David Reutimann, a driver for NASCAR. This defensive driving class is accepted by many teen driver car insurance companies, and besides that, it travels! It was in California recently, and a bunch of teenagers took the two day course that involved intense lessons and fun obstacle courses. Here is a bit of advice from the course for driving while it’s raining:

• If you notice that the weather is starting to turn foul, double check your windshield wipers. You do NOT want to get caught out in the rain without wipers. Believe me, one time the motor on my wipers broke, and I was an hour away from home. I bought something that you can spray on your window which will make the rain just slide off to the side, and it’s great. You can ask for it at your local auto parts shop and they’ll know what you mean. I would keep it on hand for emergencies.
• Keep your windshield clean. Get the dirt, bugs, and bird poop off before you go driving. It helps you to see better.
• If it’s raining hard, go slow enough so that you can squint your eyes and drive according to how far ahead you can see.
• If the rain is pouring too hard, get off the road and find somewhere to hang out until it dies down.

The suggestions and real life practices are fantastic, and can help your teen drive more safely and also lower your teen driver car insurance rates.

Cheers,

Fashun Guadarrama.

What kind of discounts can a student get on her teen driver insurance?

Ruth

Thanks for asking, Ruth.

Being a full time student and having to pay the much higher teen driver insurance prices would be difficult for everyone, but if you take advantage of all of the teen driver insurance discounts that are available to you, you could get your rates down to something lower even than your parents. All you need to do is pick the right company that has the highest discount percentages, the best service, and the best quotes.

• Are you a good student?

Most teen driver insurance companies will offer a discount for those students who make good grades in school. The requirements differ, but what is more often than not required is that the teen be a full time student and be able to provide either a transcript or a report card proving the good grades.

Then there are the requirements that vary depending on the teen driver insurance company. Some will require that you have been driving for at least a year and a half; others that be over sixteen but under the age of twenty five if unmarried, twenty one if married. The grade requirement is usually a B average, and between a 3.0 and 3.5 grade point average.

Some companies give better discounts than others. Farmers insurance, for example, has more restrictions, but the teen driver insurance discount for good students is 25%, whereas the same discount with GEICO is only ten to fifteen percent.

• Do you need a car anyway?

If you have teen driver insurance on your parent’s policy, then it might be good for both them and you if you leave your car at home when you go away to college. This depends on where you’re going, of course. Most companies only give out this teen driver insurance discount if you will be going to school one hundred or more miles away.

You’ll still be insured when you’re at home, and while you’re at school it’s a lot easier to get by without a car if you’re living on campus. It can also save you guys a good chunk of change on your teen driver insurance premium.