Auto accidents are the leading cause of death for teens in the U.S. Each year over 5,000 teens ages 16 to 20 die due to fatal injuries caused by auto accidents. Further, about 400,000 drivers in the same age group will be seriously injured every year. With that said, it isn’t really surprising that insurance premiums for teens are much higher than normal. So what can you do to minimize teen insurance rates?
One thing you need to do is shop around for insurance. It is not uncommon for rates between two different insurance companies to differ by hundreds of dollars for the exact same coverage. Currently, the auto insurance industry is extremely competitive, so chances are there is an insurance company willing to offer you a competitive teen rate, but you won’t know unless you actually shop around. Adding teens to a family policy rather than putting them on their own will also lower the rates.
Give teens a lower priced secondhand rather than a brand new one. Usually, the more expensive the car, the more the premiums are (A disclaimer here is that some lower priced cars just happen to be very popular to car thieves, which can make them more expensive to insure). A vehicle with air-bags, an alarm system, day time lights, and anti-lock brakes can also lower your rates. Teens that have completed a course in defensive driving may also warrant a lower rate.
It would also be a good idea to check how much your premiums would decrease if you raised the deductible. In most cases, the higher the deductible, the lower your monthly premiums are. You should also encourage teens to get good grades. Insurance companies know, or seem to think that students with better grades will be more responsible on the road. This results in lower premiums.
The most important thing you can do is make your teen a safe driver, and you can do this by teaching them responsibility. Hold them accountable for their actions, and make them responsible for that $1000 deductible. Doing so may just be enough to encourage them to drive just a bit safer, which may result in more than just monthly savings.
Here are some interesting teen driving stats:
The accident death rate for male teens is around 1 ½ times more than that of female teen drivers.
The highest risk of teens having an auto accident occurs within the first year of driving.
Having male teen passengers in a vehicle has been shown to increase the likelihood of high risk driving behaviors among teenage male drivers.
According to studies, of the male teen drivers b/t ages 15-20 that were killed in an auto accident, 38% were speeding and 24% had been drinking alcohol.
More than half of teen deaths from auto accidents occurred between 3 p.m. and midnight and 54% occurred on weekends.
Teen drivers are more likely to speed and tailgate.
Teens have the lowest rate of seat-belt use. According to surveys, about 10% of high school students report they do not wear seat belts.
Because they lack driving experience, teen drivers tend to underestimate hazardous driving situations and are less able than older drivers to recognize dangerous situations.
Teens are about 10 percent of the US population and account for 12 percent all fatal auto accidents.
The risk of being involved in an auto accident is the highest for drivers b/t 16-19 years old.
Lowering Teen Auto Insurance Premiums
Auto accidents are the leading cause of death for teens in the U.S. Each year over 5,000 teens ages 16 to 20 die due to fatal injuries caused by auto accidents. Further, about 400,000 drivers in the same age group will be seriously injured every year. With that said, it isn’t really surprising that insurance premiums for teens are much higher than normal. So what can you do to minimize teen insurance rates?
One thing you need to do is shop around for insurance. It is not uncommon for rates between two different insurance companies to differ by hundreds of dollars for the exact same coverage. Currently, the auto insurance industry is extremely competitive, so chances are there is an insurance company willing to offer you a competitive teen rate, but you won’t know unless you actually shop around. Adding teens to a family policy rather than putting them on their own will also lower the rates.
Give teens a lower priced secondhand rather than a brand new one. Usually, the more expensive the car, the more the premiums are (A disclaimer here is that some lower priced cars just happen to be very popular to car thieves, which can make them more expensive to insure). A vehicle with air-bags, an alarm system, day time lights, and anti-lock brakes can also lower your rates. Teens that have completed a course in defensive driving may also warrant a lower rate.
It would also be a good idea to check how much your premiums would decrease if you raised the deductible. In most cases, the higher the deductible, the lower your monthly premiums are. You should also encourage teens to get good grades. Insurance companies know, or seem to think that students with better grades will be more responsible on the road. This results in lower premiums.
The most important thing you can do is make your teen a safe driver, and you can do this by teaching them responsibility. Hold them accountable for their actions, and make them responsible for that $1000 deductible. Doing so may just be enough to encourage them to drive just a bit safer, which may result in more than just monthly savings.
Here are some interesting teen driving stats:
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