Where can a teenager get car insurance that won't empty the bank account?

[EllenFrasier]

My son is 18 and looking for a car. I suggested that he do an on-line quote or two and see what comes up. He did one and it came up $265 a month!!! Does anybody have any advice for us on how to find lower cost insurance?

 

[NYEmomma]

You don't happen to be military, do you? FIL was in the Air Force so DH (and now I do) has had USAA insurance since he turned 16. He said the rates were always really reasonable & the coverage is excellent.

 

[Judyat]

You should see how much it is to add him to your policy. It should be much cheaper.

 

[my3sonsagn]

You should see how much it is to add him to your policy. It should be much cheaper.

This.

I called our insurance company to find out what it will cost to add my DS17 to our policy (once he gets around to taking his test... he's not in a rush, and I'm certainly not pushing it!). It'll be $90/month (we pay over 10 months).

 

[swilshire]

This.

I called our insurance company to find out what it will cost to add my DS17 to our policy (once he gets around to taking his test... he's not in a rush, and I'm certainly not pushing it!). It'll be $90/month (we pay over 10 months).

What company is that, please? That sounds incredibly cheap. I still pay more than that for my 23-yo son who hasn't had any accidents or tickets.

Do you have fewer cars than drivers?

I originally had my oldest son restricted to driving only one car which had liability only, but the addition for him was never that cheap, and he didn't get his license until age 18.

Sheila

 

[Darcy03231]

If your son has his own car its going to be expensive. We put DS (18) on our policy with a car (2000 Chevy Malibu) and its $2k a year, just for him. Our insurance is through AAA.

 

[msmayor]

My son is 17 and we have him on our policy as well. We have three cars, and he is the primary driver of one on the policy - a 2008 Saturn Vue with full coverage.

I pay about $70/month for his portion of the insurance. We have USAA.

 

[my3sonsagn]

What company is that, please? That sounds incredibly cheap. I still pay more than that for my 23-yo son who hasn't had any accidents or tickets.

Do you have fewer cars than drivers?

I originally had my oldest son restricted to driving only one car which had liability only, but the addition for him was never that cheap, and he didn't get his license until age 18.

Sheila

We're with Amica. We have 4 cars and soon-to-be 3 drivers on the policy. That does include a discount for him having taken driver's ed and having good grades.

 

[MinnieGirl33]

DS17 added to our policy, driving a 1995 Sable was $2500 just for him

Gotta love NJ car insurance rates.

 

[ameraumi]

I currently pay $218 a month on 3 cars (1 is full coverage) and 3 drivers (DS18 being 1).

DS had a no fault accident 18 mos ago and 2 speeding tickets a year ago. I had to drop his car to liability only because full coverage was going to be over $2300/yr just for him! I think his portion of the bill is now $90/mo for liability only on a '98 Accord (and the car is still in my name only).

 

[*Emily*]

I work at an insurance agency in MA. The rules are insanely different here than other states but the general idea is the same.

Having his car on your policy (you may beed to register it in your name) is generally the cheapest option. This allows the vehicle to be eligible for certain credits that he may not be is he had his own policy (multi-car, account credit). Look at higher deductibles is you want physical damage coverage. This can save alot money for some. I wouldn't skimp on the liability coverage though.

Depending on the other cars listed on your policy you may want to look into excluding him from the others. I would only do this if he absolutely will not drive the other cars. If you did list him as excluded from a vehicle and he were to get into an accident with that car then he would have little to no coverage for that incident.

Also make sure he is receiving all credits/discounts available. There are good student discounts, driver training & advanced driver training credits, low mileage discounts, group discounts (clubs, alumni, etc), discounts for certain payment options (like EFT).

There is so much info that needs to be taken into account. I'd recommend finding a local agent that has access to multiple insurance companies. Talk to them about his situation and what your looking for. I'm sure they would be happy to give you a few quotes.

Good luck!

 

[Massillon Dad]

is it possible if you OWN the car (you are liable) that you are currently FULLY INSURED by your policy -INCLUDING- fully insured if you lend that car to someone else to temporarily use: be That lend be to you nephew, pastor, coach, accountant, barber, butcher, farmer or SON....they get in an accident: You may be covered! (States vary-ask your agent: of course the only "answer" he may give you might be the option where he makes a commision (separate Son policy).

