Cut Car Insurance For Teens 8 Tips

If your son or daughter is heading out on the road for the first time, be sure you're not breaking the bank on insurance rates. Here are ways to keep costs in check.

Your auto-insurance premiums

are likely to skyrocket when your teenage son or daughter starts driving. But a few key moves can help you cut costs significantly.

Raise your

Comprehensive and collision deductibles to at least $1,000, which lowers your premiums and keeps you from filing small claims that could jeopardize a claims-free discount. Add some more money to your emergency fund so you'll have the cash to pay the deductible if anyone in your family does have an accident.

Drop collision and comprehensive

Coverage entirely on older cars that are worth little more than the deductible. You may be paying more in premiums than you could ever get back from the insurer, even if the car is totaled. Let your car's Kelley Blue Book trade-in and retail values guide you.

Get a safe car

Having your child drive a safe car will help you sleep easier and keep your auto-insurance rates under control, too. Check safety ratings at the  Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Encourage your kids

To get good grades. Most insurers offer a big discount for young drivers who maintain at least a B average in high school or college. College kids generally need to take at least 12 credits to qualify for the discount, says Trisha Mujadin, an independent insurance agent with Seattle insurance agency NRG.

Tell your insurer

If your child goes away to college. If your child goes to school more than 100 miles away and doesn't take a car, you can usually get a big break on your premiums but still have coverage when he or she comes home for vacation.

Ask about other discounts for teenage drivers

Some insurers offer discounts for driver-safety programs, cutting costs for kids who take a special class, watch a DVD, or read a driver safety book and take a test. Ask your insurer what your son or daughter needs to do to qualify.

Make the most of Discounts

Multipolicy discounts. You'll usually get a break on both your auto insurance and homeowners insurance if you keep the policies with the same company. You may get an additional discount if you include an umbrella policy, which provides extra liability coverage beyond your auto insurance limits and can be particularly valuable when you have a teenage driver.

Shop around 

Some insurers offer much better deals than others for teenage drivers, so it's important to compare costs. The insurance company that offered the best rate for you and your spouse may have some of the highest rates when you add a teenage boy to the policy (and it's almost always better to add the child to your policy rather than have him get his own policy). "One company we work with is really great with young drivers and another is horrible," says Nikki at Bergen Insurance.

You may not want to switch from a longtime insurer just to save a few dollars, however, because your current company may be less likely to raise your rate or drop you if your child has an accident. "If you stay with the company where you've been, there's some value to that -- there's more room for forgiveness." Also keep in mind that if you've been getting a multipolicy discount, your homeowners-insurance rate might rise if you take your auto insurance business elsewhere.

One thing you don't want to do in an attempt to reduce your premiums is skimp on liability coverage. Bergen Insurance recommends liability limits of at least $250,000 per person, $500,000 per accident and $100,000 for property damage (or a policy with a "combined single limit" of $500,000, when available, which doesn't limit the coverage to $250,000 per person involved in the accident). Young drivers are more likely to have accidents, and lowering your liability limits could leave you on the hook for tens of thousands of dollars in expenses if your child hits another car or injures someone.