Michael Seekens
Car Insurance Expert
What Car Insurance Coverage Do I Need?
Decide how much liability coverage is enough for similar type of drivers.
It is not easy finding good cars for teens; to keep a balance between buying a car that is affordable as well as reliable since safety is of utmost importance at this point. On top of that, the car insurance for young drivers is quite expensive. Thus you would need to a find a car that not only would be liked by the youngster but also be able to fit in the family's budget. You’ll also need to find the cheapest car insurance for young drivers!
The best bet is to get your teen a used car, a few which are mentioned below which will probably fit your budget more than a brand new car. Among other things these cars are:
All of these vehicles are from 2012 with electronic stability control (ESC). ESC helps the drivers to get control of a vehicle if they are stuck in a slide and this can be a lifesaver. According to a senior vice president for research at IIHS, the ESC is a must have. "Parents should never consider any vehicle that doesn't have electronic stability control," she has commented.
Below is the list of the auto that are recommended for car insurance 18-year-old (who is also getting their own insurance coverage) by Edmunds, with their average cost, the annual cost of the policy (highest and the lowest). These could be considered the cheapest cars to insure for teenage drivers.
Make and Model | Cost of Car | MPG | Reliability* | Lowest Quote | Highest Quote |
Honda Civic LX | $13,489 | 31 | 16 | $4,020 | $6,516 |
Kia Soul | $12,995 | 27 | 28 | $3,396 | $5,796 |
Subaru Legacy | $15,000 | 26 | 25 | $3,672 | $6,672 |
Toyota Prius 3 | $14,500 | 50 | 10 | $3,324 | $6,984 |
VW Jetta SE | $9,464 | 34 | 35 | $3,744 | $6,012 |
Chrysler 200 4-door | $13,000 | 24 | 17 | $3,864 | $5,652 |
Honda Fit | $13,700 | 31 | 8 | $3,612 | $5,796 |
Hyundai Elantra | $13,599 | 32 | 25 | $3,816 | $5,400 |
Ford Fusion | $10,995 | 26 | 26 | $4,176 | $6,252 |
Nissan Cube | $12,998 | 28 | 34 | $3,936 | $5,292 |
Subaru Impreza 2.0 | $11,790 | 30 | 15 | $4,008 | $6,768 |
Toyota Camry SE | $13,980 | 28 | 16 | $3,720 | $7,116 |
Hyundai Tuscan 2wd | $14,500 | 25 | 9 | $3,348 | $5,232 |
A car that you may find perfect for your teenager might not be so well liked by him or her. The kids would obviously like some fancy car while it might be completely out of your budget as well as it might not meet your criteria of the "right" car. The right car for teenagers, if something that the teens would consider "boring" - in other words, safe cars. The best is to give them a safe, boring car that they are not going to test their driving skills with, and sedan remains the perfect choice for new drivers.
No doubt the safety of the children and the car, in general, is obviously remains the first and the most important factor when choosing a car for teens and then comes the affordability factor which is not far behind. Parents need to check their own budget as well of whatever they can afford to spend on the kid's new car. The list mentioned above has quite a good range of cars between $9,000-$15,000 price ranges that should be kept as the ideal budget. The vehicles range from a basic, small car like a Honda Civic to a bigger car like Hyundai Tuscan SUV.
Most people prefer to give their kids a small and lightweight car and sometimes that is all they can afford, but experts suggest that a bigger car is a better choice for teen drivers. According to them, heavier vehicles are relatively safer in car crashes than the smaller and lighter ones, as the size of the vehicle and weight acts as a protection. When parents think about safety, they are only thinking in terms of the number of airbags, but the size of the vehicle is also very important.
The experts also suggest that you should not get your teen a car with a high horsepower as it would only suggest risky driving. So there should definitely be a big NO for sports cars and there should be no compromise on that as teen drivers do not need such powerful cars.
State | First Cheapest | Yearly Rate | Second Cheapest | Yearly Rate | Third Cheapest | Yearly Rate |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alabama | ALFA | $1,272 | Nationwide | $2,433 | The Cincinnati | $2,673 |
Arkansas | Columbia Insurance | $2,980 | Southern Farm Bureau | $3,184 | Shelter | $4,092 |
Arizona | Ameriprise | $4,220 | Progressive | $4,394 | Allied | $4,490 |
Colorado | Colorado Farm Bureau | $2,840 | Grange Insurance Association | $3,176 | American Family | $3,820 |
Florida | Electric | $4,131 | 21st Century | $5,345 | Mercury | $6,221 |
Iowa | Pekin Insurance | $927 | Progressive | $1,326 | Farm Bureau | $1,539 |
Illinois | Erie | $3,158 | The Cincinnati | $3,210 | Hastings | $3,504 |
Kentucky | The Cincinnati | $3,234 | Kentucky Farm Bureau | $3,744 | Motorists Mutual | $4,749 |
Michigan | Chubb | $3,299 | Hastings | $3,345 | Miller | $3,668 |
Minnesota | Farm Bureau Mutual | $3,225 | Western National | $4,158 | Allied | $4,308 |
Mississippi | ALFA | $1,553 | Unitrin | $2,472 | Mississippi Farm Bureau | $2,599 |
New Hampshire | Commerce Insurance | $1,056 | Nationwide | $2,124 | Concord | $2,664 |
Ohio | Erie | $812 | Grange Insurance | $1,320 | Nationwide | $1,488 |
Pennsylvania | Nationwide | $1,944 | Erie | $3,304 | Chubb | $3,958 |
South Dakota | Unitrin | $2,760 | Farmers | $2,784 | Western National | $3,216 |
Tennessee | Erie | $1,160 | Utica National | $2,456 | The Cincinnati | $2,907 |
Virginia | Chubb | $1,332 | Nationwide | $1,752 | ALFA | $1,986 |
Washington | Capital | $2,882 | Grange | $3,110 | PEMCO | $3,823 |
Getting the car insured for your teen is definitely an expensive task! While you may think they have become responsible, the insurance company may not think the same way and give them a high-risk rating. Car insurance policy for young drivers is always very expensive, whether you add your teens to your existing policy or even if you get their own policy. Teens are usually considered as an added risk and the insurance companies will obviously charge you for it. Males are usually riskier than female drivers according to the public records on fatal accidents.
The public stats is one of the main reasons for the premium increase when adding teens to an insurance policy, the rates to the parents existing insurance policy can double and a premium increase of anything between 100-200% is actually quite common.
So what to do when your teen is finally getting his car and now needs to do the difficult and pricey part, the insurance! So what can be the best option, shall the parents add the teen to their own existing policy or get an individual one for the teen? Different possibilities are mentioned below. It is always best to shop around for the best rates in insurance coverage as there can
Safety is always the foremost factor when deciding on anything for the teen. Safety is always the most important factor and insurance coverage is one way of addressing that risk. You obviously end up paying a lot more in terms of insurance premiums for the policy you get for the teen but at the end of the day; it is worth it to have the peace of mind.
Finally, you have all the details required that will help you decide which car will be the best for you to buy for your teenager, keeping in mind not only their safety levels, the durability of the car as well as how affordable it is for you. The above safest cars for teens should be helpful for you to decide. Good luck!
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