Perhaps the most sought after milestone for a teenager is to obtain their driver’s license. To a teen, this is the ultimate prize and status symbol. Being able to pull up to school every morning behind the wheel of your own – or your parent’s – vehicle, and be the envy of all your friends, is something that every teenager strives for. With a driver’s license comes independence and freedom. What teenagers and their parents need to remember, is that holding a license to drive a vehicle also involves maturity and responsibility; or so it should.
Insurance premiums are determined by a number or contributing factors, including the type of vehicle you drive, the annual mileage and purpose of driving, and most importantly, an individual’s driving record and history. The more experience a person has behind the wheel, the lower the insurance premiums will be. Motorists who have been driving for several years have more knowledge and are better prepared to handle certain situations. They know how to adapt their driving to adhere to road conditions or certain weather conditions such as snow, rain, ice, or fog. Their judgement and perception is evolved and their ability to recognize potential hazards and dangers is well developed.
Teenagers who have just recently been awarded their driver’s license possess none of these skills. These are abilities that come with time and experience. Basic procedures can be taught in a classroom, but unless you have opportunity to actually apply what you have learned, then there is no substitute for experience. Because of this lack of knowledge and understanding, teenagers are more apt to drive recklessly and disobey traffic laws. They tend to speed more and are subject to more collisions as they don’t know the proper methods to avoid them. They are not accustomed to driving defensively. And because they are at such an impressionable and influential age, they are more likely to drive while under the influence of drugs or alcohol. This is the main reason that car insurance is much more expensive for a teenager than it is for someone with many years of driving experience under their belt.
It is normally more beneficial for a parent to add their son or daughter onto their insurance policy rather than having a separate one issued. By doing this, the rates may be reduced as normally teenagers are assigned as occasional drivers rather than principle operators of a vehicle. If a teenager shares a vehicle, and doesn’t actually drive one exclusively, they will enjoy a lower rate. There are some benefits to having their own automobile on your policy as you may be eligible for multi-vehicle discounts.
However, this being said, parents also may want to consider purchasing a separate policy for their teenager after all. This is an important decision. If they gauge their child to be less responsible than they should be and thus more likely to become involved in an at fault accident, parents must be aware that this affects their policy rates. If a serious accident occurs, the registered owner of the vehicle and policy owner may both be held accountable for damages. Having their own policy will help teach a teenager responsibility and maturity and ultimately lead to lower rates.
If a parent decides that their teenager will have their own vehicle, it is important to remember that each vehicle is rated differently and some are more expensive than others to insure. Many teenagers would love to drive a shiny and fast sports car, but unfortunately, these are the vehicles that are charged higher insurance premiums. The best suggestion is to purchase an older vehicle and cover it only with liability insurance. Older vehicles tend to be less costly to repair than newer vehicles and this directly impacts the premiums charged.
Teenagers should be sure to take advantage of several discounts that are offered by insurance companies. Many companies will reward students with lower premiums if they can achieve high marks in their school studies. Every teenager should enrol in a certified and recognized driver’s training course. This course is designed to equip new drivers with knowledge that they will need in order to safely drive on the roads on a daily basis. By taking this course, a teenager will be rewarded with rates based on them actually having a few years driving experience rather then be rated as a brand new driver.