Being a young driver is not an easy position to be in if you don't earn a lot of money to run a vehicle. Having capital to buy a car isn’t enough but just the start. There are maintenance and fuel costs and automobile insurance premium to pay. Every driver pays these expenses except that premiums can be two or three times more for younger drivers.
Various studies show that teenagers are four or five times more likely to have accidents. So, vehicle insurers require sufficient compensation to accept such high risks. The problem for a young person is that age and inexperience is the reason for these charges and there are only few things they can do to get cheap auto insurance. Here are some tips to bring down the costs.
Pay as you go auto insurance coverage
One of the best solutions for teenagers is to agree on installing a telematics device on their autos. This device will transmit information about their driving back to the insurance company. They can see their premium come down as soon as the company has enough information to confirm that they keep reasonable speed, avoid heavy braking and keep driving to sociable hours.
Actually, they can get immediate savings as companies are offering special discounts to motorists who agree on telematics installation. Also, motorists become more aware of their driving habits when they realize they are being monitored.
Getting good grades at school
Another way of proving that you are more responsible than most of the drivers in your age group is to show that you have better grades at school. Quite a few companies take grades into account when they calculate premiums. Generally speaking you need to be within the top twenty percent in your class to be considered a good student.
Shop around for the best deals
Even young people know that shopping around pays. When you check prices you often see that one company is offering the same item much cheaper than the others. Why would you pay more when you can get the same or almost identical thing cheaper? The same principle applies to auto insurance as well.
Car insurance quotes can be as much as $1,000 different between two companies especially when the teenage drivers are included in the equation. This is a huge amount of money when you are just starting in life and maybe still getting help from your parents.
The best way of shopping around is to use comparison websites like http://www.moneysupermarket.com in the UK and http://cheapautoinsurance.net in the USA. There are similar sites wherever you live and you can find them quickly on the internet. These websites show you the latest offers in your area and let you choose whichever company you like. Then, you can visit or call the company direct using the link or phone number offered on these websites.
Paying the premium upfront
This is a simple way of reducing costs and everyone can take advantage of it. When you pay the premiums in instalment you get charged handling fees and interest in most cases. This could easily increase the costs another six or seven percent. Furthermore, some companies offer further five percent discounts to policyholders who pay upfront.
There are several other ways of reducing your premium but those may come over time. When you just start driving you have limited history and this works against you. The above solutions are simple and most cost effective for young drivers.
