Car Insurance for Younger Drivers

One of the biggest worries that parents today face is when their teenagers reach the age where they are allowed drivers licenses. Unlike other countries, in the US, the teenager is allowed behind the wheel of the car at a tender age of 16. Most other countries wait till either 18 or 21. One of the greatest problems with younger drivers is the amount of insurance that you have to pay for them. Most of the time these teenagers would not have enough money to pay for this insurance and will rely on their parents to settle their insurance needs. Let’s look at the reasons why insurance for younger or teenage driver is so high.

The first and probably most obvious reason is that youngsters lack driving experience. For most insurance companies, the driver will need at least 3 years of driving history so that they are promoted to the status of “normal driver”.

The next problem that younger drivers face is simply their age. This is purely down to the risk profile that they represent. It has shown that if you are younger you are more likely to take risks and this is reflected by the increase premium. As an offshoot of this, young male drivers will sometimes have to pay at least double the premium compared to a similar age female driver. Again this is down to the risk that they represent to the insurance company.

Another problem for younger drivers is the impression that they feel a sense of independence with their new found “wheels”. The problem is that there is a mismatch of expectations. For most, getting behind the wheel means that they have to take on more responsibility. For youngsters it actually means freedom from the confines of their family structure and a beginning of their new lives as adults.

In addition to their already high insurance rates, it is vital that you convey to your youngsters that they have to be extremely careful on the road. Even the most minor traffic offence like a speeding ticket or even a parking ticket will mean a doubling or even a tripling of their already high insurance rates. It is generally a good idea to have a deal with your youngsters.  If they want to drive you will cover them with the basic insurance. If there is increases in the insurance because of something they have done then you will charge them for the increase.

Another important thing to understand is that the type of car that your youngster is allowed to drive will have a very big influence on the cost of insurance. The factor of impact is normally double what is felt by a normal driver. Youngsters normally a restricted to driving slow cars and should not be allowed to driver sports cars or large SUVs. The rates for youngsters in sports cars or large SUVs is normally extremely high, so high that it becomes impractical to even consider these vehicle types.

An important thing to do is to instill in youngsters the importance to keeping a clean driving record. How defensive driving should be used and why it is better for them. Why it is the logical thing to do. One way to get this message over is to not pay any of their fines, insurance rate increases etc. This way they will better appreciate that driving is not a right, rather it is a privilege that can be taken away by the government.

We all were youngsters once before. We know that it was a time filled with wonder and excitement. Everything was new and beautiful. Driving granted huge amounts of freedom but also meant that we got ourselves into a lot of trouble. Our youngsters will be exactly the same. Even with all the excitement, we should try to convey the basic importance of driving safely and the concept of car insurance to them.