Young Driver Car Insurance

Make It Affordable

Are you dreading the day when you have to add your teen to your car insurance policy? You have probably ready heard nightmare stories from friends whose young driver car insurance resulted in a 50-100% increase in the family's overall premiums.
 

Lots of car insurance companies consider drivers under the age of 25 to be at much higher risk for vehicle-related accidents. And if you've driven by your local high school parking at 3:00 lately, you probably know too well the driving habits of young drivers. There are a few things you can do to help your teen become a safer and cheaper-to-insure young driver. The following five ideas will have a positive impact on your young driver car insurance rates:

1. Keep that driving record clean. Even one DUI infraction can multiply a young driver's car insurance premium by a factor of ten. And that's not just for one year. The increased annual premium is likely to stay in effect for three years, costing literally thousands of extra dollars in increased insurance premiums.

2. Keep those grades up. Some car insurance companies offer lower rates to young drivers who qualify as full-time high school or college students and maintain at least a 3.0 grade average. It doesn't hurt to ask about it when you're shopping for car insurance quotes!

3. Consider an accredited driver safety course for your young driver. Some insurance companies sponsor them locally, or check online with the National Safety Council. Your young driver might qualify for a car insurance discount, and is likely to become a safer driver in the process. A double win.

4. Consider a safer car. By avoiding sport cars, expensive cars, and SUV's your young driver may save up to 50% on car insurance premiums. Consider a newer model car with airbags as a cheaper, and safer, alternative for your teen.

5. Stuff the car with safety features. To keep your teen safe, and save on car insurance premiums, consider adding side-airbags, automatic seat belts, and anti-lock brakes to your young driver's vehicle.

By considering these five factors that affect young driver car insurance, you can make those teen years a little less expensive and a lot more enjoyable.

When you're ready to start shopping for young driver car insurance, consider getting multiple quotes from the online service recommended below. They provide at least five free quotes from major insurers.

Rental-car insurance

Rental-car insurance can be confusing, costly

As a retired financial adviser, Susan Edwards feels pretty comfortable about most money questions.

But she admits to being stumped recently when she got to a car-rental counter at Sky Harbor International Airport and the agent asked if she wanted to purchase insurance on the car.

Edwards, who lives in Phoenix but needed a rental while her own vehicle was in the shop, decided to buy one of the insurance options. The clincher came when the agent at the counter pointed out that her personal auto policy might not cover "loss of use," which refers to possible lost revenue for the rental-car company while a damaged vehicle is being repaired.

The coverage wasn't cheap. "I was paying $22 a day for the car and $16 a day for the insurance," said Edwards, who returned the vehicle with no damage but continued to wonder whether she was right to buy extra coverage.

Many travelers struggle with the same question. In a survey by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, 42 percent of consumers said they were "thoroughly confused" or had only a rough idea of what their personal auto policies covered when it came to rental cars. A survey by Progressive found widespread ignorance about optional rental-car insurance.

Regular policies that people carry for their own vehicles do provide a lot of protection on rental cars. But specifics vary, so it's important to read the fine print or check with your agent.

According to the Arizona Insurance Council, personal auto policies generally cover expenses, less deductibles, arising from the theft or vandalism of a rental vehicle. If you cause an accident, your personal liability insurance likely would pay for damages and medical expenses. Many personal auto policies cover loss of use on rental vehicles if sidelined more than 24 hours, but they limit reimbursement to a reasonable amount of time for repairs to be made. Larger insurers are more likely to offer protection. If you buy insurance from a rental-car company, that coverage kicks in first.

Beyond that, you typically can get extra protection if you charge the transaction with a credit card. "In most cases, these benefits are secondary to your personal auto insurance or the car rental company's insurance, meaning the credit-card company will only pay claims after other insurance coverage has been exhausted," states the NAIC.

Credit-card protection typically covers collision damage or theft of a vehicle, along with loss of use, reasonable towing charges and administrative costs. It doesn't cover injuries, personal liability, damage to property other than the vehicle or the loss or theft of belongings.

But loss-of-use coverage is hazy. Credit cards typically pay for this but often only if the rental-car company provides verification that other vehicles weren't available for lease, and rental firms often won't divulge that information, according to CreditCards.com.

It's worth noting that loss of use is a low-dollar risk compared with other driving perils. On the other hand, there's something to be said for keeping your travels as hassle-free as possible, especially if you're in another country.

Incidentally, rental-car coverage is one reason Consumer Reports' ShopSmart magazine recommends using credit rather than debit cards on trips. Other reasons include the travel insurance and concierge assistance that cards provide. Plus, it's often easier to dispute questionable credit charges, and your liability for unauthorized purchases, just $50 maximum on credit, is lower than with debit.

To access credit-card coverage on rental cars, you typically need to pay for the transaction with your card, be the primary renter of the vehicle and decline the collision-damage or loss-damage waiver offered by the rental company.

