Cut the cost of insuring your teen driver

One in six teens is in a car accident the first year of driving

Insuring teen-age drivers is expensive, but there are things that you can do that may reduce your costs. 

1.    Have the teen take a driver’s education class.

2.    Encourage your teen to keep his or her grades up – many insurers give a 10% or greater discount off the cost of coverage to students who maintain a B average.

3.    Don’t buy a new car for yourself or your teen.  An older car can cost significantly less to insure.

4.    Find out how your insurance company assigns drivers to cars.  This can make a big difference in the premium that you pay.  Your agent can help you compare the same coverage from different companies and there may a significant savings based on how this is done.  Don’t misrepresent the facts, as doing so may void your coverage.

5.    Consider whether to report little fender-benders.  Given how much even a minor fender-bender can raise the premium for car insurance for a teen-ager, it may make sense to pay for minor repairs yourself and not turn them in to the insurer.  Talk to your agent before making this choice, as you must be certain that not reporting an accident is not a violation of the insurance contract, which can result in the insurance being cancelled upon discovery of the unreported accident retroactive to the date of that accident.

Questions about how to stretch your car insurance dollars, especially with a teen driver?  Contact Robert Koerper at (314) 712-7110 or insurestl@gmail.com.