 

[MrsPete]

I don't have any advice about companies, but consider what kind of insurance you're carrying:

A higher deductible will mean a lower payment (but higher risk).
Liability only will cost less than liability and comprehensive.
Are you carrying any "little extras" like towing insurance on your policy? If so, those can be cut.

Also, if you pay every 6 months or once a year, you'll pay less than you will if you're paying monthly. Paying monthly you're forced to pay a financing fee of a couple dollars a month.

We have a 17-year old, and her insurance is outrageously expensive: A little short of $1100/year. That's as much as our home owner's insurance, my car insurance, and my husband's car insurance COMBINED.

 

[Lumiere Lover]

DS's car insurance is $110 a month for a 2001 Convertible Ford Mustang.

Ouch!!

 

[EllenFrasier]

You should see how much it is to add him to your policy. It should be much cheaper.

For you and anyone else who suggested that we add him to our existing policy, my husband is very leery of doing that. He is afraid if our son gets into an accident we could get sued and they'd take our house away. I honestly do not know where he gets these ideas or how often this actually happens in everyday America, but he's convinced it is not a good idea.

 

[msmayor]

For you and anyone else who suggested that we add him to our existing policy, my husband is very leery of doing that. He is afraid if our son gets into an accident we could get sued and they'd take our house away. I honestly do not know where he gets these ideas or how often this actually happens in everyday America, but he's convinced it is not a good idea.

Which is why we carry a $1mil umbrella policy...for just this reason.

To the poster who suggested that you don't have to add the son to the policy...very risky in the case of a family member whose permanent residence is your house.

Its not 'lending' the car if he is driving it with ANY regularity.

 

[tar heel]

It's not necessarily true that you'll pay more by paying monthly. With our company, Liberty Mutual, there's no fee to pay monthly as long as you do automatic deductions from your bank account. We've paid monthly for a long, long time. I really don't have any incentive to pay any other way. Since our insurance is almost $3,000 at the moment, I'm glad I can do it that way.

Insurance for young people is extremely expensive. Our now-23-year-old has been on our policy for six years. It was $1,600 a year originally, went down a little bit, then he had a couple of mishaps and it's back to being more than mine and DH's combined. It would be even more if he got his own policy. He's working very hard but is underemployed, so we're helping him out by keeping him on our policy.

 

[a1tinkfans]

My 17 year old had a permit, we did not add him to our policy for those few mos. When he passed the road test I went online and was unable to get an actual quote without giving all our info, so I plugged him in our policy on the oldest vehicle (crv/98) as the driver. Our policy went up 980. for the year. When I tried to remove him, I could not. He was automatically added, I called geico, was told that since we alerted them and he lives in the household (therefore all the vehicles are accessible to him they must include him). Ouch...I was not too happy...but need him covered
BUT, they then reviewed the policy and asked me if he used the vehicle everyday, and he does not, uses it maybe on a weekend. I was told that he could be added on the policy but NOT associated with a specific car at a much reduced rate. So thats what we did, the policy went up 200/year. I was told that when he is 18 he can take the defensive class and get a reduction or get his own policy. In the meantime he will not get "credit" as a good driver until he has a policy in his own name.. so technically he could be 23 and if he never had a policy...then be charged $$$$ because he was not on own policy

As far as who is covered in your car as a driver, ANYONE that drives your car is covered under your policy for liability and no fault (NY) but that does not mean one should ignore purposely NOT adding a teen to a policy. A carrier CAN deny coverage (if they can prove) that an insured/policyholder intentionally did not add a person they knew drove the car or had full accessibility to it.
And an excess policy for a million, was much more reasonable than you would think.

 

[tar heel]

a1tinkfan's story is interesting b/c it demonstrates some of the differences among states. In North Carolina, you would not be looking for a policy AFTER your child takes the road test because you have to have proof that YOU are covered on an insurance policy before you can even take the road. You don't have to have anything until then -- you don't even have to report that a child has a permit. I don't believe it's possible to cover a teen and pay $200 a year either, unfortunately. Our insurance company does not give us the option to not assign a car to our son since right now we have more cars than drivers. If you have more drivers than cars, you can do that.

 

[Patience]

Insurance for our 17 year old who drives a 2000 four door Honda Civic is just shy of $1400 per year. She is on our policy and this includes a good grades discount.