There are other wrinkles, too. Credit-card coverage generally doesn't apply on vehicles rented in a handful of foreign locales -- notably Jamaica, Israel, Ireland and northern Ireland. Nor does it cover long-term rentals. Visa, for example, covers up to 15 days on domestic rentals or 31 days outside the country. In addition, protection often doesn't extend to rare or particularly expensive vehicles. And be forewarned: Reckless or unwise driving, including off-road use or driving while intoxicated, invalidates the coverage.

If you don't have a personal auto policy, opting for rental-car coverage is wise. Otherwise, the decision isn't always clear-cut, so check the coverage you already have, on personal auto policies and credit-card accounts, before leaving home.

Basic Information On Car Insurance

When you are ready to purchase an automobile, one of the most important things to consider is car insurance.  Depending on the kind of car you are going to purchase, your insurance premium could be high or low.  For instance, if you purchase a brand new luxury car, you can expect to pay a hefty amount for your car insurance.  However, if you are purchasing an older compact car, the premium would be quite a bit less.  No matter what kind of car you get, it is important to understand some basic information about auto insurance so that you will know what you are getting and can make a good decision about what you are willing to pay for it.

Nearly every state requires automobile owners to carry liability insurance coverage.  This type of insurance protects you from the cost of paying for damage to the other person involved in any kind of accident you may have caused.  There are two parts to this coverage, usually broken out as bodily injury liability coverage and property damage liability coverage.  The bodily injury coverage helps to pay medical bills for physical injuries sustained by the other party.  The property damage portion of the liability insurance covers damage to their vehicle.

Another required type of car insurance in most states is uninsured motorist coverage.  In addition to uninsured motorist coverage, which nearly all states require, many also require that you carry underinsured motorist coverage.  These two types of coverage protect you if the driver of the other car who caused the accident is not covered or does not have sufficient coverage to pay for the damage you received.  This is beneficial because sometimes people have the very minimum amount of coverage, and the limitations may be too low to cover all of the damage costs.

If you get a bank loan in order to pay for the car you plan to purchase, you will be required to have comprehensive insurance.  This is an optional insurance coverage if you do not get a bank loan.  This is the kind of insurance that covers damage done to your vehicle, whether that means a window get’s broken when your son hits a baseball through it or your windshield needs replacing.

Medical payments insurance is type of car insurance that covers the people inside your car no matter whose fault the accident is.  There are some states that require no-fault insurance to make sure that you and your passengers are covered.  Some of the things this insurance covers include medical payments, lost wages, and funeral expenses.

If you own a luxury car or if you own a classic car, you may want specialty insurance in addition to some of these more common types of car insurance.  The point is that you don’t have to simply accept the coverage an insurance agent wishes you to have. You can ask questions and find out for yourself which types of coverage will work the best for your car and your situation.

One thing that affects the premium is the amount of deductible you agree to.  If you agree to a high deductible, your premium is usually lower than if you opt for a low deductible.  However, it is important to remember that you will have to pay that deductible each time you make a claim, so if your deductible is quite high, that could be hard to come up with if you get in an accident.

In addition to the different car insurance coverage options and the deductible amount, many insurance companies offer discounts for a variety of things.  If you have certain after-market security equipment, take certain drivers education courses, or combine a home and auto policy, your premiums may be lowered because of discounts.

Take the time to learn a little more about car insurance before you buy it.

Car Insurance

Car Insurance – Choosing Options Carefully

Car insurance is a necessary expense for anyone who owns and drives a vehicle. Insurance is the provision for you, the car owner, and will protect you and your property in the case of a catastrophic event. However, car insurance only covers certain things, and may be different for each insurance company and in every state. For example, if someone has liability insurance, which only protects the property of the other car in an accident, then you may not be able to get your car replaced if there is a flood, even though you had insurance. Again this may depend on the insurance type.

While not all states require at liability or full coverage car insurance, most do require liability. And even when it is not required, it is always a good idea to have either liability or full coverage, as statistically speaking, most people will be in some form of traffic accident in their lives. Not only can it protect your property, but insurance can help cover any medical expenses accrued during an accident, and may even help protect any personal property, such as a laptop, that was in the vehicle at the time of the accident. Read the fine print of your policy carefully.

There are also rental car insurance policies, and insurance for those who are leasing a vehicle. To further complicate matters, you can also have a separate insurance on the vehicle if it is a company vehicle, in which case, it may or may not fall under the responsibility of your employer to cover you while driving a company owned car. There are many stipulations and regulations for each state, and sometimes for each county. It is advisable to find an insurance company that specializes in car insurance, in order to make sure that you have the coverage that you need.

Before you sign any documents for car insurance, always read the documents from top to bottom, and carefully take note of anything that is not clear or that you do not agree with. Never sign any insurance agreements until you are comfortable with the information. It is only too late to change your mind when your signature is on that piece of paper. Until then, ask all of your questions write down that answers and think it over before you decide. That way, you know that you will be informed and will have made an educated decision for your insurance needs.

Auto Collision Insurance

What can you reap from Auto Collision Insurance?

