Auto Insurance for New Drivers

The premium for new drivers is going to be high simply because they have no driving record to base a premium upon.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, statistically, new drivers have four times more accidents than other drivers, with the highest number occurring for 16 year olds. This is because of their inexperience, but also because of immature driving habits such as speeding and tailgating. Immaturity behind the wheel also makes it more difficult for them to respond to potential hazards and take avoiding action. In 2008, about 4,000 13-19 year olds were killed on America’s roads, and 2,600 of them were males.

So, the response of Insurance Companies is naturally to make sure that the size of the premiums is enough to cover the cost of all the likely accidents.

However, not all Companies do their calculations in the same way – some offer better deals than others. Some are beginning to offer good discounts in the hope that you will stay with them for a long time beyond your early driving career.

The Golden Rule is always to shop around.

Here are a few tips

1.  Call at least three and if possible five companies including companies like All State

2.  Ask what special discounts you may be eligible for.

3.  Avoid having a sports car or anything that is likely to get stolen if you can avoid it (or be prepared to pay extra)

4.  Ask for a ‘good student’ discount of up to 10% if your grades are good

5.  Offer to do a driver safety course, or a defensive driving course

6. Take online safety course. For example, Nationwide auto insurance have a program recently called “SmartRide” that offers teenage drivers a discount of additional 5% on their insurance premium.

So, expect that the initial premium will be high, but remember that we all started once, and if you keep your driving record clean, you can expect the cost to fall in future.