How much does car insurance for new drivers cost, anyway?
If you are the parent of a licensed teen, your rates are likely to go up – a lot – when you add your inexperienced driver to your car insurance policy. Every family is different, but adding a teen male to your policy usually will at least double your rates.
There are many factors that can change the amount a young driver will pay. They include where you live, the type of car you have, the safety features of the car and how much your teen will drive.
Why is car insurance for young drivers so expensive?
Teens are inexperienced behind the wheel and immature by nature. That’s a bad combination.
A brand-new driver is 12 times more likely to have an accident than someone with a year of experience, says the National Institutes of Health. A 16-year-old who’s had one accident is 50 percent more likely to have another, says the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration.
That’s why most insurers have a surcharge for inexperienced drivers.
In addition, maturity levels change quickly. Teens who get their licenses at age 18 have fewer fatal accidents than those who are licensed at age 16. Many insurers no longer lump all young drivers together but instead rate age groups separately.
At what age do young drivers’ rates go down?
In time, your insurer will rate you based on your own driving record rather than those for young drivers in general.
But each car insurance company makes its own decisions on when that happens. Most will not penalize a driver over the age of 25, but some carriers will lower rates for women when they turn 21 and men when they turn 24. Study after study finds that women mature more quickly and take fewer risks.
In addition to rating drivers based on age, insurers can also levy a surcharge for inexperience, usually for those who have been licensed less than a year.
Of course, a ticket or accident changes the equation considerably — and never in your favor.
What are the cheapest cars for young drivers?
The least expensive cars to buy aren’t always the least expensive to insure. Some cars cost more to repair after an accident, and some have a record of more injury claims than others do. And the least expensive car to insure may not be the safest. Electronic equipment such as stability control and antilock brakes can help novice drivers avoid accidents, and there can be a discount for having them.
In general, boring is good. The least horsepower and the most doors is a good guideline — usually, the lowest premiums go to minivans and small SUVs.
If your son or daughter will be driving a family car, make sure the new driver is assigned to the vehicle that’s cheaper to insure.
Typically, cars that are cheaper to insure when they’re new are also cheaper to insure when they are used. Insure.com has a new-car comparison tool that can help you zero in on a specific model. In addition, we’ve looked at used cars to find 20 we think are not only safe but also are relatively cheap to buy, run and insure.