by jonsmith59 » Mon Mar 18, 2013 12:58 pm
Our son went off to college and his car was sold so they said we had to add him to our insurance and they tripled our insurance rate staing we had to pay occording to his age.If a 19 year old is a ocasional driver, and my wife is 58 and I am 54 why do we have to pay occording to our 19 year olds rates>?
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2013 08:13 pm Post Subject:
If your son is away at school 100 miles or more from your home, you should qualify for an additional auto insurance discount, so contact your agent/company, and make sure you are getting the best rate possible. If your son has a "B" or better grade average, he may be eligible for a good student discount, too. Ask about all young driver discounts available, and the best possible way to rate your son.
As long as your son's legal address is yours, he has coverage under your policy as a resident relative, that may extend as secondary coverage if he borrows a car, or primary coverage if he is injured as a pedestrian, depending on your coverage and state laws. When your son is home and driving your car, he is covered by your policy, so the insurance company charges for this additional risk.
If your son goes to college less than 100 miles away from your home, and you have three or more cars, some insurance companies will rate your son as a principal driver of one of them, while others may not. You may want to get auto insurance price quotes from other companies, for the same coverage you have now, to see if you can save money. All companies will want to rate for your son in some manner.
Posted: Mon Mar 18, 2013 08:59 pm Post Subject:
they said we had to add him to our insurance and they tripled our insurance rate staing we had to pay occording to his age
First, you are not bound by law to stay insured with the same company forever. You can always look for a lower cost of insurance. Unless your son is completely independent, its usually better if he is covered by your policy, so you should expect an effect in your rate. But paying triple sounds excessive to me. Find another company with the same coverage amounts for less money.Your son is not being rated based on his age, he is being rated on his experience. There is a difference. A person 50 years of age with less than three years of driving experience would probably pay almost the same amount as your 19-year-old son with three years of driving experience. In both cases, it's not very much experience. Older may be wiser, but that doesn't make an inexperienced driver a better driver.
Your son could also obtain a "Named, Non-Owner" auto policy, perhaps for a lot less than the additional premium on your policy. You could then exclude your son from coverage under your policy and your premium would decrease.
You have options. If you don't have a local agent or broker to guide you, you might not be aware of them. So find someone local you can work with to find the most appropriate solution.
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