4 Tips to Get An Affordable Car Insurance for Your Teenager

Allowing your teenager to drive on their own can have many advantages. One of which is the convenience of not having to drive them from place to place. Yet they must truly acquire the responsibility to handle a car on their own and must meet the required age to secure a license. Of course, in order to prevent this additional vehicle to become a financial burden, the price of the car, its maintenance and insurance coverage must be reasonably affordable.

The fact is that most insurers charge (much) higher auto insurance premiums for teenagers. To the insurance companies, most teen drivers are more reckless and accident-prone than adults. This is at least true when you look at claims statistics.

Fortunately there are ways to lower the auto insurance premiums for your teenager's car. These pointers may help you get a better price from the insurers – in the long run and in the immediate future. These are tips that can help you enjoy the benefits of letting your teenager own a vehicle without burning a hole in your pocket:

1. Clean driving records. Well, this applies to any driver, especially teens, due to the tendency for auto insurers to slap them with higher-than-usual insurance premiums. Emphasize to your teen the importance of observing traffic laws and of having a clean driving record. Speeding tickets and other traffic violations instantly inflates their auto insurance cost to the stratosphere.

2. Increase the deductible. Auto insurance premium goes down as the deductible increases. However do take note that you’ll have to pay for the deductible amount in the event of an accident. So increase the deductible only to an amount you’re comfortable paying for.

3. Make and model of car. Some cars are categorized as more “hazardous” than others. Therefore their insurance premiums are higher. Sports cars attract the highest premiums, so avoid these. Choose an automobile that has a lot of advanced safety features built into it, and preferably one with a lower engine capacity.

4. Limit mileage. Advise your teen to drive only when necessary. Higher mileage tends to attract more bills –- higher auto insurance bills, gas bills, maintenance bills, et cetera. They certainly love joy rides, yet you’ll have to get them to schedule these activities and limit them to reasonable frequencies.

For teenagers, getting their own automobile evoke feelings of freedom and adulthood. They have probably spent some time fantasizing about arriving at a party driving their brand new car with their partner in it. And if you’re able to find an ordinary-looking, second-hand car that has a lower engine capacity, chances are you’ll be able to get a car with a reasonable price and affordable car insurance.

You may want to consider installing some anti-theft devices (like steering wheel locks, fuel cut-off devices, GPS tracking devices, et cetera) on the car as well. This may not only reduce the insurance premiums, it is also a way to protect the car from theft, which may result in a bad financial loss. (You may never recover your car in the event of theft, resulting in total loss)

Most importantly, help your teens be accountable for their vehicle. You can also encourage them to pay for part of the auto insurance or fuel cost. In the long run, their auto insurance bills will begin to see a decline and paying for their car insurance does become more affordable.

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