Seeing a child reach legal driving age is a bittersweet moment for lots of parents. Bitter in the sense that their little one is all grown up, yet sweet in the sense that their days as taxi drivers will soon be over. Yet nothing can be set in stone until that child earns his driver’s license and is added to your insurance policy. As for the latter condition, that’s one of the things many parents fear the most.
Auto Insurance for Young Drivers
Purchasing auto insurance for young drivers is something parents have to do. There’s no point in trying to avoid it or skirt around the issue in an attempt to save a few dollars. If you have a young driver, and you fail to add him to your policy as required, that is legal grounds for your insurance company to deny a claim if that child should have accident. As soon as your child earns a drivers license you need to inform your insurance company.
Young Drivers Are Expensive
One of the reasons parents try to avoid adding children to their policy is the fact that young drivers are expensive to insure. Again, that is something there’s no point trying to get around; it’s a reality that can’t be changed. Purchasing car insurance for young drivers’ cost more than adults because young drivers are more likely to have accidents that result in serious claims.
Furthermore, young male drivers cost more to insure than females by a significant amount. That’s not without reason, by the way. Statistical analysis shows year after year that young males between the ages of 16 and 25 are responsible for a disproportionate number of accidents and traffic fatalities. Since these young drivers expose insurance companies to the greatest amount of risk, they are also charged the highest premiums. In some states the difference in rates between young men and young women can be as much as 125%.
Tips To Keep the Rates Down
If you are purchasing auto insurance for young drivers there are couple of things you can do to keep the rates as low as possible. First and foremost is to assign them to the least expensive cars in your household. In other words, if you have a brand-new Lexus and an eight-year-old Chevy, assign your young driver to the Chevy. By having him drive the least expensive vehicle in the household you’ll be limiting his risk exposure and making your car insurance company that much more comfortable.
Second, make sure you do everything within your power to control your child’s driving habits. Enforce curfews, restrict the number of passengers, and be prepared to take away the keys if your child gets a traffic ticket. As a parent, the best thing you can do to help keep insurance rates down is to encourage your children to drive responsibly and legally at all times. All it takes is one accident or violation to send your car insurance rates through the roof.