When a person is given a privilege there is always a responsibility attached to it just like in driving. All states will require a driver to get auto collision insurance for their safety of everyone. As you try to look for the best auto collision insurance, you will find myriad of companies offering this type of insurance depending on the vehicle that you are driving, the used of the vehicle and the payment that you want in case an accident happen in the future. All of these factors are important when choosing a type of auto collision insurance. It is important for you to remember that the cost will also vary according to the age of the driver, the place where you are driving and your personal record as a driver.

Companies that offer auto collision insurance will charge a premium or monthly payment to the driver for an agreement that the company will pay everything from fixing damages that your car incur during the accident, your medical bills, medical bills of others and everything that you have agreed before signing the agreement. There is also a deductible or a onetime payment that the insured needs to pay. The payment that was written on the agreement will stay the same no matter how much the company needs to pay for the accident.

Of course, as a driver you need to know the different types of auto collision insurance that you can get because it is a heavy sin against the law to drive without any insurance in any states in America. You will find the basic liability coverage that will give you the chance to drive your car in any place legally and this insurance coverage will pay a predetermined amount in case you hit a car or someone. It is important to note that this basic insurance liability coverage might not include fixing the damages of your car.

The second auto collision insurance is the comprehensive one and it is also known as “full coverage” insurance. Within this type of auto collision insurance the company will pay a fixed amount for a particular type of accident and it will also include fixing your car. The deductible also applies in this type of insurance coverage where the insured will be required to pay a onetime payment or a partial payment of the total damages. A usual deductible can start from $100 to $500. A reliable insurance company or agent will allow you to freely choose the type of auto collision insurance that you want. You can also choose the amount of deductible that you want to pay however you might pay more for your monthly payment if you will choose to pay a smaller deductible.

Auto Insurance Rates

What are some of the key factors that will affect your auto insurance rates?

Even the best auto insurance rates are likely to get affected by a number of factors.  For instance, when a claim is made the insurance provider will immediately consider the policy holder to be risky.  And because of this, the insurer will hike the premiums for the policy holder.

The policy premiums are likely to see a rise after a claim is made because the insurer will have to pay for damages to your vehicle as well as damage to any other property.  The insurer will also have to provide for the medical treatment for you as well as the other injured passengers in the vehicle.  The insurer will also have to cover loss of wages and other damages if the claim is made.

If the opposite party which was involved in the accident was uninsured, then the insurance provider will have to cover all the related expenses and this could turn out to be very costly.  Most of the time when an insurance claim is settled the insurance provider will recover that amount for you.  But in most cases they might be unable to recover the entire amount.  Hence, when the policy is renewed you will be made to pay up higher premiums so they can counter the risks of any claims that would be made in the future.

The other factor that will affect your insurance premium is traffic violations – a speeding ticket for instance.  While, this might not pose a direct threat to your insurer, but will definitely add to the risk factor.  All these traffic violations will reflect carelessness on the part of the individual.  Your premiums are likely to increase if your insurance provider thinks that you are a reckless driver.

Your premiums may also go up if there are too many claims settled by your insurance provider – even the ones that are made by the other policy holders.  Even if you don’t have anything to do with this, the premiums will be hiked for all policy holders if too many claims are made.

The premiums will also go up each time you add a new driver to the existing policy.  This really has nothing to do with the age of the driver, the driving records etc.  However, the rates could be higher if the driver is very young or inexperienced or if it is someone who does not have a perfect driving record.

Auto Insurance Coverage

Tips that can come in handy while buying auto insurance coverage for seniors

Most often senior citizens do not like the idea of being driven around and will not give up their freedom to drive even when they get older.  They will never admit that their driving may not be as perfect as it may have been.  The older drivers who have crossed 75 are generally at a high risk on the roads and the statistics show that this age group is involved in a huge number of accidents, which are especially high during the daytime.  Most of these accidents are fatal.

Any unfortunate incident such as an accident should be a valid reason for the elderly to quit driving.  Senior citizens must take enough safety measures and improve their driving skills to remain safe on the roads.  Some states offer discounts on the auto insurance rates for those who successfully complete the driver’s safety course.  All these details can be obtained from the insurance advisors and can be of a great help for senior citizens.

Senior citizens can save a lot of money on their auto insurance in a number of ways.  It is easier to check the insurance companies that are in the area they live in.  One could also make online comparisons after obtaining the quotes as the rates vary from one company to another.  Some analysts claim that they could even go up by 300%.  Seniors will also have to ensure that they obtain adequate coverage as per their requirements and can also avail the discounts which can help in saving a lot of money.

Paying a higher deductible is another way that one could save money.  Having a ‘model’ and ‘make’ which is categorized as a ‘low profile car’ also helps in bringing the premium down.  The cost of repairing these vehicles is on the lower side and these cars are generally not stolen.

All the extra coverage can be dropped as it would be unnecessary.  This will also help in saving a lot of money.  If the person is driving an old vehicle, it makes sense to do away with the comprehensive and the collision coverage.  If the value of the vehicle is not worth the cover, then it makes sense to drop the comprehensive cover.

Installing additional safety features on the car will also help in availing discounts on the auto insurance premiums.  Seniors could also avail the group insurance benefits and some may even be eligible for corporate discounts from a previous workplace.